Laura Kipnis’s Against Love is a self-described polemic; that is, it is an “aggressive attack or refutation”, in this instance, the book is aimed against the cultural concept of monogamous relationships. Kipnis’s supposition is that monogamy is innately tied into our capitalistic, consumer-driven society. While this is true enough, it doesn’t necessarily follow that adulterers are somehow revolutionaries acting against corporate oppression. If anything, Kipnis misses the metaphor entirely; if love equals work, then surely philanderers and cheaters are moonlighters, not rebels of the boudoir. Ultimately, Against Love’s polemic nature is both its best and worst quality: while the vitriol is humorous, it fails to offer much in the way of depth or conviction. Worse yet, it fails to offer a solution to the “relationships are work” equation, opting instead for a semantic cop-out. Besides, can you think of any worthwhile human endeavor that doesn’t require work?

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