To Be Or Not To Be The American Family

Aydaia Hills


 The American family consist of a white family, mom and dad who is married with two biological children one girl and one boy. living under one roof in a nice big white house with a fence and a large yard. The dad would be the provider making a well over average income while the mom would stay at home to cook, clean and take care of the children.

Family defined by the U.S. Supreme Court consist of three different family views. One is a traditional "nuclear family", that is  when two parents and their children live in a household, and the parents presumed to be acting in the best interest of their children.In such a family, there is no need to give the children their own voice even when parents do such things as institutionalize their children.second is an extended kind model of family made up of a community of parents, siblings, grandparents and other relatives which should be recognized as a primary family, even if their blood ties are not as strong as a nuclear family. Last is an individualist model where family members are fairly autonomous and that individual should be respected. 






we all know that in today's society its rare to find many families still living the American family tradition. Now a days we have family households of people being raised by single parents, gay parents, grand parents, siblings and so forth.Which i believe is great, I think family should consist of a house hold of anybody that live under one roof or many roofs that love, cherish, care, and take care of one another.




I define my family as an extended kind model. I was raised by my god parents since i was three months old. Our house hold consist of my god mom and god dad who were married, and my god brother and sister. So it was just the five of us. We had a really nice home I would consider it to be the American family home. My god father and mother was both the Provider. Then my god mom got sick and became a stay at home mom while my god dad still worked. When I turned about 13 my god dad past away, then my god sister and brother became the providers of the house. So its not always what you want it to be its what you make it. Just because my god parents became sick and my god dad past away doesn't mean we were no longer a family. We still loved each other the same way, we still provided for one another, we stuck by each other side and still til this day we are sticking it through together. Now that's what i call a family!

The Family Effect

By Charles Marren

We’ve all learned in various history courses that society has changed drastically with each generation and in each new generation new norms and values are presented. A common norm found in society’s past is called the nuclear family; a family consisting of a mother, father and child. This type of household structure played on the stereotypical gender roles and enforced a blueprint for doing gender in the family with men being the main provider of the family with money, and the mother being the main nurturer. However in present society these roles for men and woman are not as nearly black and white as they were before, with the so called guidelines for each gender becoming blurred together. So the question is what could be one of the contributing factors of this new wave of thinking? The man being the provider and the woman being the nurturer were two ways of thinking that were birthed in the home, so why should we not expect that any new type of thinking didn’t come from the same place? It starts in the home is a commonly used phrase after all.

Although considered a stereotype for the family structure, the nuclear family was once a prominent example of the average household. According to census data found in Sociology Matters, in 1940 84% of married couples made up households in U.S, while female-headed households made up only 4% and male-head households only 1%. During that time it’s not hard to see why society viewed the gender roles in such a black and white fashion because both genders were present to fulfill those roles in the average household at the time. However as explained previously, times have changed and one of the major things that have changed are norms, and one major norm that has become frequently present in current society is divorce. Divorce in present society has changed the average family household dramatically as seen in the census data found in Sociology Matters, as it reveals the average married couple household has dropped to only being 50% of the majority, with female-headed households rising to 13% and male-headed households rising to 4%. So how could the rise of single headed households change the view gender role guidelines?

In a household with only one man, the man has to break away from just being a provider through his job, but also a provider of nurture through one on one contact with his kids. This same type of situation applies for a single woman of a household who now has to get a job in order to provider for her children instead of just being the nurturer at home. With a single parent home, no matter what gender the household is helmed by, the roles become blurred into one single gender role. So now the children of the present, unlike the children of the past, are seeing a woman, their mother, working and making money just like men and being a provider. Along with that change, fathers are someone a crying child will wake up to in the middle of the night for comfort. With the rise of these new family structures, the roles of genders will most likely diminish slowly over the course of the years and a new role will be introduced simply known as The Parent; a nurturer and provider. 

