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Sociology Families and Households
Roles of women in the family
Sociology Families and Households
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The family is in transition – family structures are growing into exciting new possibilities, due to this, there has been a dramatic increase of diversity in the family and household structures since the earliest centuries. In Africa, our real and perceived blood ties are not bounded by the household or the village, but stretch across communal areas as far as the eye can see and the heart can reach. Traditionally, newcomers would be accepted as part of the family and only excluded only if they spurned the welcome. However, this essay will look at the different family and household structures in the current century, also the diversity of families and understanding the reasons for this diversity and how structures have changed. It will draw theories …show more content…
The family is considered as the oldest institutions in society, as written in Stewart & Zaaiman (2014). The typical view of a family is two parents (heterosexual) and children, known as the nuclear family. This is and has been the most common family structure in history but is now under threat due to demand for other family structures. More family structures are evolving and family structures are becoming more diverse, due to factors such as, divorce, recognition of gay and lesbian marriages. In a nutshell it is just, more freedom of choice practiced, the family now has a variety of structures, like single parents, gay couples, and extended families. Murdock defined the family as “a social group characterised by common residence, economic co-operation and reproduction. It includes adults of both sexes, at least two of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship, and one or more children, own or adopted, of the sexually cohabiting adults” (1949). Murdock saw the …show more content…
Feminists also believe that the family is patriarchal and that women are suppressed and exploited. After the Second World War, in an attempt to get women out of the workforce, the ideal family image was promoted, also known as the ‘cereal packet’ image by Edmund Leach (1967). However, as society has changed and become more open, women are tackling the 'double weight' doing the housework and working in paid business outside the home (Gershuny et al. 1994; Hochschild 1989; Sullivan 1997). Diversity within the family is more prevalent today as family structures such as lone parents, same sex families (gay and lesbian) and reconstituted families become more acceptable. It has been suggested that increasing divorce rates and co-habitation have contributed to diversity within the family structure (Boh, 1989). It was extremely difficult to divorce up until the Divorce Reform Act was introduced in 1969 and came into effect in 1971, this then heralded a change of attitude towards divorce. Feminists believe that women should leave an unhappy marriage and say that the problem is that women are disillusioned with the traditional marriage as most divorce petitions are filed by women. In the past, women were trapped in unhappy marriages with very few options. With
What exactly is a family? Some would say it is a father, mother, and possibly children, but is this an outdated definition? With the world adapting and changing at such a high rate, it proves difficult to create definite boundaries for what constitutes a family. As events that are either detrimental or beneficial to society occur, family lives adapt to better suit the current state. The differences in culture, religion and traditions can offer possible explanations for why families are not the same, locally and globally. Sociological relationships change to fit the people involved in them, so it only makes sense that family groups would differ by location. This paper will discuss the ways that families in America have evolved over time. Also, I will explain what occurrences caused the need for such changes.
A “nuclear family” is a family that consists of a working father, a mother who was a housewife, and one or more children (Brym, 2014, pp. 22). And although the ideal family life was pleasing, it did not last long. Over the past thirty years, acceptance for deviations of a nuclear family has occurred. The definition of a family has changed and according to our notes a family is a relationship in which people live together with commitment to form an economic unit to care for one or more children. The people involved in the family consider their identity to be significantly attached to the group. Through literature reviews and personal experience, this essay will demonstrate that nuclear families are now an out-dated institution but the idea of a family still exists in different forms. Examples of these variations allow children to have common law parents, homosexual parents, divorced parents, single parent families, adoptive parents, and foster parents.
"A family is a small social group of people related by ancestry or affection, who share common values and goals, who may live together in the same dwelling, and who may participate in the bearing and raising of children. They have a physical or emotional connection with each other that is ongoing" (Vissing, 2011) and is the foundation of all societies. They can be formed by a grouping of father-mother-children or even more complicated combination of relatives. In the primary stage of family life in the United States, everyone from every generation lived together in one house. Subsequently, the idea of traditional family evolved and a married couple with children is at present, often called the traditional family. There are many types of families; however, this paper will focus on the traditional family. It will describe how the functionalist perspective, conflict perspective, and the interactionism theory apply to the sociological institution known as a family. It will explain some of the similarities and differences between the sociological theories in regards to families and how they affect the family members.
“The term family generally refers to a group of people related to one another by birth, marriage or adoption. In contemporary society, people often apply the word family to any group that feels a sense of kinship,” (World Book). World Book divides families into different types. The first type, the nuclear family, is most common and consists of a father, a mother, and their children. In the second type, a single-parent family, there is a single parent. That parent, (the mother or the father) heads the family alone.
