Families and households- Postmodernisim Flashcards
What does Stacey say?
-Women benefit from increased choices in family life
-They are free from patriarchal oppression
-Are free to shape their family to fit their needs
-Changes to the law has lead to more equality and more women are rejecting the role of the mother has made this possible
Who says that we live in a risk society and which greater freedom and choice come with greater instability in family life
Beck
Why do postmodernists argue there has been rapid social change?
New technology has dissolved boundaries of time and space and has reshaped our habits
What does Lyotard (1984) argue? Why do they argue this?
-Contemporary society is changing rapidly and is full of uncertainties with people questioning traditionally accepted norms, values and morals
-Individuals are no longer constrained by social structures like the family, social class or religion
What do postmodernists see these choices as a result of?
-Consumer choices
-Individuals can pick and choose their relationships as it suits them and this can change over time
Why do they argue that alternative families are more tolerated?
-Because the traditional family is no longer a social institution
Do postmodernists value relationships outside of blood and marriage such as friendships important?
-Yes
What two things does Giddens
What do Smart and May argue?
-They theory exaggerates how much choice people have about family relationships today
-Our decisions are still constrained and governed by the social context-we are not free floating individuals
-Class and gender still shape our relationships of a idealised version of a white middle class
What is individualisation thesis? (Giddens beck)
-More individual choice
-People have been freed from traditional roles and structures so family types have changed
What has the postmodern era lead to?
-Decline in rationality
-More choices
-Identity is less fixed
-More uncertainty and change
Give some strength’s of postmodernism?
-Relevant to todays society
-Not outdated compared to functionalism and Marxism
-Highlights increased choice for women but also acknowledges greater instability in family structures
Give some weaknesses of postmodernism?
-Argues there is no structure in society
-Does not take into account the influence of structural forces in shaping family life such as gender and class
-Smart and May
Who argues that there is no longer one single dominant family structure such as the nuclear family?
Cheal
What are pure relationships? (Giddens)
-Not based on traditional norms and they satisfy their partners needs
