The Unnatural Family Flashcards
Meanings and definitions of family are ________
SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED
Do definitions of family change overtime?
Yes, the concept of family changes over time and are products of history and culture.
Popular culture assumes that the _____________ family is natural
heterosexual nuclear
In the heterosexual nuclear family, what is assumed about this family “unit”?
- Domestic/sexual relations and socialization take place
- Relationships between members are unique and specific
- An inevitable necessary dependence between a mother and her children (a sense of obligation exists)
- Incest taboos operate within the family unit
- Property, status and positions pass within the family
- Interdependence (social and sexual) between men and women in the family/household
List the 5 factors of kinship that affect assumptions of the family
- Conception (blood ties and biological connections)
- Incest
- Parent/child relations and adoptions
- Marriage
- Households and resilience
What are two types of societies that view conception differently to Westernized culture? Provide an example from each society/culture.
- Some societies recognize only the role of the father or mother in conception/procreation (aka. only one parent is a “relation”)
–> ex. In the Trobriand Islands, intercourse/semen is not seen as contributing to conception. - Other cultures believe that fertility is only possible given a mixture of different semen
–> ex. Newly married women in Marind-Anim society (New Guinea) is “gang-raped” at marriage and subsequent ritual occasions.
The Lakker of Burma believe that ____________________; they have no connection with their kids.
mothers are only containers in which children grow
What defines incest for all societies?
It is the social definition of significant kinship relation that define incest… meaning not every society will think of incest as the same thing.
What is inbreeding? Where was it enforced and why?
Inbreeding is intercourse between brother and sister.
It was enforced in order to keep the purity of the royal line in certain societies (ex. Egypt, Hawaii)
Provide an example of a society where incest does “not apply” between brother and sister?
The Lakkers of Burma do not consider children of the same mother to have kinship links, so “incest” do not apply
In what society do women have multiple children before being in a relationship?
In TAHITI, young women often have up to two kids before they are considered, or consider themselves, ready for an approved stable relationships.
What is the typical westernized way we view parent/child relationships? How does the importance of these relationships differ in other societies?
In westernized culture, we view parent/child relationships as very important and crucial to child development. There is a sense of responsibility and OBBLIGATION to have a strong relationship with your child.
In other societies, motherhood is defined separately from childbirth - relationships are based on social contact rather than “blood”. Where adoption is popular (ex. Tahiti), relationships between parents and children is dependent on gratitude because there is no “obligation” for the child.
Marriage has been defined as: ____________________________ and ______________________________.
- A transaction resulting in a contract
- Significant in determining parentage
In what society are husbands and fathers external to the domestic lives of their wives and children (never cohabit)
This type of variation of marriage can be seen among the Nayar of Northern India.
What are ghost marriages?
Ghost marriages take place when a man dies unmarried or with no children of his own, a close kinsman (relative) marries his wife “to his name” to father his children.
These marriages can also allow older barren women (who takes the role of father) to marry younger women.
^^in both of these ghost marriages, biological fathers are not given social recognition!
