An odd and inseparable couple: Emotion and rationality in partner selection

The dichotomy between emotion and rationality has been one of the most enduring of sociological theory. This article attempts to bypass this dichotomy by examining how emotion and rationality are conjoined in the practice of the choice of a mate. We posit the fundamental role of culture in determining the nature of this intertwinement. We explore the culturally embedded intertwining of emotion and rationality through the notion of modal configuration. Modal configuration includes five key features: reflexivity, techniques, modal emphasis, modal overlap, and modal sequencing. We apply this framework to the topic of partner selection. Comparing primary and secondary sources on pre-modern partner selection and on internet dating, we show that emotion and rationality were intertwined in both periods but that what differs between them is precisely the emotion-rationality modality.

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Eva IllouzEmail:

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Eva Illouz   Is Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is the author of five books: Consuming the Romantic Utopia: Love and the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism (University of California Press, 1997), The Culture of Capitalism (2002, in Hebrew); Oprah Winfrey and the Glamour of Misery: An Essay on Popular Culture (2003), Cold Intimacies (Polity Press, 2007); and Saving the Modern Soul: Therapy, Emotions, and the Culture of Self-Help (University of California Press, 2008). Shoshannah Finkelman   completed an MA in Sociology and Anthropology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in December 2008. She received a BA in English literature from Kenyon College, and studied for a year at Oxford University