Family Matters

Submitted by Keith Miller

Does having a family matter?  The first question I should ask is, what is family?  According to the U.S. Census Bureau "a family includes a householder and one or more people living in the same household who are related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption."  When it comes to a family, there can be different types.  There is a traditional or "nuclear family" or there is an extended family.

The first type of family someone can have is a traditional family or some may refer to it has a nuclear family.  What that means is when a married couple and their children all live together.  The other type of family is an extended family which can be defined as when relatives like grandparents for example all live in the same house as the parents and their children. 

Me, I was raised in a nuclear family.  Growing up I lived with both my parents and my sister in one house.  Now I live in Philadelphia with just my sister, away from all of my other 15 family members.  Looking back, I didn't live in an extended family when everyone was under one roof.  But I have always been very close to all of my family members including grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.  Every holiday, every birthday, sometimes even every activity one takes part in, the whole family goes to support and we are always communicating and talking to one another.  So even though I live a traditional family way, I really live as an extended family.

So getting to my question of does having a family matter, I would have to say yes.  Being in such a family has made me the man I am today.  Family matters especially when growing up.  They are suppose to be loving and warm people who you can go to in need of help or personal struggles. Whether you grow up or live in either a nuclear, extended or any kind of family, its important to have that.

Define Family

 Shadeen

Define Family. 

I’m not even sure where to begin, Family? There are so many different definitions to that word, as well as different meanings. Everyone defines family in their own way, as well as different cultures definitions of “family”. I guess I can start off with my own interpretation of the word “family”. Family to me is someone I can rely on not just trust. You know the type of person where you don’t have to second guess yourself when wanting to ask such person for a favor, knowing they will not hesitate to comply. Family to me is someone I feel a connection with, someone I can confide in and know what I say in confidence won’t be spread around; Blood isn’t always thicker than water. 

           

            Family to some people can be their childhood friend or pet. That’s fine with me because that’s saying I consider them family why? There’s a bond there. Some pets even have this till death do us part bond with their owner, now that’s family. 

            There are so many definitions of family, how can you define it really. The Supreme Court and the U.S. census Bureau have their own definitions of family. Family, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau: “A family includes a householder and one or more people living in the same household who are related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption”. Now I don’t practically agree with that, and not everybody will. You can live under the same household for years or since birth with someone and not be blood related but you, yourself can consider them family or be considered as family. 

         In conclusion, You always have this defintion of family either from beaing taught what family is, or just forming your own definiotion. When you hear, or someone ask you "well what is your Ideal Family?" for me the image or thought that comes to mind is a middle class white family. that;s not "My" Ideal family but that's the image imbedded there. If you do a Google search of images of ideal families that is exactly what you get. 

Single Parent rates is on the Rise

by: Youn Hee Lee


             The definition of family is a set of people who are related by blood, marriage or adoption who share the primary responsibility for reproduction and caring for members of society. The typical family consists of a father, mother and children of one or two in the 1950s. In modern society, single parents are increasing, changing the meaning of the word "family". Statistics show that there are approximately 13.6 million single parents in the United States. 1.4 million children live in a household with a grandparent with no parent present. As well as single parent's ratings, divorce rates increases in today's world.

            This picture shows the statistics of single parents between 1980 until 2008. My comments to this picture is how the percentage of children rises 30 percent in the last 28 years. The highest point of single parents shows in 2008 with 10.5 million single households. In most of these households, 60% percent of homes are single father homes which is the fastest growing type of family.

          From using these stats, single parenting is no easy road. With divorce rates increasing 50 percent in the United States, it is more difficult for single parents raising their children. Even with child support from their ex-spouses, it is harder for single parents to earn a decent salary in today's economy. Finally, the definition of family have changed since the 1950s and single parents are increasing as the years go on.

 

Do children like their parents or computer?

