Families Professor Janaki Natalie Parikh [email protected].

Families

Professor Janaki Natalie [email protected]

Families• Concept that means diff’t things to diff’t ppl• Every person has a family of orientatn• Some will have a family of procreatn• Diff’t shapes & sizes, 2 distinctns:• Types of kin: affinal, consanguineal, fictive• Nuclear family: what is that?• 2 Parents & their children, non-permt unit

• Expanded family: non-nuclear relatives• Household: task oriented resident’l unit where

productn, consumptn, inherit’ce & child-rearing are accomplished

• Extended family: expanded family ntwk w/ 3 or more generatns present

• U.S. tends to privilege the nuclear fam. as an ideal family type, a “refuge” of sorts

Domestic Violence

• The reality is somewhat stark by comparison:• In the U.S.: nearly 1/3 of American ♀ (31%) report

being physically &/or sexually abused by a male partner (husband, boyfriend) at some pt. in their lives

• In the U.S., 4 ♀ a day are killed by their battering significant other

• Around the world: Canada (29%), Uganda (41%!), U.P.

India (45%!)

Abuse against ♂ & lack of reportinghttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4181574.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4468396.stm

Patterns of descent

• Bilateral descent: descent traced equally through ♂& ♀: network assoc. w/: kindred

• Unilineal descent: descent traced through only 1 parent:

• 2 types of unilineal: matrilineal & patrilineal

• Network assoc. w/ unilineal: lineage & clan

• Clan: collectn of closely related lineages

• Lineages may have corporate fxns (can own propty as a

grp, rather than individually)

Descent networks

• Kindred: an ego centered network of bilateral kin• Doesn’t have a cohesive common identity like a lineage• Unique to individ’s., only full siblings share same

kindred• All other relatives will have distinct kindreds

Kin Charts

• Tracing patrilineage& matrilineage

• Identifying types of cousins

Parallel & Cross cousins

• Parallel cousins: childnOf same sexed siblings

• Cross cousins: childnof opposite sexedsiblings

• Apical ancestor: original ancestor of a lineage• Clans may be totemic: apical ancestor linked to a

feature of the nat’l environ.

Cross-cult’l alternatives to the nuclear family

• Nayar: tribal group from Malabar coast of S. India• Matrilineal descent• ♂: tracing back to Chola Wars extens. involvemt in

military campaigns

• tarawad: extd. family compound headed by a sr ♀• Ofcl marriage at maturity, for both not regarded

significant since paternity not an issue

Marriage

• Incest taboo: (c. univers.) prohibitns against sexual relatns w/ a close relative

• Endogamy: rules that dictate marriage w/in one’s own grp

• Exogamy: rules that dictate marriage outisde of one’s own grp

Functions• Functns of exogamy: widens netwk of alliances• Functns of endogamy: maintains grp distinctns• Caste (jati) as an extreme form of endogamy: w/in are subcastes & sub-sub castes, etcHowever, oft. divided into separate lineages that marry

exogamously for lineage & endogamous for caste -Dbl standards: separate set of expectatns for 2 grps, favoring 1 grp

Post marital residce patterns

• Matrilocal: coup. Resides w/ bride’s family/commty• Patrilocal: coup. Resides w/ groom’s fam./commty• Ambilocal: can choose to live w/ either• Neolocal: coup. sets up a new household• Avunculocal: coup. Resides w/ groom’s mother’s

brother (specif. to matrilineal socieities)

Forms of marriage• Monogamy: both partners have only 1 spouse• Technically, what do we have?• Serial monogamy:series of monogam. relatnships• polygamy: 2 types• Polygyny: sing. ♂ married to mult. ♀ • Polyandry: sing. ♀ married to mult. ♂

-Same sex marriage: benefits affordedby marriage

-Pangamy (group marriage)

Fraternal polyandry

• Fraternal polyandry: Himalayas (Tibet)• A ♀ marries a ♂ & all of his brothers

• Young ppl growing up in Tibet have a choice & will oft. select this arrangemt

• Why?

• Find out in AE: When Brothers Share A Wife

Customary gifts @ marriage

• Bridewealth: gifts from groom & his kin to bride & her kin @ time of marriage

• Dowry: gifts from bride & her kin to groom & his kin @ time of marriage

• Neither is a purchase, simply making intentns known not unlike a customary gift we give…

• 1 of these has a hist. of being abused, which one? dowry, burning & deaths

• Nuer: strongly patrilin.& patrilocal (low divorce rate)• Genitor: biolog. father• Pater: socially recognized father (secured by bridewlth)

• Bridewealth traditn, Nuer wealth determined by?• Ghost marriage• ♀-♀ marriage:

• Sororate: if a bride dies young, her close kin may provide a substitute (oft. her sister)

• Reasons: continues alliance, no need for 2nd bridewealth transfer

• Levirate: If a husband dies young, his widow marries his brother

• Plays out difft than sororate, due to age factor