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The Changing American Family By Natalie Angier
The Changing American Family By Natalie Angier
The Changing American Family By Natalie Angier
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Mathematically, a monotone sequence is a sequence that either increases or decreases indefinably. This means that nowhere in this sequence is there any variance away from the either increasing or decreasing pattern. As an example, the Fibonacci sequence, characterized as the sum of all integers, ({1+2+3+4…+n}=1,3,6,10,15,…,(n+1)/2) is always increasing; conversely, the harmonic sequence, which can be seen as: 1/2,1/3,1/4,…1/n is always decreasing. There is a group of family scientists who insist on comparing the family to a monotone sequence. Henceforth in this document, this group will be called family decline theorists. For this comparison to be made, the family must be reduced to a set of ordinal data points. After this is done, any deviance away from the ideal can be seen as either an increase or decrease (the chance of …show more content…
It makes sense why this is important. If you narrow the family down to series of variables – female homemaker, male breadwinner for example, than moving away from this structured idea looks like decline. The main defender of the family decline theory to be used in this evaluation is David Popenoe’s article, American Family Decline, 1960-1990 A Review and Appraisal. In this piece, Popenoe claims that there is an ideal family and there should be a push to go back to this ideal. The definition of a family found in American Family Decline is as follows; a family is “A group in which people typically live together in a household and function as a cooperative unit, particularly through the sharing of economic resources in the pursuit of domestic activities”(Popenoe). This evaluation will attempt to show how this definition is inadequate in encompassing every modern variation of family and through the use of standpoint theory, comes to the conclusion that no definition is possible. Furthermore, Popenoe’s use of this definition to show family decline is
In The Changing American Family by Cris Beam he uses statistics to show how the changes have changed so drastically. These statistics I think we’re trying to show the amount of change helping you picture in your mind how the changes have increased over the years. I believe that Cris Beam was trying to show that it really has changed and that the Traditional American family is no more. With the article The American family is no more by Allie Bidwell she talks more about the di...
In efforts to examine how genealogy evolved into its modern manifestation, Weil’s, Family Trees: A History of Genealogy in America is a “genealogy of genealogy.” Family Trees is a study of genealogy in America and its reciprocal effects on society. Weil divides his book into four chronological regimes of genealogy in America, each presented with their own set of problems. These problems did not just disappear after each
Several changes have occurred since the 1920s in traditional family values and the family life. Research revealed several different findings among family values, the way things were done and are now done, and the different kinds of old and new world struggles.
There appears to be widespread agreement that family and home life have been changing dramatically over the last 40 years or so. According to Talcott Parsons, the change in family structure is due to industrialization. The concept that had emerged is a new version of the domestic ideal that encapsulates changed expectations of family relations and housing conditions. The family life in the postwar period was highly affected. The concept of companionate marriage emerged in the post war era just to build a better life and build a future in which marriage would be the foundation of better life. Equality of sexes came into being after...
As mentioned before, sociologists Coontz and Hochschild further elaborate upon Parsons and Bales’ concepts of the American family, but they mostly critique the idea of the male-breadwinner family. One of the main arguments Coontz and Hochschild present is the decline of the male-breadwinner family due to the economic changes of the United States and the arising social norms of consumerism. Because Parsons and Bales never considered how the changes throughout society would affect family, they believed the male-breadwinner family would continue to be a functional type of family for everyone. However, within her text, “What We Really Miss about the 1950s,” Coontz specifically discusses the major expense of keeping mothers at home as consumption norms...
