Marxist Theory Of The Family

Question 1

Zaretsky’s theory of the family

Answer 1

Socialisation of children- children are socialised into ruling-class ideological beliefs such as blind obedience, respect fro authority and acceptance of hierarchy. The nuclear family trains children into seeing inequality as ‘normal’.
Stabilisation of adult personality - the family produces docile workers, encourages them to focus on families, home life and consumerism rather than think critically about their job etc.
Nuclear family as a unit of consumption - generate profit for the capitalist system

Question 2

Engel’s theory of the family

Answer 2

The earliest societies were classless because property were communally owned, there were no such thing as family, as societies developed wealth and power were acquired by men. Therefore inheritance, monogamous marriage and the patriarchal nuclear family evolved, leading to the oppression of women.

Question 3

Evans and Chandler

Answer 3

Collected qualitative data from 45 children ranging 4-11 years of age. Diaries were completed a weekend prior, small group discussions and had to rewrite the end of a story in which central characters discussed how they might negotiate with adults to obtain commodities such as toys, gaming and clothing, parents were interviewed at home or at work.]
Found that children were often successfully pestered their parents. To buy expensive consumer items. Pester power was central to the family’s role as a unit of consumption.

Question 4

Marxist-feminist theory of family -Margaret Benson

Answer 4

The nuclear family benefits men and the capitalist class rather than industrial society and all if its members- nuclear family is negative for women :

• women produce and nurture the future labour force
• women’s daily domestic labour is provided for free
• women soak up men’s frustrations in the form of domestic violence.

Question 5

Marxist-feminist - evaluation

Answer 5

They ignore women who choose to live in nuclear families because they enjoy and benefit from the experience of being a mother, wife and partner
Many nuclear families are now dual-career

Question 6

Marxist-feminist - Fran Ansley

Answer 6

Capitalism has stripped male workers of dignity, power and control at work so this male frustration is then absorbed by the wife in the form of domestic violence

Question 7

Reserve army of labour

Answer 7

Benton sees the nuclear family as a patriarchal institution which mainly serves the interests of patriarchal capitalism rather than all members of industrial societies. Turns mothers into low paid, low skilled and often part time reserve army of labour that can be recruited into work in times of economic boom and be made redundant in recessions.

Question 8

Louis Althusser

Answer 8

The nuclear family acts as an ideological state apparatus: socialises people to think in a way that justifies inequality and encourages people to accpet the capitalism system as fair
Teaches children that there will always be someone in authority who they must obey which then mirrors the hiearchy of the boss work in paid employment