Family collage assignment

Family Collage

An analysis of the Crawley Family depicted in Season 1 of the British period drama

television seriesManica Hing

CMS 332Spring 2013

The Crawley Family The aristocratic Crawley family is a two-

parent biological family. The family consists of Robert, Earl of Grantham, his wife Cora, an American heiress, and their three daughters Mary, Edith, and Sybil.

The series begins in 1912 and depicts the lives of the Crawley family and their servants in the Edwardian country estate of Downton Abbey.

The Crawley Family, cont. Extended family includes

Robert’s mother, Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham, new heir to the Downton estate, Matthew Crawley, and his mother, Isobel Crawley.

The Crawleys are also members of an intentional family. “The intentional family involves a group of people, some or all of whom are unrelated biologically or legally, who share a commitment to each other, may live together, and consider themselves to be family”(10).

The servants ties to the Crawley family are voluntaristic. Some of the servants serve as confidantes to specific family members. The butler, Mr. Carson, in particular, also considers himself as part of the family.

Cohesion

Of the four levels of cohesion, the Crawley family is a cohesive family. “Family members strive for emotional closeness, loyalty, and togetherness with emphasis on some individuality”(31).

The family experience intense closeness and loyalty is expected. The Crawleys are highly interdependent. Although Mary, Edith, and Sybil strive for individuality, family and social expectations limit their freedom to experience independence from the family.

Flexibility “Flexibility is the amount of

change in a family’s leadership, role relationships, and relationship rules” (32).

In terms of flexibility, the Crawley family operates as a rigid family system. Family rules and expectations conform to the societal norms of the time and are maintained under Robert’s authoritative rule.

The Crawleys live a patterned lifestyle and experience high levels of consistency.

“I’ve given my life to Downton. I was born here and I hope to die here. I claim no career beyond the nurture of this house and the estate. It is my third parent and my fourth child.”

The Crawley Family Through the Systems Perspective

The unexpected deaths of Robert’s cousin and heir, James Crawley, and his son, Patrick, amidst the sinking of the Titanic affects the entire Crawley family system.

Interdependence: Prior to the tragedy, the Crawleys lived relatively uncomplicated lives but James and Patrick’s untimely deaths obliterates the succession plans regarding the Grantham estate leaving Downton’s future in question. The crisis also changes Mary’s prospects considerably because Patrick was Mary’s fiancée.

The Crawley Family Through the Systems Perspective, cont. Patterns/Self-Regulation: As

head of the family, Robert uses maintenance feedback to calibrate the family system. According to the entail, the estate must be passed down to a male heir. Cora and Violet wants Robert to challenge the entail so that Mary could inherit the estate, but Robert decides to be consistent with the law and declares his third cousin, once removed, Matthew Crawley, as the new heir.

Complex Relationships: To cope with the situation, Violet and Cora form a coalition despite their differences. They become allies in the fight against the entail and in finding a suitable husband for Mary.

“Lord Grantham has made the unwelcome discovery that his heir is a middle class lawyer and the son of a middle class doctor.”

Family Communication Rules A constituitive rule in the

Crawley family is members do not overtly express their love for one another. This includes both physical and verbal displays of affection. It is rare for any of them to say “I love you” directly to the other person. The occasional peck on the cheek or gentle touch is acceptable. These rules were developed implicitly.

There is a regulative rule in which Mary, Edith, and Sybil have to seek permission from their parents (or at least notify them) if they wish to leave the house.

Family Secrets Toxic secrets: When a

houseguest suddenly dies in Mary’s room, Mary enlists the help of Anna, the housemaid, and her mother, Cora, to move him back to his room. The secret poisons Cora and Mary’s relationship. Cora is unable to forgive her daughter for her scandalous behavior, but she keeps the secret for Robert’s sake and the sake of the family.

The secret functions as a defense secret. Eventually, Violet discovers the truth but keeps the secret in order to protect the family.

