families

WEEK I ASSIGNMENTS SPRING 2016

I WILL LISTEN, ASK, THINK, BELIEVE, PERSEVERE AND BECOME THAT WHICH I RESPECT BECAUSE I HAVE CONSTRUCTED MY SELF FROM THE SELF THAT I LIKE.

Assignments Read Chapter One.

Final Exam 10 AM my office, Monday 9 May 2016.

NOTA BENE:

Regularly read ASSIGNMENTS for clarifications and/or corrections to class discussions as well as implementations to the text. CELL PHONES MUTED IN CLASS (University Policy) - THEY ARE RUDE AND DISRUPTIVE. Emergency calls are handled professionally through the receptionist. Also, no eating - it is disrespectful to the instructor and, more importantly, to students in the immediate area. Recording is permitted by law, but it is not a valid method of retaining meaning from the lectures. There is no substitute for hard work.

return to DR JACK

Families that have children always go through those turbulent teenage years with the kids. Turbulent in relation to the adults because the teenager is guided primarily by their peer group, but also are aware that they must eventually take on adult values and responsibilities that are some times at odds with youthful standards of behaviour. One observes in these pictures the experimental nature of the teenager in the presentation of self. (Intellectual, independent, caretaker, pensive) Here she is practicing, imposing, the myriad of Fronts that are possible roles, depending on the situation, for her adult years. Childhood is a time of discovery. Adolescence is a time of confusion in terms of a new sexual awareness. The older teenager is a time of role playing for the future...

(All models over 18.)

