Temporary marriage: No longer ’till death us do part’?

Apr 13, 2017

The well-known author and academic Jeanette Winterson has called for fixed-term marriages.

Professor Winterson entered a same-sex marriage in 2015 with Susie Orbach, despite being initially “unsure about gay marriage” because of its association with “heterosexual, patriarchal norms”.

Jeanette Winterson is now seeking to further redefine marriage by throwing overboard the idea of lifelong commitment, asking: “why not discuss fixed-term contracts? … A fixed term might allow both parents to feel less pressure and more responsibility”.

The concept of a ‘fixed-term marriage’ must be firmly resisted. Marriage requires total commitment, not temporary assent.

C4M always warned that, once marriage was redefined for same-sex couples, there would be further redefinitions down the line. We need to continue speaking out for the true definition of marriage – the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.