Examine the factors affecting power relationships and the division of labour between couples Domestic labour is housework, childcare and paid work. In 1955, Parsons suggested that the husband and wife have different roles within the family; the man’s role was named instrumental. He is expected to achieve success at work and financially support the family whereas the wife was expected to look after the house, raise the children emotionally and cook. This was named the expressive role. Parsons said that these roles made things ‘nice and functional’.
Housework was a very important task and women were supposed to take great joy in it. Upper and middle class girls were taught from a young age the skills they would need in order to keep a happy, healthy, peaceful home. While the outside world and working force were definitively male, the home was considered to be a feminine place. The outside world was evil and full of sin and wrongdoing, but the home was a moral haven (MacKethan). Husbands went to work in the corrupt world of industry, so they were meant to come home, decompress, and once again become attuned with their compassionate side.
EXAMINE THE VIEW THAT DIVISION OF LABOUR BETWEEN COUPLES HAVE BEEN MORE OR LESS EQUAL. [24 MARKS] Domestic division of labour means the gender roles of men and women played in relation to housework, childcare and paid work. For example, men are expected to do more DIY work while women are expected to do the housework and take care of the child by providing emotional support to them. Some sociologists believe that families nowadays are moving towards equality and that the families are becoming symmetrical. A symmetrical family is a family where ale the chores are shared equally between couples.
In a study conducted by the Future Foundation (2002), Young and Wilmot's theory was backed up by the conclusions that 75% of women now did less housework than their mothers, and that similarly, 60% of men did more chores than their fathers. This evidence supports the rise of the symmetrical family, in which the division of chores, childcare and paid work is split evenly between the man and women, however it has been noted that this change is most noticeable in the middle class. This may have become popular due to the change in women's position in society over the years, such as the ability to
This was primarily due to the builders' concept of "the smaller, better-equipped kitchen, planned for the domestic 'scientist' who had no need of a servant. "[2] Women were more able to experiment in the kitchen, and new appliances allowed for quicker preparation. These new appliances also gave housewives more time, which in turn made it easier for them to get out in the working world. Some typical jobs that women had in this era were things like receptionists, clerical workers, and typewriters. [3] At this point, it is clear that women are becoming more active in mainstream society, which worried many conservatives.
New right thinkers however; believe that these laws undermine the traditional male dominance in families, but many believe these new policies for women and children strengthen the family rather than weaken it. Sociologists such as new right thinkers argue that the Labour party has constructed a ‘nanny state’ which over-intervenes in personal living arrangements. The Labour party have constructed many laws beneficial for women in families as they have realised most families now rely of two
Also, some adults do not end up getting married, almost 19 million Americans (Benokraitis, n.d., 3). Furthermore, children under the age of 18 living with two married parents went from 77 percent to 67 percent (Benokraitis, n.d, 3). That finding shows the increase of divorce among Americans. The article, “The Changing Landscape of Family”, states that women are spending less time with their children than before and there is a decrease in the number of children per family. This is partially because women have started to go back to work and the economy in the present day is not very stable so supporting a bigger family is not easily done.
Her idea of co-parenting was “If I’m going to contribute half of the income, then he’ll contribute half of the housework and child care” (Edelman 284). In other words, she “didn’t want to be the dominant parent in the house” (Edelman 284). It doesn’t take Edelman long to realize this wasn’t going to happen like she thought. She began to see that as her husband’s work hours “exponentially increased”
They had to be “the man of the house” so to say. Many women through the 1920s managed to work and manage the home, however the majority of women remained in the house as housewives or mothers. “Public acceptance of wage-earning jobs for young unmarried women was growing,” Benner stated (Benner pg.1). The role of women in the 1920s society was finally evolving. The 1920s was the turning point in history for women.
Research performed by the American Progress Organization shows that nearly 6 out of 10 women are the primary, sole, or co-provider for their family. As more dependence is being placed on women, the wages are expected to match with those demands. A route to a faster improvement would be to raise the minimum wage. The demand for more money is very high and women make up two-thirds of the minimum wage workers. A raise in the minimum wage gap would inadvertently help everyone, while still deliberately aiding in the step for equality in the workplace.