Liquid Love: On the Frailty of Human Bonds

This book is about the central figure of our contemporary, 'liquidmodern' times - the man or woman with no bonds, and particularlywith none of the fixed or durable bonds that would allow the effortof self-definition and self-assertion to come to a rest. Having nopermanent bonds, the denizen of our liquid modern society must tiewhatever bonds they can to engage with others, using their ownwits, skill and dedication. But none of these bonds are guaranteedto last. Moreover, they must be tied loosely so that they can beuntied again, quickly and as effortlessly as possible, whencircumstances change - as they surely will in our liquid modernsociety, over and over again.


The uncanny frailty of human bonds, the feeling of insecurity thatfrailty inspires, and the conflicting desires to tighten the bondsyet keep them loose, are the principal themes of this important newbook by Zygmunt Bauman, one of the most original and influentialsocial thinkers of our time. It will be of great interest tostudents and scholars in sociology and in the social sciences andhumanities generally, and it will appeal to anyone interested inthe changing nature of human relationships.