The Evolution of Relationship Structures
Your relationship model isn't biology—it's technology. And like all technology, it was built for problems that may no longer exist.
Every culture that's ever existed has experimented with relationship structures. The nuclear family is about 70 years old. Lifelong monogamy as a romantic ideal is even younger. What feels like "the natural way" is usually "the way it's been since I was a kid."
This series explores the full taxonomy of how humans organize love, sex, and partnership—from monogamy's origins to polyamory's logistics to relationship anarchy's philosophy. No moralizing. Just mechanics.
The Greeks Had Six Words for Love
We have one. That's a problem.
Monogamy Is a Construct
The default nobody chose.
Affairs: Rational and Maladaptive
When cheating makes sense.
Polygamy: A Historical Survey
The structure that predates monogamy.
The Lavender Marriage
When marriage is cover.
Key Parties and the Fishbowl
The origin story.
From Gay to Queer: Relationship Evolution
How the models evolved.
Relationship Anarchy Explained
No escalator, no script.
Ethical Non-Monogamy Explained
The umbrella term.
The Swinger Lifestyle Explained
Recreation, not relationship.
The Hotwife Dynamic Explained
One specific arrangement.
Cuckold Culture Explained
The fetish and the dynamic.
Polyamory: A Working Definition
Multiple loving relationships with consent.
Polycule Structures
Mapping the constellation.
Kitchen Table Polyamory
When everyone can share a meal.
Parallel Polyamory
When partners don't need to meet.
Solo Polyamory
Partnered but never enmeshed.
The Hierarchy Debate
Primary, secondary, and the politics of ranking.
The Metamour Relationship
Your partner's partner.
Attachment Styles as Relationship Filter
How attachment predicts structure.
The Relationship Escalator Is Optional
Dating, moving in, marriage, kids—or not.
Choosing Your Structure
How to decide what fits.