Marital/Partnership Maintenance Robert and Cora

use positivity and openness as maintenance strategies.

Robert and Cora use self-disclosure as a relational currency. They openly discuss their thoughts and feelings about their marital relationship with each other.

Rituals Rituals in the Crawley family include family dinners, formal dinner

parties, post-dinner gatherings in the drawing room, and elaborate garden parties.

Family Ceremonials and Celebrations Another family ritual is the annual flower show. The

family also celebrates each of the girl’s first season, a ceremonial rites of passage event in their culture.

Barriers to Intimacy: Jealousy “Sibling jealousy reflects

birth order, a redistribution of parental resources, or parental favoritism”(Fitness & Duffield, 2004)(146). Edith is resentful of her older sister Mary because she believes Mary’s interests are of more importance to the family than her own.

Mary, on the other hand, is jealous of Matthew Crawley and his increasing closeness with her father. This creates a barrier to intimacy in her relationship with her father as well as her relationship with Matthew.

Role Functions Robert provides kinship

maintenance. He maintains kinship ties with the extended family network (157). Violet is also a “kinkeeper.”

Since Robert does not have a job, he is able to participate in nurturing and supporting the children.

Cora’s role as a mother involves nurturing the children and coordinating activities. She is also a role model for her daughters in terms of gender-based socialization. This includes them learning and assuming the responsibilities of high society.

“No one ever warns you about bringing up daughters. You think it’s going to be like Little Women, instead they’re at each other’s throats from dawn till dusk.”

Role Negotiation “Bringing in a new family

member into the system requires negotiation”(166).

Matthew experiences role negotiation when he assumes the role of the heir presumptive. Role conflict occurs as Matthew adjusts to his new life in the village. Matthew is proud of his middle class background and some of his mannerisms are inconsistent with the expectations of high society (e.g. refusal to use the services of a butler). He agrees to take on the role of the heir but on the condition that he keep his job as a lawyer, even though having a job while running the estate has been unheard of.

Matthew learns what is expected of him through his interactions with family members.

Power Bases in the Family Robert has normative

resources because he is the head of the family and has the authority of a lord (“Lord Grantham”).

Cora has affective resources. She is affectionate towards her husband and children. She uses positive verbal statements as a relational currency.

Mary is accorded power through the use of personal resources. These include her position in the family, her appearance, and her personality.

Decision Making in the Family In the Crawley family, decisions

are reached through the process of accommodation. “Accommodation occurs when some family members consent to a decision not because they agree but because they believe that further discussion will be unproductive”(197). About just everyone in the family disapproves of Robert’s decision to proclaim Matthew as the heir instead of fighting for Mary but they know that any further dispute over the matter will have little to no effect on the situation because Robert is the only one in the family who has the authority to make the decision.

Conflict Styles Model (p. 215): Habitual Conflict Styles of the Crawleys

Con

cern

for

Self

competition

avoiding

compromise

collaboration

accommodation

Concern for Others

High Assertiveness

Low Assertiveness

Low Cooperation High Cooperation

Developmental Stress For Mary, the pressure

from her family, especially from her mother and grandmother, to secure her future through marriage complicates her attempts at autonomy.

Sybil’s passion for politics and concern for women’s rights leads to increased conflict with her father because he does not approve of politics nor Sybil’s deceptive behavior when she lied to him about going to a rally.

“Women like me don’t have a life. We choose clothes, and pay calls and work for charity and do the season. But really we are stuck in a waiting room until we marry.”

References

Galvin, Kathleen M., Carma L. Byland, and Bernard J. Brommel. Family Communication: cohesion and change. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson. Allyn and Bacon, 2012. Print.

"Downton Abbey | Masterpiece | PBS." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2013. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/downtonabbey/index/>

"Downton Abbey Episode Guide Season 1, 2, 3." Downton Abbey Online | Everything Downton. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2013. <http://downtonabbeyonline.com/downton-abbey-episode-guide/>.

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