 Submitted by JungBum Hur

 

Historically, the family has been considered a small group consisting of more than two people related by blood, and love. In the 21 century, many people from young to old are connected to high-tech gadgets such as computers, iPads, and cell phones. This technology makes us feel comfortable, but at same time family relationships to become estranged. For example, many children come home from school to sit in front of their own lap tops or personal computers or play on their cell phones In addition, many children have a meal with parents then leave the table right away to go their rooms and get back online. Kids are familiar with fashionable TV stars, online games, and other virtual interests. Perhaps some children are not so plugged in, but the use of computers and video games is increasing each year, causing many parents to worry seriously.

However, children do not necessarily dislike talking with their parents, but they just are not accustomed to being talkative about their hobbies or interests. However, it is not always easy, because using computers and cell phones is already a habit for most kids. Therefore, their parents should be more active with their kids instead of asking useless questions like “what is the name of game you are playing.” At first, kids will feel weird, but they will soon fast they will become familiar with talking to their parents if the parents try to re-build the relationship.

Another problem is parents’ reactions to their kids’ technology. Many parents yell at children when they are in front of computer long time. Yelling might work in the short term, but it can to children to feel scared. They will use computer more quietly and secretly to avoid their parents’ scolding. To solve this problem that I believe that discovering another hobby is a great idea to decrease gaming and texting. A family is a group that needs to stick together all the time.  Plus, using electronic devices can interrupt family relationships.

As I mention above, spending so much time with computer games and cell phones can harm family relationships and the ability to talk to each other. Those technologies force family members away from intimacy. Additionally, too much playing on the computer can bring about addiction. Therefore, to solve these communicating as a family can be a solution.

 

 

Family Meets 2012

Submitted by: Christopher DiNicola
Family Meets 2012

Throughout the past generations there have been many changes in the meaning of the word "family" and how they are constructed today compared to yesterday.  TV shows from the 90's give us somewhat of a perception of how the "normal" family operated in that era.  For example, popular TV show Boy Meets World had a household which consisted of a mother, father, two sons, and a daughter but their "family" extended outside of their household walls.

Clockwise from the left:  Eric Matthews (Older son), Amy Matthews (Mother), Alan Matthews (Father), George Feeney, Shawn Hunter, Morgan Matthews (Daughter), and Cory Matthews (Younger son).

Boy Meets World is a perfect example of the former parenting model consisting of Alan as the bread winner and Amy as the house wife or nurturer.  The family model is also consistant with many of the definitions of a typical family we discussed in class such as, "Family consists of those who live under the same roof" and "A parent or parents and their children".  Eric and Matthew (sons) were assigned chores that were more man like than the fewer chores Morgan had to do which were more feminine.  Mr. Feeney, their neighbor and highschool principal, acted as an outside family member by being a mentor to all members of the family but mainly to Eric, Cory, and their other "family" member Shawn, who is Cory's best friend.

Today, we know that it is more likely for both parents to be breadwinners or even for a single parent as a result of the high rate of divorce to raise a family of the same size which is more similar to Cory's girlfriend Topanga's family situation.  We also know that in our era not only males take on the manly responsibilites both in and outside of the house because of the constant change in gender roles. Morgan's age throughout the series was more the reason for the fewer chores rather than making men take on the higher end of the load which is consistant with gender role stereotypes of the 80's and 90's.

If you have not been able to see changes in family for yourself then just look at TV!  Many series about the typical family today include many of the changes taking place such as in the division of labor, childbearing outside of marriage, and cohabitation.  Other changes like living with step and half siblings, multiple generations, and same sex couples especially same sex parenting are being televised now more than ever.  Though TV should not be used to make perceptions on reality or others it definitely keeps up with the changes in our society and family even though it may not pertain to your lifestyle in particular.

The Family: The Past, The Present, and To Infinity and Beyond

Submitted By: Ashley Sanders
November 11, 2011



The Family in the past would have been defined as a hardworking husband and father and a wife and mother who contributes to the daily household duties. But, today, the family structure looks a little different. You still have your standard Husband and father and wife and mother, but mom contributes just as much as dad just like the infamous "Cosby Family'' did in some instances. But in society today grandma, granddad, aunties, and uncles are also under the same roof with the children. The fact is that throughout history families have grown with the extended families living arrangements in the home.

