...past and other societies. It can be determined by many sociologists that there have been many changes in society that have affected children over the last 50 years, however there are several there are several different sociological views on whether these changes have been beneficial to children or not. Functionalist sociologists have the “March of progress” view, as they believe that the experience of childhood has massively improved over the last 50 years. They take the view that childhood is socially constructed and vary between times, places and cultures. There are important differences between childhood in western societies today as compared with both present day Third World countries and European societies in the past. For example, in the middle ages, child labour was basic fact of life for almost all children, while schooling was available only to the wealthy. These differences raise the question of whether the changes in the status of childhood that we looked at earlier represent an improvement. The “March of progress” view argues that, over the past few centuries, the position of children in western societies has been steadily improving and today is better than ever. Writers such as Aries and Shorter hold a “March of progress” view. They argue that todays children are more valued, better cared for, protected and educated, enjoy better health and have more rights than those living in previous generations. For example, children today are protected from harm and...
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...good, while others suggest they are bad. To examine the change in the status of children, we have to see how it has been constructed by society. In the UK people follow the western modern notion; that childhood is a special separate life stage. However, this view is not found in all societies as suggested by Wagg (1992). There is clear evidence of this when childhood is examined cross-culturally. Ruth Benedict (1934) argued that children in simpler, non-industrial societies are generally treated differently from their western counterparts. Benedict suggested that children take responsibility from an early age and that there is less value placed on obedience to adult authority. She also suggests that children’s sexual behaviour is often viewed differently. Many sociologists have studies to support this. Malinowski (1957) found that Trobriand Islanders took an attitude of ‘tolerance and amused interest’ towards children’s sexual explorations. Similarly, the position of children differs historically. Aries (1960) argues that in the Middle Ages childhood as a separate age-stage was short as children began work at an early stage and art from the period depicted children as ‘mini-adults’ with differences only in size. One view on the changes of the position of children...
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...British family a patriarchal institution? A patriarchy family is a social system in which the male has the most authority in the family. There are many different arguments for and against the question, “is the British family a patriarchal institution?” The key topics for this discussion include: the division of domestic labour; the impact of paid work; the decision making and the control of the family finances; the “triple shift”; and domestic violence. All of these points have arguments supporting and opposing the question in hand and different sociological perspectives will have very different views on all of these matters. Feminists, for example, will most likely agree with the question and will try to prove that the British family is a patriarchal institute, whereas functionalists would argue that the members of the family all of separate roles and purposes in order to fulfil society’s needs, therefore being more likely to oppose the feminist view. Domestic labour is work performed in the home, e.g. cooking, cleaning, and childcare. Some functionalists, such as Parsons, view that traditional division of labour in a family reflects the biological differences men and women. He also believes that everybody benefits from this as society's needs are met due to the roles being complimentary of each other; the male’s traditional roles of being the “breadwinners” and the women's “expressive” role help everyone involved in the family and society. The “march of progress” view claims...
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...that some sociologists see the family as a march of progress where as others see it as unequal and patriarchal. Functionalists, like Talcott Parsons, saw the division of labour as biological and he claimed that they were beneficial to the family and wider society. Elizabeth Bott named the divisions through ‘joint and segregated conjugal roles’. The joint roles were more common amongst middle class and young families, these roles were joint. Whereas the segregated roles were more common amongst working class, these roles were divided. Parsons named these gender roles as expressive and instrumental functions which become clearer during the industrialisation. The husband performs the instrumental function, in being the ‘breadwinner’ of the family to provide financial support, and the wife performs the expressive function, in being the housewife. Parsons reckons that these functions are natural and they benefited the whole family. This view was also supported by the New Rights. However, this view has been criticized as it is traditional and that in the modern family these roles are fading. Therefore, this proves that in society today, the functionalist’s views are seen as insignificant as it fails to represent the gender roles in the family today. Additionally, item A suggests that ‘women’s increase participation in paid work outside the home’. This view is reinforced by many sociologist, such as Wilmot and Young, who put forward that the family is becoming more symmetrical...
