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Functionalist view on family
Functionalist theory in a family
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Functionalist view on family
Functionalist theory in a family
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Today we ask ourselves, what defines a family? Will we ever be able to pinpoint one exact answer? Meanings and explanations of our past have been rightfully challenged. The family structures and dynamics that we see today have evolved great lengths from what they once were in the 1950’s. The 1950’s consisted of “standard” families.
The objective of the post war time in the 1950s was American families striving to succeed in family harmony. The goals of these generations were to strive to provide more for their children, this would create a ‘generational gap.’ Motion pictures and TV shows made the idealize picture of family harmony after the end of World War II. Peyton Place, authored by Grace Metalious, proved something else. Depicting controversial occasions that took place behind closed doors of a ‘normal’ family home in the 1950s.
While family structure has changed dramatically since the 1950’s, what current changes are we seeing; and how is it affecting the roles to which we play in a compromising world. In the 1950’s families consisted of a head of household (the Father), the house wife (or mother); and their offspring (the children). The father’s duty was to bring home the bacon, while making end meets for his family, while the wife stayed home and cared for the children, the elderly; and took on the household duties. These families usually lived in the suburbs, where they raised their children; while teaching them the proper ways of life. During this time in history, young women were expected to find a mate through persuasion, then get hitched; and eventually produce an offspring.
Ben Zimmer’s article entitled “Chunking” from the September 2010 issue of the New York Times, raises the question: should collocation education be used to teach English? The article focuses on the importance of using chunking as a method in teaching and developing others in the English language. Zimmer uses examples of his son to illustrate his point that children unknowingly pick up myriads of chunks throughout the span of their childhood; he explains, “As Blake learned these pleasantries… I wondered how much-or how little-his grasp of basic linguistic etiquette is grounded in the syntactical rules that structure how words are combined in English” (133). Other chunks such as “Won’t you come in?” or “Make yourself at home,” are noted as common
During this overwhelming era, it damaged the nuclear family by the way they viewed and lived their daily social
Woman influence the family which in turn influences societal life. Each hold influence in his or her own right, and this influence is important in different ways. Furthermore, liberals have too much faith in love. This focus on love and intimacy has led to a high divorce rate because it puts much more stress on the family and the marriage. Conservatives argue that “families are not about ‘love, but about sensed affection, plus above all, absolute commitment.”
Modern Family, one of the highest rated comedy series on television, currently in its 8th year of production, follows the daily lives of a father, his two children, and their respective families. The show has received numerous awards and accolades from critics for its incorporation of comedy, parenthood, and current day issues, all in one show. The sitcom is set in Los Angeles, an ethnically diverse city known for its liberal and progressive views. Jay Pritchett depicts a rigid, middle-aged successful business executive, who after a much unhappy marriage to an apparently crazy woman, Dee Dee, is now married to his trophy wife, Gloria. They together have a young child, Joe.
“Thatcher’s brand of conservatism marks a sharp break from the Tory tradition, and has more in common with a nineteenth century Liberalism”. Liberalism set the main foundation of Thatcher’s policies as she started considering equality and individual freedom. However, as a result of the ideology continuity, her monetarist policy failed due to there being no new ideas. This means the concept of her overcoming the rising unemployment led to increased inequality, ironically abandoning her ideology of liberalism to begin with. Thatcherism itself represented an economic laissez-faire attitude; it represents a belief in free markets and a small state but also sends the message that rather than planning and regulating business and people’s lives, the governments job is to get out the way.
On September 23, 2009, the well-known television show Modern Family broadcasted for the first time on millions of televisions across the United States. The five-time Emmy award winning and hilarious mockumentary, or mock documentary, styled show gives an honest perspective of family life through its multifaceted characters, witty script writing, and relatable episode premises. As Modern Family enters its seventh season, the series continues to leave a tremendous effect on its viewers due to the show’s progressive themes and powerful messages. The biggest impact that Modern Family has had on its viewers is the acceptance of homosexuality. The show’s depiction of two of the main characters, Cam and Mitchell, as a regular couple rather than
The information presented, even though very informative, lacked sequence. Vaughn starts off first by listing and elaborating on the impact of the change in family structure, then goes on to describe family functioning (which takes in the description of family structure), then back again to the impact; this should have not been so. Being that the writer uses the cause and effect method of organization to convey her message to the readers, then she should have begun with the description of Family functioning, then continue with the consequences that the change in family structure has on children. Structuring it that way would have made it easier to understand. The first paragraph under the heading “Family functioning would have been a more suitable introduction to the article, accompanied by the thesis outlined in the beginning sentence of the article, also “the Impact of Parenting Stress” should be the title for the last paragraph as the focus is really on parenting stress.
This is seen when the understanding of femininity evolved from females being expected to stay at home and ensure the well-being of the family; to the present times, where women can be employed and contribute to the financial stability of the family (Langen, 2005). In this way social constructionism can be said to helpful in family therapy in that it recognises the different values and perceptions upheld in large cultural or ethnic groups, and how they help define a functional family relative to a specific time in history (Robideau, 2008). It also recognises that the meaning and interpretation of a reality is created and can be altered through conversation (Robideau,
Individualisation addresses choice-making where social action is progressively made by the distinctive individual. The nuclear family, of a married mother and father and their children, have certain gender roles and stereotypes attached to them. The father has always been the breadwinner of the family and the mother has the domestic responsibility of housework and taking care of the children.
The structural aspect of a family is that since laws and rights have come into fruition, it has led to an increase in couples having civil marriages and partnerships. Currently, the frequency of partners who are gay and lesbian has also increased and has therefore wilted of what was once recognised a ‘traditional family’. Parents who live on their own and taking full responsibility of their children has taken a gradual rise in and around the World, this has also the paved the way towards a lesser representation on how a traditional family would look like to a certain
“The Changing American Family” by Natalie Angier states, “Fictive families are springing up among young people, old people, disabled people, homeless people, and may well define one of the ultimate evolutions of the family concept, maximizing, as they do, the opportunities for fulfillment of specific social and economic needs outside the constraints of biological relatedness.” The ever changing social dynamics and circumstances of this life have opened the definition of family to encompass individuals who can fill those deep-seated needs
This essay discusses how the family is viewed by two different sociological perspectives- functionalism and conflict theory. Firstly, ‘family’ is defined. Secondly, the main ideas of functionalism will be discussed followed by how this theory perceives the family. The main ideas of Conflict Theory will then be examined and how conflict theorists perceive the family.