Not just extended family, but the friends and neighbors of the extended family are included under this enormous roof full of people. With little to no room to think or live under the circus number amount of people under one roof, this was the reason why the housing economy was booming several years before.

The future for families all around the world are the following : More people, More expenses, and even Bigger headaches, but you have to love them because they're your family so suck it up and deal with  it.

                                                                   

Blood is thicker than water.

by: Francis Young

                                                                        Family

      Marriage, while not necessary to some, is the crucial beginning for many familes. From instilling support, fundamentals, and social development, family is the basis of society.

      Parents, whether biological or step, play huge roles in a child's upbringing. Studies show that children from a two parent household are less likely to have behavioral problems. A married couple with low-conflict problems are able to steer their children's directions in better areas. With single parents, a child might not have the same attention, due to the parents increased time consumption in work. This would be due to only having a single income for the household.

       The institution of marriage is supposed to be a serious bond between two people, but the divorce rate has increased in the past few decades. This is due to the revolution of marriage. Before, marriage was about finding someone to start a family with and having and raising children. Now, we have this idea of individualism which is solely based on feelings towards the spouse. While I do believe people should love the ones they marry, they should also take the children's development into consideration. When raising children, the parents should be able to work on their relationship and compromise, so the kids can have a better life. Many couples do not see the long-term damages to a family when they split up. Sometimes, divorce is unavoidable, and I understand that. But since divorce is always a choice, does it always have to be the first or second option?

      If couples took more time to build a stronger, family-friendly relationship, and were financially stable before considering marriage, maybe we wouldn't have an increasing divorce rate. With less divorce rates, there could be more dual-income housing. This would lead to a better development for children in society because they would not have to worry about mom and dad splitting up or always arguing. They would not have to worry about where there next meal is coming from, since mom would not be the only source of income. While single parenting can prove to be successful in some cases, I believe having both parents will ensure more stability in a child’s life.

All in the Family

Submitted by Yuko Nishizawa


For the most people, the family is where we belong and is where we learn values and social skills. An institutional marriage is the start of any family and has encouraged by society and almost all nations. 

Families are essential to forming the communities, societies and their cultures. not only is marriage vital to society, studies show other benefits. In general, married people live longer, have higher incomes and have greater emotional support. Children raised by both a mom and dad are less likely to live in poverty or drop of of school and are more likely to finish college. They are also at lower risk of becoming sexually active in their teen years. 


While benefits of marriage are clear, our society faces unprecedented challenges due to an increase of divorce, cohabitation, out-of-wedlock births and fatherlessness - trends which contribute to a weakened family and therefore a drop in individual and community welfare. The juvenile court judge in this video says there is a correlation in crimes committed by people who come from broken family ties. 


I do believe divorce is necessary when family is totally dysfunctional. It is sometimes better for children to be in an environment that it displays more love and care instead of being involved in hatred and violence between a mom and dad. On the same note, parents must think a great deal about children's position and work hard to minimize emotional damage when they decide to break their commitment as a family. We learned recently in the sociology class that there is a trend toward "individualized marriage" that focuses more on development of the couple's own senses of self and the expression of their feelings, as opposed to the satisfaction they gained through building a family and playing the roles of spouse and parent (Andrew Cherlin 593). I understand the point but I have mixed feeling about the individualism approach in a family. Once we become a parent, there are other responsibilities we have to take care of. 

the impact of family to culture

Submitted by: Hoang Yen Nguyen

The Impact Of Family To Culture

How does the importance of family background affect culture? We know that family is a big role in society where the children are taught about the primaries of manner, behavior, in these days, we can say the" peer group “or even " media" really raise the children so family background is very important.

The impact of good family is expressed by the way children act. Back in that day, if you were disrespectful to elders and parents, you will get a smack on her hands or a time out. Everybody had to go to school and did their homework every day. There was no arguing or talking back to the teachers and parents.  Moms always were at home to give their children snacks and tell them do homework when kids came back from school. Every kids were educated carefully the importance of honesty and responsibilities. Besides, they had to earn the things they wanted. The parents did not give a gift for their children with no reasons.

