Functions of the family

Murdock

• Defines the family: 'family is a social group characterised by common residence, economic and reprdocution. It contains adults of both sexes and 1 or more kids'
• It performs 4 functions:

Stabilisation of the sex drive, Reproduction of the next generation, Socialisation of the young and meeting economic needs.

• Criticsed: These functions can be performed by other insitutions., Feminists: family serves men not women, Marxists: meets capitalism needs not family members

Parsons

• Functions performed by the family depend on the society. e.g: Extended fitted pre-industrial society but nucelar family = industrial. Industrial sociey has 2 needs: geographically mobile workforce and socially mobile workforce.
• The nucelar family lost its functions to the workplace, schools etc
• Modern nucealr family specialised in performing 2 functions fo rthe family: primary socialisation and stabilisation of adult personalities. 
• Criticsed: Y+W: pre industrail society = nuclear not extended - supported by Laslett: who used census records
• Y+W and Anderson: Extended family best fits needs of industrial society and so the family become extended and exists today due ot its functions it performs. 
  

Marxists

• See capitalist society as based on unequal conflict between 2 classes; working and ruling. 
• All off societies institutions inc. the family, help maintain class inequality and capitalism.
• Functions of the family are performed for benefit of capitalist society:
• 1) Inheritance of property - Engles
• 2) Ideological functions - Zaretsky (teaching kids basic rules for home and future work)
• 3) Unit of consumption (pester power)

• Criticism: Marixsts assume the nuclear family is dominant and ignores the other functions HOWEVER functionalists: argue they ignore the benefits of the family. Feminists argues they ignore importance of gender

Feminism:

• Family oppres the womrn e.g: unequal D.O.L.
• Gender inequality is not natural but made by society - criticsed by Parsons: its natural
  
  

Feminism - Liberal:

• We are moving towards greater equality
• Attitudes and socialisation have lead to changes in laws etc e.g: gender inequality.
• This laws is making the family more equal
  
  

Feminism - Marxists:

• Capitalism is the main cause of women's oppression in the family.
• Family performs functions for capitalism:
• 1) Reproduces labour force (women socialise next working generation)
  2) Absorbing men's anger (wives soak husbands anger from the exploiation from work)
• 3) Reserve army of cheap labour (When they are no longer needed they carry on domestic role)
• To make the family equal we must overthrow capitalism and need a classless society. 

Feminism - Radical

• Men are the enemy, family and marriage are the key institution's in a patriarchal society.
• Family = main cause of oppression e.g: Divison of labour
• Women need to live seperatly from men to gain equality = Greer - women should become political lesbians
• Criticsed: Sommerville: ignore ethnic and class inequalities. Liberal feminists: they ignore the progress of the family so far

Feminism - Difference:

• Women have different experiences of the family so we can't generalise for exmaple
• White vs Black
• Middle Class vs Working Class
• Gay vs Straight
• They criticse all feminists

New Right:

• Conserative view of the family.
• Family is based on:
• 1) Biological D.O.V (family has a D.O.V between male breadwinner and female homemaker. Nucelar family with segregated conjual roles = best place to socialise kids)
• 2) Families need to be self-reliant (Relying on state welfare creates a dependency culture which undermines gender roles)