Variations of Love - Polyamory Considered

Polyamory has emerged as a popular concept in the debates on consensual non-monogamy. It is commonly defined as an umbrella term for ethical approaches to non-monogamy. This article considers polyamory as a discourse on love rather than a discourse on non-monogamy. Love is central to the definition of polyamory. However, the question as to what kinds of love are endorsed in the debates on polyamory has rarely been studied in close detail. This article presents a discourse-analytical study based on the examination of publications on polyamory in English and German and qualitative research into polyamory and non-monogamy in the UK. It considers polyamory as a specific discourse on love that crystallizes at the end of the 20th century to provide alternatives to the couple relation bound by romantic love. However, certain elements of romantic interpretations of love are nevertheless re-cycled in the discourse on polyamory, thus undermining its critical potential.