what are marxist views on the nuclear family in the contemporary society

Question 1

what is the Marxist view on the nuclear family?

Answer 1

• Marxists argue that capitalist societies like the UK are based on conflict due to class divisions
• Marxists therefore dispute the idea that the way families are organised benefits everyone equally rather they argue that the family like many other institutions in capitalist societies, serves to maintain the power of those with wealth and preserve the existing economic system

Question 2

what are the evaluation points of the Marxist view of the nuclear family?

Answer 2

+real life application

• social action theories
• outdated
• only considers class inequalities
• culture bias

Question 3

how is real life application a strength of the Marxist theory?

Answer 3

• many peoples lives are dominated by the need to earn a living, sometimes working long hoirs allowing little time for family life
• we are also increasingly a consumer society, and family life tends to revolve around consuming the products of capitalism, whether its the food we buy from supermarkets, electrical goods to help with housework or to entertain us, or leisure persuits such as holidays or days out
• in this sense, we do not freely choose how to live our family life
• the nuclear family is in many ways ideally suited to capitalism, so for Marxists it is no surprise that it gains considerable support from other institutions of capitalism
• for example, the mass media shares positive images of happy smiling nuclear families in adverts and politicians who suggest we need to return to traditional family values

Question 4

how are social action theories a weakness of Marxist views?

Answer 4

-social action theories argue that Marxist ideas that personal lives are shaped by economic forces ignores the extent to which we have the capacity to make choices about our own lives
-for example some individuals increasingly choose to reject the traditional nuclear family model
in favour of a diverse range of alternatives

Question 5

how is the fact that Marxism is outdated a weakness?

Answer 5

• Marxism tends to focus on the nuclear family rather than its alternatives
• Marxists also have little to say about the diverse range of families and intimate relationships in contemporary society

Question 6

how is the fact that Marxism only focuses on class inequalities a weakness?

Answer 6

-Marxism highlights the extent of class inequalities in family life but fails to fully consider the importance of other kinds of social divisions such as gender, ethnicity and sexuality and their importance in personal relationships

Question 7

how is culture bias a weakness of the Marxist theory?

Answer 7

-Maxism mainly focuses on family life in western capitalist societies, and has little to say about the nature of families in other parts of the world

Question 8

what did Engles (1884) say about the family?

Answer 8

• engles argues that the family had developed in an evolutionary way
• in early societies he suggested there were no restrictions on sexual behaviour however over time as society became more complex restrictions were first put in place such as polygyny until societies reached their most advanced stage with the development of monogamy
• Engles linked this to the idea of private property as in most societies this was held by males and passed to their male heirs
• monogamy ensured that any children born were legitimate heirs
• Engles also argues that in the earliest societies women held power but as humans learned to herd animals men took control of livestock so became the first property owners and women were mere chattels of their husbands whose role was to provide their husbands with heirs and raise those children to adulthood
• Engles did not wish to see the family abolished but argues that in a communist society, the functions of the family such as caring for children and providing people with food would be provided by the community rather than individual families

Question 9

how has Engles idea of the evolution of families been criticised?

Answer 9

-it is based on weak evidence, many simple hunting and gathering societies that attach little importance to probate property still practise monogamous relationships

Question 10

what did Zaretsky (1976) say about the family?

Answer 10

• Zaretsky argues that family life came to be seen as important as a refuge from the pressure of work and somewhere workers could have control over their lives
• individuals can only achieve really satisfying family relationships when capitalism is abolished so that families are organised around the needs of their members rather than the needs of the economic system
• Zaretsky argues that the family supports the capitalist system in two ways
• firstly women in the family reproduce and bring up children
• capitalist employers benefit from this unpaid domestic labour as the next generation of workers are reared at no expense to them
• secondly the family acts as a unit of consumption buying the products of capitalis and allowing capitalists to take their money

Question 11

what did cooper say about the family?

Answer 11

• cooper is not strictly a Marxist but some of his ideas are influenced by Marxism
• cooper argues that the family is a miniature version of the hierarchy’s inequality in society and is the first situation where children learn to submit to the capitalist ideology which teaches those at the bottom that they must accept their position and be obedient to those above them