Theories of the family

Question 1

Murdock Functionalist perspective on the family:

Answer 1

• see the family as a building block of society. biological analogy, organs perform functions like the family does (socialisation)

4 functions:
sex= marriage
reproduction= next gen
socialisation= of the young into shared norms/values
economic= food & shelter

Question 2

Criticisms of murdocks view on the family:

Answer 2

• can be performed by other institutions, not just the family
• or non nuclear family structures
• feminists & marxists criticise the rose tinted view. feminists: oppression
  marxists: capitalism

Question 3

Parsons functionalist perspective on the family

Answer 3

the structure of a family will fit the needs of society.
- nuclear fits industrial
- extended fits pre-industrial

1. geographically mobile
   pre industrial, lived in same village, same farm. modern, move to different places for jobs, easier for nuclear than extended to move
2. socially mobile
   modern society requires skilled technically competent workforce. status achieved not ascribed. nuclear family better, extended family, father has high ascribed status, son higher achieved causing tension. leave the family to form nuclear.

Question 4

Parsons 2 functions of the family:

Answer 4

family no longer unit of production, now unit of consumption

1. primary socialisation of children
2. stabilisation of adult personalities (family place to relax, rest for work)

Question 5

Marxist perspective on the family, inheritance

Answer 5

• capitalists own means of production
• Engels, monogamy essential for inheritance of private property. had to be sure of paternity so their heirs would be inherited
• women under control, instrument for the production of children
• overthrow of capitalism and private ownership, free from patriarchal control. collectively own means of production no need to transmit property

Question 6

Marxist perspective on the family, unit of consumption

Answer 6

• capitalism exploits workers using their labour to make products which they sell for more than they pay (profit)
  -e.g media target children to pester parents to spend more
• children need latest clothes or mocked by peers

Question 7

Marxist perspective on the family, ideological functions:

Answer 7

1. socialise children that hierarchy and inequality are inevitable. always someone in charge, obey capitalist employers (prepare for work)
2. Zaretsky, family is a haven from exploitive world of capitalism

Question 8

Criticisms of marxist perspective on the family:

Answer 8

• ignores wider variety of family structures, only takes into consideration nuclear family
• emphasis on class and capitalism ignoring importance of gender inequalities

Question 9

Liberal feminist perspective on the family

Answer 9

• dont believe gender equality has been achieved yet but there has been gradual progress
• womens oppression being overcome through changes in law (sex discrimination act)
• men do more domestic labour

Question 10

Criticisms of liberal feminist perspective on the family:

Answer 10

• women still oppressed in many areas of society e.g still gender pay gaps despite the equal pay laws

Question 11

Marxist feminist perspective on the family

Answer 11

main cause of oppression is capitalism
- women absorb anger, Ansley, ‘takers of shit’ soak up husbands frustration from exploitation at work
- women are a reserve army of cheap labour, taken on when needed and let go

Question 12

Criticisms of marxist feminist perspective on the family

Answer 12

• views women as passive, not all conform to practices of a capitalist society
• ignores diversity in other family types
• patriarchy existed before capitalism

Question 13

Radical feminist perspective on the family

Answer 13

men are the enemy, source oppression & exploitation

• family & marriage key patriarchal institutions, men benefit from domestic labour and sexual services, threaten domestic violence
• family should be abolished, argue for political
  lesbianism, heterosexual relationships: sleeping with the enemy

Question 14

Criticisms of radical feminist perspective on the family:

Answer 14

• not all men are inherently patriarchal
• doesn’t consider progress which has been made

Question 15

Difference feminist perspective on the family

Answer 15

• can’t generalise womens experiences, lesbian, black heterosexual and white are different. some view the family positively others negatively

Question 16

Criticisms of difference feminist perspective on the family:

Answer 16

• dividing women into subgroups weakens the movement for change

Question 17

What is the sociology of personal life perspective on the family?

Answer 17

• bottom up approach of interactionism
• meanings that individual family members hold & how they shape their relationships
• wider view of relationships not just traditional
• draws attention to relationships that may not be conventionally defined as family

Question 18

Examples of relationships not by blood:

Answer 18

• friends, like a ‘sister’ or ‘brother’
• fictive kin (mums bestfriend, ‘auntie’)
• gay and lesbian chosen families
• Tipper, children saw pets as part of the family

Question 19

What does Smart say on donor conceived children?

Answer 19

• the effort put into raising a child makes them the mother, not the cell that starts it off
• difficulty if someone says their child doesn’t look like them

Question 20

evaluate the personal life perspective on the family:

Answer 20

• takes too much of a broad view, ignore whats special about blood/marriage if we consider everyone family
• rejects functionalism top down view however sees intimate relationships as serving an important function, belongingness
• recognises how relatedness isn’t always positive (abuse)