Which scholar argued that relationships and family life are so diverse that there are no longer any clear norms about what a modern relationship should consist of?

Which scholar argued that relationships and family life are so diverse that there are no longer any clear norms about what a modern relationship should consist of?

• A. Lyotard
• B. Beck-Gernsheim
• C. Judith Stacey
• D. Baudrillard

Answer: (B)

Think about how late modern society changes how people form intimate bonds. The idea is that personal choice, flexible life paths, and the risks of modern relationships lead to many different ways of being a family, with no single blueprint that fits everyone. Elisabeth Beck-Gernsheim, following Ulrich Beck’s idea of individualization, argued that love and family life are shaped by individual decisions rather than social prescriptions. Because of this, there isn’t one clear norm for what a modern relationship should look like; people negotiate partnerships, parenthood, and family forms in diverse ways. That emphasis on the erosion of universal relationship norms through personal choice is why Beck-Gernsheim is the best match. (Lyotard, Baudrillard, and Stacey engage with related ideas in different ways, but Beck-Gernsheim most directly articulates the loss of a single normative script for relationships.)

Think about how late modern society changes how people form intimate bonds. The idea is that personal choice, flexible life paths, and the risks of modern relationships lead to many different ways of being a family, with no single blueprint that fits everyone. Elisabeth Beck-Gernsheim, following Ulrich Beck’s idea of individualization, argued that love and family life are shaped by individual decisions rather than social prescriptions. Because of this, there isn’t one clear norm for what a modern relationship should look like; people negotiate partnerships, parenthood, and family forms in diverse ways. That emphasis on the erosion of universal relationship norms through personal choice is why Beck-Gernsheim is the best match. (Lyotard, Baudrillard, and Stacey engage with related ideas in different ways, but Beck-Gernsheim most directly articulates the loss of a single normative script for relationships.)