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...Assess the view that gender roles and relationships have become more equal in the modern family life The item suggests that ‘a number of changes have taken place in gender roles and relationships within families’ so in today’s society, there are a number of sociological views, which agree that change between equality has taken place in gender roles and between the relationships within the family, making it more equal. Some argue that in modern family life there is much more equality, while others think this is just exaggerated. In this essay I will assess these views through domestic labour, domestic violence in couples and through the childcare debate, to find what extent gender roles and relationships have become more equal in modern family life. Functionalist sociologist Talcott Parsons (1955) thought that there was a biological division of labour roles within the family, and that this highly benefited the family within society. He saw gender roles being split as expressive and instrumental. This means that the gender roles were very unequal as the husband would have to play the instrumental role where he would have to provide financial stability for the family, while the wife would have to play the expressive role where she would look out for the emotional welfare of the family by socialising the children and being a housewife. In 1957 Elizabeth Bott put these divisions into joint and segregates conjugal roles’. This means that the family roles were divided between a couple...
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...as something created and defined by society itself. They believe we can see the position that children occupy in society is not fixed but differs between different time, places and cultures by comparing the western idea of childhood today with the childhood in the past and in other societies. It is accepted in our society today that childhood is a special time of life and that children are different from adults. They are seen as physically and psychologically immature and not yet able to run their own lives. Jane Pilcher (1995) notes the most importance feature of the modern idea of childhood is separateness. Childhood is seen as a clear and distinct life stage and children in society occupy a different status from adults. However this view of childhood as a separate age status, children and adults being different, is not found in all societies. Stephan Wagg (1992) says “Childhood is socially constructed. It is, in other words, what members of particular societies, at particular times and in particular places, say it is. There is no single universal childhood, experienced by all. So, childhood isn’t ‘natural’ and should be distinguished from mere biological immaturity”. This means that, while all human beings go through the same stages on physical development, different cultures construct or define this process differently. Ruth Benedict (1934) argues that children in simpler, non-industrial societies are generally treated differently from their modern western counterparts...
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...of putting a child first and goes against the previous authoritarian way. It is about being focused on the protection and safety of a child, and emphasizing that the early years of a Childs life should be a care-free time. Although it is becoming apparent that our society is now a child-centered society, this hasn’t always been the case as sociologists and historians argue that childhood as we understand it today is a relatively recent ‘invention’. Social historian Aries claimed that, in the past, children were ‘’little adults’’ who had the same rights, duties and skills as adults. As evidence of his views he uses paintings from the period, which show children and adults dressed equally and working and playing together. However, this evidence lacks of validity and is inaccurate as the paintings can depict the artist’s views. Moreover, according to Aries elements of the modern notion of childhood arose from the 13th century onwards. For example, schools, under the influence of religion, became specialized only in the education of children as the church saw them as little ‘creatures of God’. Another example would be the growing distinction between adult and child clothing by the 17th century. Aries stated that these developments culminate in the cult of childhood and describes the 20th century as ‘the century of the child’. Therefore, according to Aries society has become child centered. Furthermore, the numerous changes in the law since the industrial...
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...Essay In the modern family nowadays, there are many arguments as to whether the family is growing more and more equal. However there are also many contrasting arguments against it. In this essay I aim to assess both sides of the argument using many reliable views and collective information recorded by sociologists to show the sides. The march of progress is the view of family life gradually improving for all its members, becoming more equal and democratic. This view on family life was introduced by Young and Willmott in 1973 and they suggest that the modern family is moving away from the segregated conjugal role of the man going to work as the bread winner for the family and the woman to stay a home as the house wife and more towards the joint conjugal role where man and wife share tasks equally and spend leisure time with each other. Wilmott and Young describe this as the family becoming more symmetrical or becoming the symmetrical family. This is due to the fact that women go to work in families now and it is not just the man working to provide for the family. This supports the view suggesting that the family is growing more equal as back in the 1900’s women would have been expected to stay at home and take care of the housework, the children and care for the man also. There would vary rarely have been a working women In a family during the 1900’s. However this is where the women nowadays go to work and earn money to contribute to the family and to keep more money...