their mother ( known as Ma) sends them out far away from their home in New York to the West,
“In the 1950’s, 86 percent of children lived in two-parent families, and 60 percent of children were born into homes with a male breadwinner and a female homemaker” (Conley 451). In contrast, “in 1986, fewer than 10 percent of U.S. families consisted of a male breadwinner, a female housewife, and their children, a figure that has since fallen to 6 percent” (Conley 455). Modern families come in all shapes and sizes. They no longer follow the strict nuclear family layout. There are many reasons why the nuclear family is no longer the most common family type. Some of these reasons include increased divorces, increased acceptance of different sexual orientations, increased amount of couples choosing not to get married/common-law marriages, increased amount of people choosing not to have children (rise of birth control methods), increased amount of families with both parents working/needing to work, etc. Personally, I do not believe the decrease in the nuclear family model is a bad thing. By definition a family is just a group of people who are related or married/in a relationship and it can still be a healthy and well-functioning unit no matter the size or combination of people it is made up
In conclusion this paper has shown my perceptions on the described topics. I have identified why the family is considered the most important agent in socialization. I explained the dramatic changes to the American family and what caused them. I explained the differences in marriage and family. I expressed my feelings on the trend of diverse families, and how a change in trends to traditional views would change women’s rights.
The present structure of the average family in America is changing, mainly due to the growing number of mothers who now work outside the home. The current mark of dual-earner families stands at 64 percent, making it a solid majority today. This alteration of the "traditional" structure of the family is a channel for other changes that may soon occur.
Over the centuries, these methods have changed. These methods are changed because of events in history. Such events like the Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, WWII, and mass numbers of Immigrants are said to be the cause for the loss of the "traditional family. Coontz states, "The Industrial Revolution destroyed the traditional family." The Industrial Era provided work for younger ages. With the age of the work force lowered, children had less time to play; the roles for women were redefined, causing more individuality with in a family. This was not the style of the traditional family, when the wife cooks the meals, takes care of kids; the husband goes to work, and supports the family, traditionally.
Many couples in the United States idealize the myth of a “tradition family”. The idea that a woman can spend quality time with her child while maintaining an effective sexual life with her partner seemed to have caused a lot of stress during the 1950s. Coontz’s says “this hybrid idea drove thousands of women to therapists, tranquilizers, or alcohol when they tried to live up to it.” (Coontz, 569). Which explains that it is merely impossible to try to mold a family to be “ideal.” Many families still strive for a traditional life, which they define as life “back in the day.” They need to forget the past and start living in the 21st century. “Two-thirds of respondents to one national poll said they wanted more traditional standards of family life.”(Coontz, 582). Which goes to show that many families want to change to what once used to be perceived as an “ideal family” but “the same percentage of people rejected the idea that women should return to their traditional role.”(Coontz, 582). Families want to take bits and pieces from what used to be “traditional families” over time and create their own i...
159). And in the case of family-development theory, the family is viewed through eight distinct, yet sequential stages which includes the premarital, marital dyad through to the retirement milestone. With this developmental theory, the family must succeed in achieving a significant benchmark before they can move onto the next level. For example, when a dyad gives birth to a child, they then move into the triad stage with the major task being that they will need to adjust to the new child before they can move onto the next stage as a completed family. Therefore, there are initiating events that move us into the next stages and major tasks to work through while in the varying
Family history possesses valuable information about a person’s past and future life. It can be used as a powerful screening tool to help conduct decisions about genetic testing for you and family members at risk. Family history can identify potential health problems that an individual has an increased risk for in their lifetime. With early identification, you can begin taking steps to reduce the risk with things such as lifestyle changes of diet and exercise. In many cases, just by adopting a healthier lifestyle can reduce your risk for diseases that run in your family.
One of the biggest changes in American families has been divorce and the single-parent families. In the article “What is a Family?”, Pauline Irit Erera argues that after World War 11, is when the major changes in families begun. Women were already accustomed to having jobs and working while their men were away during the war, and when the men all came back is when things started to change. Erera says, “The movement for gender equality led to increased employment opportunities for women, while at the same time declining wage rates for unskilled male workers made them less desirable marriage partners.” (Ere...
Overview of the episode: Kale Stephens episode starts with the phone ringing and Lori answering her husband comes off as abrasive, and short as he asks who was she talking to on the phone. Lori seems suspicious of the call. In contrast to Glaspell's original work, the storyline opened with the Hossack family finding Mr. Hossack bludgeoned to death as he slept beside his wife who did not hear a thing. Kale used the friendship of two women, and the visible verbal abuse of one woman’s husband and suspected abuse of the other. In Glaspell's version, Mrs. Hossack was shown as the murderer. There were more detail and emotion in Glaspell. Both used women as the murderer.