Now, the laws make the immature teens have more power than parents. They say:" if you hit me, I'll call the police" so the parents have to back off in fear of prosecution. The kids have been out of control. They do sex, drugs, drinking and disrespecting elders. We can see that those of bad consequences happen because of parents' neglects. When the kids come home from school, nobody is there to give them snacks or ask about their school days. The kids are growing-up in the street because their parents don't spent time with them. They are making adult decisions with their underdeveloped-minds and ending up to be a 13 or 14 years old singled-mom. Their parents are going to be 26 or 28 years old grandparents. Sometimes some girls don't even know who the father of their child is. The rate of the kids dropping-out of school is higher because their parents either are a single parent or not have a high school diploma.

I am really scared to think that those kids who have no education, ill manners, and bad behaviors will be our future leaders? That is terrifying. There are very few youth today who have been instilled with good moral values from their family. However, more kids are going out partying with their "young parents" and that is really sad. Where are all the "big mommies “and "big pops"? We need them desperately to be more responsibilites to their generations.  

Taste the Rainbow

Submitted by:  Tyniasha Womack

According to Wikipedia, a rainbow flag is a multi-colored flag consisting of stripes in the colors of the rainbow.  The use of rainbow flags have a long tradition; they are displayed in many cultures around the world as a sign of diversity and inclusiveness, of hope and of yearning.  The world's best known version of the rainbow flag is the 'pride' or 'freedom' flag, which was popularized as a symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) pride and diversity by San Francisco artist Gilbert Baker in 1978.  The different colors symbolize diversity in the gay community, and the flag is used predominantly at gay pride events worldwide in various forms including banners, clothing, and jewelry.  Although the flag is meant to represent diversity and equality, I believe it also represents struggle and inequality because for decades, homosexual men and women have remained second class citizens as they have little to no rights to solidify their relationships in marriage, which is supposed to be a cornerstone of American society (not heterosexual society, but American society. Let's not get the two mixed up).

Merriam-Webster defines marriage as (1) The state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law.  (2) The state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage.  Notice that the definition says nothing about what marriage is for, just about who can marry.  So long as two people are adults, not close blood relatives, consenting and not already married, almost any man and woman can marry.  If they are incapable of having children, just met the night before in Las Vegas, or have had a handful of failed marriages between them, they can wed.  "Convicted felons on their way to the chair can marry", quips Jonathan Rauch, author of a new book "Gay Marriage: Why Is It Good For Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America".

What is this country coming to when your sexual orientation puts limitations on what your life can mean or how much you can show your spouse you love them? The definition should be as follows: Marriage - The state of being united to another non-related person in an intimate, consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law. I guess instiutionalized discrimination doesn't just affect African Americans.  Leaving me to ponder this question.  Is gay the new black?  Is the fight for same-sex marriage the new civil rights movement??

The fight for gay rights fits into a long history of liberal struggles.  According to Thomas Schaller of the Baltimore Sun," the movement for sexual-orientation based equality is part of a proud, progressive tradition that includes abolition, women's suffrage, racial integration of the armed forces, the civil rights movement, and anti-mescegenation laws."  Anti-gay activists are quickly losing the debate due to many straight Americans who are coming to the defense of homosexuals, much in the same way that whites pushed for abolition and men marched for women's rights.  The Youtube video I chose as my media for this blog shows a gay married couple celebrating the ground that homosexuals have made for gay rights, specifically, the recent winning of marriage equality in New York.  Finally, we are  realizing that we have gay co-workers and classmates, and are related to gays and lesbians.  I have a gay cousin and a lesbian cousin.  They are both younger than me and I want them to be privy to the advantages I have as a heterosexual person.  So, wave that rainbow flag from every gay bar all the way to the White House.  It's time to make these tight wads taste the freaking rainbow!