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...evaluate the view that the division of labour and power relationships are now equal in modern life (20 marks) There are several different views that sociologists hold regarding the equality of the division of labour in couples and power relationships in modern life. Some sociologists such as march of progress sociologists see greater trends towards equality whilst other sociologists such as feminists believe there is a lot of changes both in the public sphere and private sphere that need to take place before the division of labour, and the hold of power in couples can become equal in modern life. Functionalist sociologists Young and Willmott developed a theory in the 1970s called the symmetrical family. The symmetrical family described a family life which was improving for all of its members, becoming more equal and becoming more democratic. Young and Willmott argue that there has been long-term trend away from segregated conjugal roles and towards joint conjugal roles and the symmetrical family. Segregated and joint conjugal roles are distinguished between by sociologist Elizabeth Bott. Segregated conjugal roles resemble Talcott Parsons’ instrumental and expressive role theory, in which a couple have separate allocated roles such as the male being a breadwinner and the female a homemaker. Joint conjugal roles are where the couple share tasks such as housework and childcare and spend their leisure time together. Thus, Young and Willmott’s symmetrical family would ...
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...Examine the way in which laws and social policies affect family life From the 19th Century onwards the government have introduced different social policies in attempt to shape family life in Britain, to make it better for all family members, rather than only focusing on the traditional patriarchal Nuclear family. In 1963 the equal Pay Act was introduced, meaning that pay based on sex was abolished and men and women became more equal. This social policy created a higher standard of living as both partners would become wage earners, meaning the family was financially better off and could afford to meet all of the family’s basic needs and requirements. Women became more powerful and gained more authority due to this social policy, and therefore males were less dominant causing them to help out more within the home, which created more gender equality. A functionalist would agree with this social policy as they believe that it helps the family run more efficiently and makes family life better for all; however it does not follow Talcott Parsons (1955) as he argued that women should remain at home due to their biological differences, as they’re naturally suited to the housewife role. Feminists are also in favour, as they believe that men and women should be equals and receive the same rights as men. Especially radical feminists, who believe that women entering paid work is a great way for women to escape men, by women becoming wage earners they are no longer financially dependent...
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...MOHAMAD ARIEFF SHAMIDA BIN SAMSUL KAMIL 14.5 (b) Evaluate the view that conjugal relationships are based on equality in modern industrial societies. In this answer, I am going to discuss about the conjugal relationship in modern industrial societies. This means I will assess the claim that conjugal relationships are based on equality in modern industrial societies. I plan to structure my answer from housework and childcare, power and money management. The hours worked between husband and wife become more equal by the increased participation by women in the labour market have led to more equality in modern family life.’ This view is highly supported by many sociologists like Young and Willmott who suggest that the family is becoming more symmetrical and therefore, is in fact becoming more egalitarian via a ‘march of progress.’ They suggest that the family is gradually improving in terms of equality as there has been a trend away from segregated conjugal roles and more of a shift towards joint ones. This they argue is due to major social changes in that women are more financially dependant with employment opportunities and so there is less of a need to rely on extended kin. This is further explained by Gershuny who suggests that because women have these employment opportunities, they are more likely to do less domestic work. This is shown by the item as it suggests that ‘men were making more of an effort to do housework when their wives were in full-time employment.’ By this...
