ABSTRACT
This chapter examines in historical perspective attitudes to monogamy, love, and intimate relationships in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Feminist lesbians, she added, should also shun jealousy, and give short shrift to that problematic four letter word 'love'. As indicated in Jenny Pausacker's contribution above, LGBT movements also critically assessed love. Violence in both lesbian and gay relationships can stem from a desire to extract from partners the recognition and support denied by wider society, with extreme measures resorted to in order to hold on to someone. Similar long-run developments can be discerned among gay men, who have long been regarded as committed opponents of monogamy. American survey data from 2010 found that 46 percent of lesbian women had been in a violent relationship. Despite all this, it seems undeniable that many in the LGBT community have become more publicly enthusiastic about marriage, monogamy, and family in recent years.
