I. There are marriages and there are same sex marriages. .............................2
II. From marriage-like treatment to full invisibility. ...................................14
A. Separate but equal........................................................................15
B. The meaning of the word “almost”: I can treat you as a
spouse but not as a parent..........................................................17
C. Separate and unequal: Partial recognition of same sex
couples.......................................................................................25
D. The absolute divide between law and practice: The
invisibility of same sex couples.................................................31
III. The most recurrent arguments for and against same sex marriage........36
A. The essentialist arguments ...........................................................37
B. The teleological arguments ..........................................................41
C. Marriage as symbol, but of what? ................................................43
IV. Conclusions ...........................................................................................47