Never forgeting family

Submitted by krentz Sainte

The family has changed over the couple centuries. Different cultures have a say on what families look like. We are associated with our family because it a healthy relationship we need. Family is a very important value for many people. When times get rough we always turn to our family for support. In economic crises families have become closer because they now even live together to cut down on expensive and to keep them together. The support of some families release the stress people carry like babysitting or having a place to stay when times get tough.

extended family

Over time families have changed due to emotional problems.  The different types of family that are known to society are nuclear and extended family.  A nuclear family is married couple and their unmarried children living together. It is also that the family severs as a nucleus, or core, on which larger family groups are built. The parents live together but are not together because of issue they cannot resolve.  The other family is called the extended family it consist of uncles’ aunts’ grandparents and other relatives.  I personally like this type of household because it brings families together. Families start to build go relationships while their young so there relatives do not become strangers in the next generation.

Within a family the traditional gender roles have changed because of society. Men are now able to be the home make. The stay at home dad is not view as masculine but this opened up the think of people. They started to see that men in families can be nurturing by being a stay at home dad.  In the 1950s women were fulltime homemakers and men provided for the family while females take care of the household. Now women are more independent and can work their role have changed they can work.

In conclusion the family forms a strong structure that is very healthy and helpful. The family will always be important for the social institution it where we learn how to behave. The gender roles will continue to change because of how independent we have become. Men can hold down a household and still take on the responsibility of being a father.

The Perfect Family

What is the perfect family? I consider it to be one that is loving,caring, and raise their children to the best of their ability. Many people in the western society believe the nuclear family to be the perfect family. One with a mother, father and two to three children. In the clip above You will see a loving family. This family cares for their children in a loving manner. They have united their love in marriage, therfore they have dedicate their lives to one another. They go on hiking trips with their children and their children also participate in extra curricular activities.  I am shamed to admitt that my children have never been hiking. At the time me and my spouse are co-habitating. Although we are engaged ,we still have not dedicated ourselves to eachother legally or in front of god. Yet, my relationship is look upon more beificial to my children then the family in the clip above.WHY?  This couple has done everything right according to western society with the exception of falling in love with a person of the same sex. Should that one attribution place their  family apart from mine. Families have been changing throughout the decades at one time blacks and whites were'nt allowed to marry it was the law. Remember JIM CROW. At one time women stayed home and cook and cleaned and the huband was the bread winner and made all the decisions. Trust me alot of these "New" millinium women would say heck no to that. The norm for western society is chaning all the time. Lets hope that western society is open- minded enough to except the perfect family.

Submitted by: Samea Haywood

Family..Together We Have It All (Not)

When we look at the whole ideal of family sociologically, we learn that the structure has changed over time. Most of the time when people think of family, the image of a mother, father and children is what comes to there mind. That is actually the definition of a nuclear family, which is parents, and one or more children. However, there are more forms that can be used to define a family such as a single-parent family which is one parent and a child or children. Extended family is when a nuclear family or single-parent family lives with any extended family members. 

Nuclear Family                                               Extended Family

Single Parent Family
  




It all goes back to the development of marriage. Marriage means several different things according to the time and place of the culture and those families involved. Marriage seems to be supported by different reasons. Here are a few:

•           Love

•          Economics

•          Cultural and political structures

In the 19^th century an ideal husband was the breadwinner and the wife was a homemaker. This has tainted gradually as the economy weakened and the wives joined the workforce. They gained access to legal rights, education and birth control. These changes have altered the stability of authority within families. This raised the rates of divorce. The consequence of this is the increase of single-parent households, remarriages and extended families. It has disheartened some couples today of seeking everlasting unification. We now have non-marital unions, which are couples living together but not married. There are also cases of births from out-of-wedlock marriages.

In conclusion, Philadelphia’s same-sex couples are prohibited from marrying. In my opinion let’s recognize, embrace, and support family diversity that should exists. Criticizing people, who are divorced, single parents, unmarried couples, and the needs of gay, lesbian and bisexual people, aren’t positive approaches for supporting families.

Submitted By: Diane Mapp