ABSTRACT
When one commits to a sexually exclusive relationship, one undertakes to forgo opportunities for pleasure and utility. In this respect, such a commitment appears undesirable. Many people, however, even those who don’t choose to engage in a sexually exclusive relationship, acknowledge that there is some value in such relationships. How should we understand this value? In this essay, I argue that existing attempts to address this question fail because they do not attribute a distinctive normative significance to sex. I conclude that the value of a commitment to sexually exclusive love is sui generis.
