The Broken Hearth

Reversing the Moral Collapse of the American Family

By: William J. Bennett

Narrated by: Eric Park

Bestselling author William Bennett addresses the central social issue of our time—the deline of the family—in a book as intellectually provocative and politically controversial as his landmark The Death of Outrage.

Our recent economic prosperity has masked the devastation of the American family, which is now under seige as never before. From the dramatic rise in illegitimacy, divorce, and single parenthood to the call for the recognition of gay marriages, the traditional nuclear family is being radically challenged and undermined, along with the moral and legal consensus that once supported it.

Now in The Broken Hearth, William Bennett, America's foremost conservative spokesperson on matters of family values, presents a strong, well-reasoned, and informed defense of the traditional family. Interweaving history, anthropology, law, social science, and the teachings of Western religions, he argues that marriage between a man and a woman and the creation of a permanent, loving, and nurturing environment for children is a great historical achievement, one that should not be lightly abandoned in favor of more "progressive" arrangements. Bennett displays his ability to combine fearless conviction, acute insight, and respect for his adversaries in thorough, balanced, and enlightening discussions of single parenthood, cohabitation, gay marriage, and other trends that are undercuttingthe ideal of the family as the essential foundation of society.

Looking closely at the concerns and questions that divide America, Bennett provides a powerful affirmation of family life and the values and benefits it bestows on individuals and on society as a whole.©2001 William J. Bennett; (P)2001 Random House, Inc., Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, a Division of Random House, Inc.

The broken Hearth

This was a very good about how families have been harmed by the modern view of family. Families are so important to our society and the world at large. Without close, loving families, that consist of a man as the father and a woman as the mother, children generally, have a harder time developing into good, productive, and relied adults. Yes, there are families that don’t have two parents of the opposite sex that do well, but not as many. There are families living with parents of the opposite sex that aren’t meting the needs of the members. It happens but families and the children generally do better. Society needs to consider how marriage has been a help to the world in general and as the author has stated, place more importance on keeping marriages intact and less importance on the dissolution of marriages.