In this fascinating lecture from the University Channel, author Stephanie Coontz shows how the good old days of marriage weren't always as happy as we'd like to believe, and that marriage has had its difficulties throughout history.
Her main point is that because marriage is based on choosing who you love in contemporary society, it has the potential to be more satisfying than in the past, but it has also made the institution more unstable. This lecture is available on streaming & downloadable video and MP3 audio download.