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...Domestic labour is housework, childcare and paid work. In 1955, Parsons suggested that the husband and wife have different roles within the family; the mans role was named instrumental. He is expected to achieve success at work and financially support the family whereas the wife was expected to look after the house, raise the children emotionally and cook. This was named the expressive role. Parsons said that these roles made things ‘nice and functional’. He also said that men and women were biologically suited to these roles so it was only natural for men to be the breadwinners and women are the stay at home wives. This is a very traditional view. However, the march of progress can easily criticise this view; the idea that everything is getting better and that roles between men and women are becoming more equal. The future foundation (2002) supports the march of progress and found that 75% of women do less domestic chores than their mothers and 60% or men claim they do more domestic chores than their fathers. Young and Willmot (1973) said that the symmetrical family is becoming increasingly popular. This is a type of family in which the domestic chores, childcare and paid work roles are split equally between the man and woman. This family type is becoming so popular because women’s position in society has changed significantly over the recent years, it’s now normal for women to have a career instead of being a housewife. Also the burden of housework has decreased due to commercialisation...
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...Examine Different Sociological Views on Changes in the Experience of Childhood in the Past 50 Years or so? Many sociologists see childhood as socially constructed; as something created and defined by society. Many argue that what people mean by childhood, and the position that children occupy in society, is not fixed but differs between different times, places and cultures. It can be seen that by comparing the western idea of childhood today with childhood in the past and other societies. It can be determined by many sociologists that there have been many changes in society that have affected children over the last 50 years, however there are several different sociological views on whether these changes have been beneficial to children or not. Some sociologist such as Aries say that childhood can be defined as being a social construct. Children had been seen as being like ‘mini adults’ and being an economic charge rather than being treated like children and being unconditionally loved by their parents. The elements of the modern childhood gradually began to emerge from the 13th century onwards. Schools started to specialise purely on the education of the young pupils. There was a growing distinction between adult and children clothing. By the 18th century there was a sign of the growing child-centred of family life, mostly among the middle classes. According to Aries these developments lead to the ‘cult of childhood’. He argues that we have moved from a world that did not see...
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...and laws include tax and benefit policies as well as legislation such as the relating to divorce and marriage. Sociologists have different views on the impact of these policies and laws on families. For example, feminists argue that social policies assume that the ideal family is a patriarchal nuclear family, and that government policies and laws therefore favour this sort of family. On the other hand, the New Right argue that the benefit system undermines traditional nuclear families by actively encouraging lone parents. Using item 2B and elsewhere, access sociological views of the impact of government policies and laws on family life. Social policy is where the government creates plans and actions to either benefit or detrimental the society. It has direct effects and indirect effects on the family. E.g. child benefits would have a direct effect on the family. Social policy, also called social execution when pertaining to executive government policy, primarily refers to guidelines, principles, legislation and activities that affect the living conditions conducive to human welfare. There are extreme policies, which have mostly been abandoned now which were the Chinas one child policy, Nazi Germany policy and abolishing the family act in Russia. Chinas one child policy was where all women in China were only allowed one child per family. This way they would get even more benefits and money. If the women had more than one baby, if the government didn’t realize she would get...
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...Using material from item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that gender roles and relationships have become more equal in modern family life (24 marks) The domestic division of labour refers to the roles that men and women take in relation to housework. These roles are often referred to as conjugal roles; roles which display roles within marriage itself. Segregated conjugal roles described the situation of man and wife having separate roles within the house where the man would more often be the breadwinner and the woman would be the homemaker. This notion supported Parsons idea of expressive roles, but is the centre of debate for feminist sociologists. There are also joint conjugal roles which represents the idea that couples share tasks such as housework, child rearing and decision making etc. Joint conjugal roles also describe the couple as sharing leisure time together, rather than independently. Within these marriages relationships also vary. One of the most deviant and misunderstood issue within the married couple is the idea that coercive power is used to control the other; usually the male using physical power (according to statistics). Domestic violence can be defined as any kind of physical, psychological, sexual or financial violence that takes place within the family toward an intimate partner. Domestic violence is seen as a method of control amongst partners, to display dominance and/or authority. It is often under-reported so national statistics are not always...
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