Families and Alternative Life Styles
All animals and some insects have what is known as a "family". We humans are accustomed to consider the family as parents and kids and leave it go at that, but there is much more. The foundation of culture depends almost entirely on what as known as the family for its survival and ongoing history. Newborn animals generally do not have the physical ability and experience to survive in the neonatal world. With the exception of elephants, the human being has one of the most prolonged infancies and developmental courses that any other animal. For example, a newborn cat, after several weeks, has a chance at surviving to adulthood with a minimum of parental help - an infant does not! (Incidentally, there has never been a recorded incidence of a child being raised by the wolves.) The other difference is that most animals raise their fittest and leave the physically challenged babies to perish. Humans save what other animals would consider as defective births. People believe that everyone has some sort of special place in society and that all life has an imprimatur for survival no matter what the circumstances. Because of this, there is tremendous attention paid to the raising of human children much like the intensity a wolf pack has for their young. This raising involves the careful supervision of the offspring by adults - some close, others by proxy as, for example, teachers. The physical parents are generally charged with the close supervision and this has come to be known as "family", but there are other types of families if one considers that "family" is one where the young learn the social rules for survival and development. Often school buddies or a friendly neighbor take on important roles for growing up in the child's life. Even to the point that some consider these "friends" as more parents than those that they live with. Family is a complicated social arrangement and often takes on different configurations depending on the human circumstances of the parents, but there is no doubt that the idea of "family" is a core concept in the human structure of relationships and their conducting of social affairs. In fact, there are those that believe the configuration of the culture, good or bad, is clearly seen in the quality of the family configuration. Therefore, many issues are considered fundamental and of greatest importance in this social scenario as : the role of male and female parents, religion and its impact, privacy between parent and child, change in relation to family structure and the obligation of the children to carry on social traditions. To understand these issues the text discusses some approaches to their study, but the major barrier in this area is the notion of privacy and the family. Close a door on a home and the inhabitants are considered protected by the rights of privacy. Nowhere in human society is there such a closed group. In other words, what goes on in the home is nobody's business unless there are indications of violence or law breaking activities. Even at that, authorities have to have some form of reasonable cause to invade a home and this makes the study of the family very difficult. Most people believe that their home life, because it is isolated, was what home life should be and that other people share the same experience. This is not true. Every family has a bit different circumstances in the application of culture to the members, but few understand or will listen to this. Often people believe that their home life, because it had positive results, is the only way to live and bring up children. This is also not true. Good kids can come from good and BAD homes. Bad kids can come from bad and GOOD homes. Rules are hard to apply here and usually the best a researcher can do is the discussion of very generic methodologies as "parents do not own kids, they are simply guides to little souls!" Well and good, but how does one do this? Here is the problem. Privacy and arrogance are stumbling blocks to the scientific investigation of the family which one will see when reading the first 100 pages in the text. All parents have an arrogance and bias that predispositions them to believing their children are the brightest and the best. This is clearly seen in everyday interaction and can cause some trouble between neighbors and the kids themselves. Many say that the human species has this as an animal instinct for ultimate survival of the species to the detriment of all other animals. (There may be more than just speculation here!) That does not mean to say one can not study the family, it means there are tremendous problems to overcome if one wishes to gain objective and clear perspective on the "family", let alone alternative life styles! So keep one's mind open and on with the course - start reading!
13 June 2005 Today's class pointed out the problem with defining "family" in the American culture. Other cultures have a more monolithic concept of the family, i.e., it is generally agreed that there is one specific definition, this is not particularly the case in the U.S.. We will look at the appropriateness and applicability of these definitions in our studies in conjunction with the changing nature of the American culture.
14 June 2005: The question being investigated today involved the idea of family breakdown in the late 20th and early 21st Century. The answer is simple - sure it is breaking down if one's standard is the traditional family. However, the traditional family or nuclear family is no longer the standard so new judgments have to be applied to this situation which makes answering the question very difficult. Again, it depends on the frame of reference of the person asking the question? There is no doubt that the nuclear family does not have the high regard it once did and different relational arrangements are the order of the day. One could also suggest that the nuclear family was not the idyllic concept that the mass media presented and that there were many problems in this experience. In fact, each generation develops different approaches to the family structure and some work - some do not! So although the traditional family has waned, probably the new "family" orientations have just as many difficulties as the old and then one has trouble deciding of or if not the family is indeed in a state of "breakdown"!
16 June 2005 Family privacy is another contentious topic. In the American culture, privacy is a hallmark of family life, but there often comes a time when the state believes they have a right to interefere with this privacy as in cases of child abuse. Privacy also is a detriment to understanding the family's functions because it is difficult to "get inside" to do research in this area. Privacy is "good" in the sense that what goes on in the family stays there, but it can also be "bad" in hiding things like abuse from detection. Family privacy is a relatively new aspect of social life in the U.S. because most families had renters or servants as additions to their group. One can understand the phenomenom of privacy by simply going into another's home and feeling the uncomfort that thereby ensues.
20 June 2005 The family privacy issue is another complicated concept in American culture. The problem is that the US family sanctions the right to privacy and the right to raise their children any way they so fit, BUT there is always the question of abuse and when the culture should step in and violate this privacy for the welfare of the kids. The other idea suggested was privacy varies with social status - the higher the status; the more the privacy. The lower the social status; the less the privacy. Religion was also discussed and the sociological position is generally from a social cohesion standpoint, but religion comes under intense sociological scrutiny when it professes to be the one and only "correct" life style.
21 June 2005 There exists no doubt that the text is correct in the discussion that the American culture is oriented to two sexes exclusively. The student of Marriage and Alternative life styles should take this very seriously because it sets up an orientation that includes, excludes, divides and defines all peoples in the US. Not only does it define, it also dictates the manner in which people will be treated. So "doing gender" in the US is not only a matter of superficial social amenities, it clearly defines who one is and how they are expected to behave.
23 June 2005 Power is the ability to get people to do things for you. Power in the family is no different, but it usually sets between the two adults who seldom share power equally. There is no doubt that power is important and few believe that it is a "50-50" proposition as popularly held. The text feels that ultimately our society is conservative oriented with the main family decisions in the hands of the adult male. This also could be categorized as "doing gender" which is a powerful motivation for maintaining roles in the culture at large.
27 June 2005 Race and ethnicity are important considerations in the family structure. The discussion focused on the historic backgrounds and contemporary reactions to these backgrounds in regard to the ethnicity in question and other effects on parallel ethnicities. There is no doubt that ethnic background gives the family an "attitude" that can help or hinder their interaction at home and in the outter world. Discussion on love and intimacy was begun with an introductory on Romantic Love and biological attraction. The relationship between these two ideas was explored and the problems thereunto attached.
28 June 2005 People who are together are initially defined by the concept of romantic love, but the ramifications of this tend to be debilitating, so one has to eventually give it up. What is left may be a truer indication of "love", i.e., the historicity developed from being together which is unique all into itself that gives the couple security and solidarity.
30 June 2005 Marriage is the most highly valued social institution in this country although many times the references to it are seen as constricting. It was suggested that there is an irony to the wedding shower for women in that the usual gifts are generally related to household work which may be a negative portent of the future. Even still, the "shower" is a significant gathering of a positive nature to the future bride.
7 July 2005 The roots of abuse in the United States is clear. The social configuration of inequality sets up a fruitful field for misusing power according to ones sexual orientation. In addition, the stereotypes also lend theirselves to abuse by those who desire power fome those around them. The text candidly points out that abuse will only stop when the social attitudes and configuration change dramatically. One may have to wait a long time for this to occur...
11July 2005 Uncoupling- relationships by their nature are dependency on one another. In uncoupling this dependency begins to unravel and its effects may last a lifetime. First the initiator keeps secrets from the partner then there is a turning point whereby the relationship is really over. There begins accusations that are similar to courting, but they are of an opposite value and accusatory. When the alternatives to a relationship begin to be more important, these are the real first signs that uncoupling is progressing. Eventually the trust in the relationship dwindles and each criticizes the other in public violating the ethnocentric strength of the couple. The social network eventually breaks up and the process is complete.
12 July 2005 What an intellectually stimulating last class. The discussion ranged from continuing familial problems and their solutions to teabags and their human fulfillment applications.