Family, Marriage, and Gender Roles

At the core of American identities and American dreams lies a

family.
Throughout time, families serve as a connection between the individual
and the
outside world. The individual's identity, his or her dreams, in large
part
depend on the family of origin or a family of choice. The individual
is shaped
through beliefs, values, and assumptions that the family holds about
the world
and that are based on family member's eperiences and collective
memory. The
family itself, in turn derives its values from the social, cultural,
political,
and philosophical assumptions and beliefs of the larger, and more
dominant
culture.
!n today's modern society, assumptions regarding a family can be
very
widespread. Ranging from the conservative viewpoint to the more
liberal view.
The conservative is the more traditional view of the two. "elieving
that the
only true family is the #oint relationship of a husband, wife, and
children is a
thing of the past. Recently an alarming number of unfavorable
situations have
arisen. These situations range from one$parent families to the
ineplicable
situation of two partners of the same se. %hat happens to a society
where the
nuclear family is no longer the dominant configuration& 'nly time will
tell.
"eing brought up in a traditional environment, ! have very
conservative
views on the concept of a family. %hen ! was young, my Mother did not
wor(.
)he would stay at home with me until ! was about thirteen years old. !
feel
that, if possible, a mother should stay home with her children. !n my
eyes, the
main responsibility of a Mother is to furnish her children with as much
attention as possible. %ithout the necessary attention the child will
grow up
striving for attention, and will do everything in his or her power to
receive it.
!n the model nuclear family, the Father is the individual who is
responsible
for earning a substantial living. *roviding for the family+ a home,
food, and a
sense of security, the Father is an important factor in the up bringing
of a
family. -nfortunately, many families do not have the luury of a
nuclear family.
They must survive on their perseverance, along with a little bit of
luc( along
the way.
!n our tetboo(, Moser and %aters accurately depict the
essentials of
family values. The one essay that seems to support my own set of
values is
the one entitled Reserve Marriage for .eteroseuals. ! feel that a
family has
nothing to gain by allowing homoseuals to adopt children and start
their own
families. The essay depicts that children that are raised without a
Mother and
a Father seem to develop in a s(ewed, scarred, or retarded way. !
agree with
this point of the essay because there is no way a child can cope with
the fact
that he or she has no Mother or Father. The boo( also cites that
adoption
agencies are now discouraging single parents to adopt children, leaning
more and
more towards the traditional, nuclear family.
'ur tetboo( represents a wide variety of different assumptions
on the
/ualities of a family. The assumption that ! do not find to be
legitimate is
depicted in the essay Marriage is a Fundamental Right. The essay
declares that
the marriage of two homoseual partners should be legali0ed. ! believe
that
this would threaten the social identity of our culture, and presumably
bring on
more troubles than benefits. The only reasonable eplanation for this
reaction,
is the fact that ! came from a very traditional bac(ground. ! have
never had to
eperience the fact of (nowing ! can not do something because of
1tradition.1 !
hope in the coming years ! will change my views on certain issues when
! learn
to understand them better.
%ith my Father growing up in a small town in %est 2irginia, his
family
used the current day template of raising a family. Finding someone who
you
could marry, having ten children, and living the rest of your life with
them.
They did not (now of any homoseuals wanting to marry, all they (new
was the
fact that they needed each other to survive. !n today's modern
society, ! am
forced to listen to the homoseuals complaint because they have the
same right
to the laws of marriage as two heteroseuals partners.