In this paper we use the logic of contractural relationships within the fam
ily to explore how technological change, distributional struggle, and colle
ctive action can help explain the relationship between economic development
, fertility decline, and the emergence of more egalitarian marriages. We dr
aw on the historical context of Great Britain and the U.S. between the seve
nteenth and nineteenth centuries to argue that the property rights afforded
male household heads constituted a system of residual claimancy not unlike
modern contractual relationships with the capitalist firm. Based upon the
patriarchal property rights, we present a simple model of household decisio
n to allocate women's labor between productive and reproductive activities,
comparing the outcomes of egalitarian and patriarchal governance and concl
uding that patriarchal governance may create incentives for men to force wo
men to "over-specialize" in reproductive labor.