In today’s society families consist of civil unions, single parents, and families that try to utilize and keep the same values that were present in the 1950’s. These families are faced with restrictions from society, living up to the expectations to provide the same love and support as the traditional families do. Everyday these families prove that they are capable of breaking the molds. In life we are affected by the decisions that politicians make everyday based on marriage. We are facing a big problem in society about marriages and their stances on civil unions.
Secondly, feminism is another reason that some people believe that nuclear families are no longer the norm. Within the 1940’s women were seen simple as housewives and mother, and education within their life wasn’t even thought about. Essentially they were expected to conform to the nuclear family model. Now women are just as likely to be in paid employment like men and therefore this gives them much more status and independence, which makes the nuclear family less likely. Yet others would argue that even the media still supports nuclear families and is socializing the next generation into thinking that it is right for example ‘The Simpsons’, so despite the increase in divorce and feminism the nuclear family will remain popular in British society.
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
Sociologists greatly clash in their respective perspectives on the view of social policies which ultimately makes it hard to understand the true extent of what they do to our society. Therefore, I will be examining just how worthy these views about social policies and their effects of the family are. As item 2B states, feminists argue that social policies assume that the ideal family is a patriarchal one, where they are created in order to continue the trend of a man in control of the family, in a nuclear family which involves a married heterosexual couple as well as children, own or adopted. This is shown in ways such as; giving women custody over children in courts by assuming that they are caregivers and making it harder for women to claim social benefits as they are seen to be dependent on men. One main example of the way in which feminists argue that social policies continue this trend of patriarchy was presented by Lamb.
But now it seems that many women are choosing to have a job instead of rearing children. Because of this birth rates are falling and the family unit is not so necessary in supporting child-rearing. Also, with the rising rates of divorce, more and more mothers find themselves bringing up children on their own, contrary to Murdock’s theories, most of
Over time, the traditional structure has had to adapt to very influential changes, including divorce and the introduction of single- parent families, teenage pregnancy and unwed mothers, homosexuality and same-sex marriage, and increased interest in adoption. Social movements such as the feminist movement and the stay- at home dad, have contributed to the creation of alternative forms, generating new controversy and concerns for the American family. Types of Family Structure The nuclear family is considered the “traditional” family. The nuclear family consists of a mother, father, and children. The two-parent nuclear family has become less prevalent, and alternative family forms have become more common.
Many parts of the world are still male dominated and gender determination of babies can lead to gender discrimination across the world. Designer babies were created so parents could have their perfect child, but their impact on society could set the human race back hundreds of
. In todays society the stereotypical family includes a mother, father and children, this is known as a nuclear family, it is seen as most common as this is what we are all brought up to believe that this is the right sort of family, this is not always the case as in the 21st century there is a rise in single parent families and same sex families, and people also live in extended families with grandparents aunties and uncles. Different sociologists have varied ideas on what the family should include, for example, a functionalists will look at how the family can benefit society by maintaining order and stability. Whereas a feminist may believe that being in a family leads to the woman being used for cheap labour, for example the child care
Because the familial foundation upon which this dream is built is cracked. The pressures of modern life and our roles within it prove too great a strain. These pressures are indisputably societal. Nearly every aspect of society forces the latest generation of parents to reconstruct many of the ideas concerning family and their roles within that family. They grew up in the last generation to be wholly indoctrinated into the roles of stereotypical gender.
Each man could have more than one wife. Matrifocal families – In the Caribbean, parts of central America and the USA many households do not contain an adult male. Gonzalez (1970) found they are well adapted to living in poverty and the mothers have a lot of support from female relatives. Gay and lesbian families do not conform to this definition and civil partnerships were legalised in 2005 suggesting they are “socially approved.” Ideology and the Family New Right thinkers support narrow definitions of the family. Increasing family diversity suggests that the nuclear family is no longer the norm.