The family is a social group characterised by common residence, economic cooperation and reproduction, it includes adults of both sexes, at least two...
George Peter Murdock (1895 – 1985) was an American anthropologist, who in 1949 provided the following definition of a family, “the family is a social group characterized my residence, economic cooperation and reproduction. It includes adult of both sexes, at least two of whom maintains a socially approved relationship, and one or more children own or adopted, of the sexually cohabiting adult.” At that time in history his definition probably fit the majority of people that call themselves families reasonably well, except for maybe the odd exception. However in today's post industrial revolution society, his definition only fits a few specific families as the family as an institution itself has become more diverse.
People may have different idea of what is a family. The definition of an American family has become a dynamic and changing idea in recent years, now we find public acceptance of new family constructs that were not considered the mainstream. “Family” is a household grouping in all human society. In this essay I will discuss the “many forms of contemporary families and its function” and “some of the economic factors affecting comtemporary family”
Kinship is used to describe the relationship that exists between entities or individuals through blood, marriage, or other medical and socio-cultural arrangements. With the realm of anthropology, the kinship system can serve as our network of relatives and their connections within social groups, culture, and society. Kinship is important because it teaches people about the most basic part of culture: the family. My kinship chart demonstrates a system of bilinear descent; every individual is a member of both parents’ lineages. Traditionally, the paternal line of descent was also emphasized in the traditional kinship system. Individuals were identified by their connections through the father’s male bloodline and they
In the last few decades, family structures and patterns have drastically evolved. Previously, there was little diversity in the way families were structured and in family dynamics. For example, the majority of families consisted of a married father and mother, as well as children. The father was the economic provider for the family, while the mother cared for the children. Recently, family structures have evolved. For example, families now consist of same-sex couples, unmarried couples, couples with no children, single-parent families, divorced families, families with adopted children, etc. Sociological theories such as structural functionalism and feminism can help to answer the question of whether or not changing family structures are negatively
Family is an intimate group of two or more people who live together in commitment relationship, care for one another and share activities and close emotional bound (Benokraitis 2011; Berk 2003; Gidden, Duneir and Appelbaum , 2005). According to Olson (2000), a family is seen as two or more people who are committed to each other and who share intimacy, resources decision-making responsibilities, and values. A family is a unit that found in every society (Knox and Schacht, 2010). Again, according to Grunlan and Mayers, 1988), explained family is the basic unity of every society. This means that family, the foundation society, social institution as well as it is a small and large group of people life together as a family member
Everyone seems to define family differently, however, the significance of family is the same. For you, family means everything. You can always count on your parents and siblings for help and love. Family is very valuable and important to you and should never be taken for granted. No one can deny that family is the foundation of our generation. A family is where we all start our life journey and helps us grow to be successful throughout our lives.
by legal, biological, or emotional ties, or a combination of all three. Definition aside, the family,
To thoroughly elaborate on the institution of family we most look at the family as it was before and how much it has changed over time. Throughout the years we are recognizing that the family is slowly being replaced by other agents of socialization. Families in the past consisted of a mother and a father and most times children. We are, as many societies a patriarchal society; men are usually the head of the households. This has always been considered the norm.
A family is made up of two or more people, related by birth, marriage, or adoption and residing in the same home. Society’s definition of ‘family’ has changed throughout history and includes blended families, single parents, homosexual couples, among others. Families are more ethnically, racially, religiously and stylistically diverse than half a generation ago — than even half a year ago (Natalie Angier). The “old-fashioned” idea that the family is a first time, stabile married couple with kids of their own is now becoming just one type of the term family. Although family has always been the people you are related to, the way we view it has changed drastically and the whole idea of what ‘family’ is has changed in many ways due to the many
A ‘real’ family, or a family that upholds traditional values, is defined as a social group consisting of a husband, a wife and their children.(Hamburg 1993). Using an objective sociological approach what makes a traditional family is the ideologies of the stereotypical 1950s television show (Bianchi 2011) . Like these shows, the male is usually the income earner for the family, whilst the wife stays at home with the children and cooks and cleans for her husband(Tallack 1996). From a young age, gender bias occurs with boys playing with trucks and girls with kitchen set and baby dolls. Guided by gender and nurture, children brought up with these traditional values often follow in suit of their parents(Tallack 1996). Marriage is also consulted by the parents. ‘Every child desired the blessing of the parents before undertaking such a venture. Marriage is seen as a union between two families’ (Iruonagbe Chiazor and Ajayi 2013). However these traditional approaches to marriage are not true in the 21st century. As society changes, so do the values and traditions of each family. Now, it is often seen that women are bread winners of the family and some men...