Being Single On Noah's Ark

Following World War II many returning GIs replaced the positions of female war-time workers. As a result, many women were faced with taking boring, low paid positions. As an alternative to this grim prospect, many of these women took advantage of the influx of returning GI bachelors and subsequent demand for wives, and began getting married and starting families, thus beginning the "baby boom." As a result, stereotypes were created to explain why some people chose to remain single and the conditions they supposedly faced. These stereotypes were beliefs held to explain the deviants and were in no way proven facts. Being Single on Noah's Ark is a summary of these trends over the past fifty years and further explores studies made in 1980 and 2005 in order to determine whether the stereotypes held about singles were myths or realities.

Cargan provides a brief history of marriage and family life and the changes occuring in them between 1950 and 2005. This book further evaluates the stereotypes that are applied to singles, noting changes that have occured in these beliefs.

Leonard Cargan is Professor Emeritus at Wright State University and has authored numerous books and articles on marriage, family, and being single.