The Family: Contemporary Issues and Debates.

by ellicia2008 (student)

Essay: The Family: Contemporary Issues and Debates.

This essay will begin by explaining briefly what the term ‘family’ really means. It will then proceed to determine three different family groups consisting of ‘the lone parent family’, ‘the nuclear family’ and ‘the extended family’. It will then examine the changing and diverse nature of the family in modern societies by looking at the changing position of the children in the family and how this has changed in Britain since the nineteenth century. Once this has been identified the main focus of the essay will be to explain the main ways in which the concept of the extended family has changed over time and across cultures in relation to the families of the Caribbean and British family institutions.

The family can be regarded as ‘a group of people, related by kinship or similar close ties, in which the adults assume responsibility for the care and upbringing of their natural or adopted children’ (Jary & Jary: 1991). The family unit is one of the most important social institutions, which is found in some form in nearly all known societies. It is a basic unit of social organisation and plays a key role in socializing children into the culture of their society. (Browne: 1998)

The most common forms of the family are the nuclear and extended family groups. The nuclear family usually consists of a two generation family unit; of parents and children. The extended family is a grouping consisting of all kin. It usually consists of three generations which may include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Extended families occur more often in preindustrial societies, rather than industrial societies where the nuclear family is often seen as the more compatible family group.

In the 19th century, the father/husband was the head of the family and often had a great deal of authority over the other family members. He would often have little or no involvement in the care of his children. In middle and upper class families, children might see relatively little of their parents, often being sent off to boarding schools or being looked after by nannies or au pairs’. It was quite different in working class families, children in the early nineteenth century were seen as workers and an economic asset to the family, as they were able to work in ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

In the Twentieth century families have become much more child-centered, with family activities and outings often focused on the needs of the children over the adults. The amount of time the parents spend with their children has more than doubled since the 1960’s and parents are much more involved with their children, taking an interest in their activities and treating them more as equals. Often the children’s welfare is seen as a major family priority, frequently involving the parents in considerable financial sacrifice and cost ()

There are many reasons why this change has occurred. In the nineteenth century the average working week was between 70 and 80 hours, for many working class people. Today the average working week is 43 hours per week (). This means that parents have more time to spend with their children.

Another factor that could have affected this change is that families in Britain have got smaller the average number of children per family household was 1.8 in 2007 and in the nineteenth century families were much larger than today that was partly due to infant mortality rate and families had many more children with the understanding that not all of them shall survive (). Children’s education has been made compulsory since the nineteenth century. This has resulted in children spending far longer in education which has meant that young people are dependent on their parents for much longer. It seems that ‘childhood has itself become extended’ (Browne: 2010). Finally the social security system is one that provides families with a range of benefit entitlements which is designed to help parents care for their children; recently in January 2010 the Labour government spent 300 million pounds providing those families with the lowest of incomes free laptops and internet broadband access. Consequently this has increased demands on parents to look after their children properly: social workers for example have a wide range of powers to intervene within the family unit on behalf of the children they can also have the ultimate power to remove children from parents if families fail to look after them properly ().

This essay will now look at the differences between Caribbean families and their family structures. The role of family members within Caribbean families is much different to those within the U.K. Throughout time the father’s main role within the Caribbean family was to be the ‘provider’ and the ‘protector’. Often the father’s role was to be in charge of the disciplinary procedures that take place within the family, especially towards the males but often they have very distant relationships with their daughters. A father generally does not take much responsibility in the day to day childcare of young children; this is often left to the mothers or the extended family.

‘However, the late twentieth century saw some men becoming more involved in their children's lives, spending more time playing and talking with them’ (Roopnarine et al. 1996).

The role of the extended family is extremely important within Caribbean families; often it consists of grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews. The extended family is a close network of support and it is common practice in Caribbean families for a single elderly grandmother to look after up to seven to ten children at any one time ().

‘She commands respect from the children, not necessarily by her discipline of the children, but by the cultural value that children should respect older adults, even calling her "granny” ().

In the U.K family units have similarities to those of the Caribbean the father is still generally the head of the household and the father is the provider and protector. However in Britain the family unit has is constantly adapting and changing and consists of different family groups.

‘There is no such thing as a typical family in 21st century Britain. Today, people are marrying later, and it is the norm to live with a partner before marrying. Married couples are more likely to divorce, and more children are born outside of marriage than was previously the case’ ().

The family structure in Britain is constantly changing. In the nineteenth century it was common for relatives to offer support to families to help ease the pressures of family life. Over the last 100 years a traditional view has been that the extended family has disappeared in Britain, with the typical family now consisting of the private nuclear family. The nuclear family is often regarded as being separated and isolated from its extended kin and has become self reliant and self contained. The modern nuclear family is considered to be a private institution, isolated from wider kin groups and often neighbours and local community life as well. (Browne:1998)

While the most common type of family found in modern Britain is the nuclear family, there is still evidence to suggest that the extended family still survives today in modern Britain usually in two types of communities; traditional working class communities and Asian communities.

(Word count so far 1240 without conclusion)

Notes***

Traditional- dominated by one industry- fishing. Mining industrial centre’s- north of England-inner cities-little social or geographical mobility- stay in area 4 several generations- close knit family 4 life- live close by- extended family life declined in other societies in the 1990s due to people being forced to find employment elsewhere

Asian- still common (those who came to Brit in 60s 70s from Pakistan).-usually on males side-grandfathers, sons, grandsons and their wives and unmarried daughters. –important source of strength & support in such communities.

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Kerry Champkin Tuesday 1st June 2010Page