ABSTRACT

The extracts from romantic ®ction and a newspaper article quoted above illustrate some changing ways of talking about singleness. In different ways, and to different degrees defending themselves against common images of

singleness for women, the speakers put forward a notion that being without a boyfriend, husband or children does not have to be a failure but can mean freedom and choice about companionship. These are strongly positive claims; yet there are traces of more negative associations of singleness in each extract.