2: Families gender roles Flashcards
symmetrical family
Willmott and Young argue that the family is now symmetrical. Husbands and wives have joint conjugal roles as they both work outside the home, share housework and childcare responsibilities as well as spending their leisure time together.
criticism of symmetrical family
oakley: the family is not symmetrical as husbands and wives are still unequal because women carry out most of the domestic labour. She interviewed married women and found that their husbands did hardly any housework and very little childcare.
supporting oakley
Boulton supports Oakley by arguing that men cherry pick the childcare tasks and choose to do the more enjoyable activities such as playing with the children rather than actually taking care of them
Criticism of oakley and boulton
Gatrell shows that men are fully involved in childcare. This is because their fathers were absent from their lives when they were little and marriage is no longer for life so their relationship with their children is worth investing time and effort it.
dual burden
Ferri and Smith argue women work outside the home, in paid employment, and still do most of the housework and childcare.
Ferri and Smith refer to this as the dual burden of paid work and unpaid housework.
Therefore, the family is still patriarchal as men now benefit both from women’s earnings and domestic labour.
death of the housewife role
Silver and schor Proclaim the death of the housewife role.
The burden of housework on women has been reduced for two reasons:
Housework has become commercialised – microwaves, ready-meals, etc. take the burden off women.
Women working – so can afford these goods and services.
criticism of death of the housewife role
Criticsed by Arber and Ginn who argue that better paid, middle class, women are able to buy in commercially produced goods and services such as labour saving devices, ready meals and domestic help
decision making paragraph
Edgell Interviewed 38 professional middle class couples found men are more likely to make fewer, but more important decisions about moving house, finances whilst Women make more decisions overall, but these are seen as less important e.g food/interior design. Men make fewer decisions, but these relate to more important areas such as finances. Therefore, men have more power. Pahl and Vogler argue that it is the housekeeping allowance system that maintains inequalities between husbands and wives because the husband gives the wife some money for housekeeping expenses and he controls the rest thus being the more powerful partner. Also, even in some households with the pooling system, men tend to have the final say about how the money is spent.
domestic abuse
Millet and Firestone argue that all societies are patriarchal - all men have power over all women. As a result, men exploit and oppress women through domestic abuse or threat of it in the family. As Men control all aspects of society,the police are reluctant to get involved in the incidents of domestic abuse.
criticism of domestic abuse
Robertson-Elliot points out that:
Not all men are violent towards women. Many men are opposed to domestic abuse.
Women can also be abusers of men and children.
Radical Feminists fail to explain why some women are at a greater risk of domestic abuse (those on low incomes, younger women, long term sick, high levels of alcohol or drug use
