Preview

College

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
601 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
College
T. S. Simey and his team in the 1940s described Afro-Caribbean families as dysfunctional. Drawing on the work of Caribbean theorists, evaluate this statement in light of contemporary Caribbean family forms.

Define family George Peter Murdock (1949) defined family as “a social group characterized by common residence, economic co-operation and reproduction.” According to Murdock, the family includes adults of both sexes, at least two of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship and one or more children, their own or adopted, of the sexually cohabiting adults.
Functions of the family
The functions of a family * Reproduction * Socialization * Companionship and gratification

Type of family forms in the Caribbean * Nuclear * Extended * Single * Matrifocal
How does social Pathology derived and what it is
This perspective, developed in the Caribbean, considers the family within the context social problems. The approach was followed by the West Indian royal commission of 1937 which concluded in its findings that the man in West Indian society was not viewed as the head of the household. It also identified the woman as the supporter of the home and claimed that promiscuity and illegitimacy were prevalent.
The problems that derived from social pathology * Family life was seen as loose and unstable, and relationship appeared to be casual. * Conjugal ties were occasionally faithful and enduring but were more often promiscuous and transitory * The fathers contact with children was irregular and because of poverty he was usually unable to provide economic support * Children were illegitimate effectively fatherless, unschooled and subjected to severe parental disciple * The crisis in Caribbean family life brought with it a range of social problems as result there was weakness in the family According to Herskovits (1939) and Frazier (1939), the lower class afro Caribbean family was

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    text 6

    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Poem taken from a section of the book “From the Devil’s Pulpit”. It is also a quote from this…

    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The growth of family diversity has led to a decline of the traditional nuclear family due to an increase in single parents, around 10% are fathers and 90% are mothers. This is partly caused by the changing role of women, women are becoming much more independent and are more likely to become a single parent due to the decreasing willingness to put up with the difficulties of men and the high expectations of marriage, which are causing an increase in divorce. Also due to globalisation and cultural differences, one in ten white women with children are single whereas about half of Caribbean women with children are single, this is due to a low partnership rate, low marriage rates, high separation rates, absent fathers and the disruption of ‘normal’ family life, which all contribute to Caribbean families not being stable, even though the Caribbean population in the UK is 2.5 %.…

    • 600 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Slavery In The Caribbean

    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Slavery had been going on for hundreds of years in the Caribbean. The European powers dominated and exploited the region for its riches, resources, and its people and provided an oppressed servile class of Africans to use as a labor resource. The slaves would work on plantations against their will without any regard for their well-being or livelihood. Furthermore, as the industry began to develop, the Caribbean saw a major decline in slavery partnered with a rise in indentured servitude. This essay will argue that the abolition movement and black resistance of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the influx of Asian migrants influenced economic development throughout the region and introduced a new race and social questions.…

    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    College

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In a society filled with wants and needs, advertisement serves as a persuasive yet informative factor while aiming for an appealing effect on the potential consumer, Advertisement’s influential role on the consumer has provided a reliable resource for successful sales, while simultaneously creating a more competitive environment for opposing companies. For example, Rimmel London and Cover Girl, two extremely successful makeup industries are at constant war in advertising. When selling similar products, such as make up, brands are completely reliant on their advertisement’s approach. In all reality, both products may have the same effect but must rely on their commercial’s “pitch” to sell. If not marketed properly, even the best products can be overshadowed. Despite their widely different approach, both Rimmel London and Cover Girl understand the core elements of successful advertisement.…

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    college

    • 766 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The television show Malcolm in the middle is a must see comedy. The American television classic, which was created by Linwood Boomer, first broadcasted on January 9, 2000 until May 14, 2006 on the network FX. Throughout the seven seasons in which it was aired, it released over one hundred fifty one episodes and received numerous awards such as seven Emmys and one Grammy award. Malcolm defends Reese was the one hundred and thirty eighth episode that aired on December 15th, 2005. Malcolm is the middle child of five children that are a part of a dysfunctional family raised by their stressed out, over bearing mother Lois and their child at heart father Hal. Malcolm has a hard time coping with his family life, so he tends to lean on his eldest brother Frankie for advice to help ease the pain. Malcolm was diagnosed as a young genius, and finds out the hard way that he’ll have to start taking special education and know this would put an end to any possibility of him being normal. Malcolm has to juggle both his stellar special education class and his out of whack home life. The television series is targeted at a more mature audience because of its adult quirky sense of humor, the unusual family relationships, and the unique character portrayals.…

    • 766 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    It was not unusual of her parents to intertwine or fluctuate between incomes. Social marginalization and economic uncertainty caused feelings of shame and poverty in her family. Her family were dependent on the government and she watched as her parents relationship disappear.…

    • 1093 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    life and family

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Certainly the term 'family' has raised various debates in the modern society and as evident from the study of different cultures, there is now no clear taxonomy of a family unit. From a functionalists point of view, it is a unit of people bound together either biologically or by legal marriage. To support this theory, Murdock defines it as a group consisting of a sexually active heterosexual couple living with their biological or adopted children.(Haralambos M & Langley P).…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The main aspect of the scenario that this paper will focus on is the socio-economic situation of the family, particularly Joe 's unemployment, drug addiction and weak parental skills which are influenced by a number of factors:…

    • 1151 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Guyana's Culture

    • 2601 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Smith, Raymond T. The Negro Family in British Guiana: Family Structure and Social Status in the Villages , 1956.…

    • 2601 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Using 2 Readings from the Course carry out a discussion about equality and family functions among African Caribbean families.…

    • 2737 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    sociology famaliy

    • 1311 Words
    • 4 Pages

    "The family is a social group characterised by common residence, economic cooperation and reproduction. It includes adults of both sexes, at least two of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship, and one or more children, owned or adopted, of the sexually cohabited adults".…

    • 1311 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Most candidates emphasized the social role of the family such as nurturing, caring, providing food and shelter but ignored the wider role of the family and failed to acknowledge the other functions of the family. Also, candidates failed to acknowledge the changes in the family and how this impacts society and culture. Candidates mentioned the popular family types but failed to mention same-sex families as an emerging family type. Some candidates had knowledge of families but could have deepened the discussion by citing examples to bring out the arguments, such as the incidence of crime and illegal drug use within the nuclear and extended families. Some full responses were produced on Hindu and Muslim families, particularly in Trinidad, Guyana and Jamaica. A reasonable number of candidates who understood the question scored high marks.…

    • 1023 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The most popular family forms in the Caribbean are:       The family based on common-law union or consensual cohabitation in which the parents live together but are not legally married; The nuclear family, conjugal or the marital union in which the parents are…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    George Peter Murdock defined a family "a social group characterized by common residence, economic cooperation, and reproduction." He added that the family "includes adults of both sexes, at least two of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship, and one or more children". He stated that, to be a family, the unit must fulfil the four essential functions: socialisation, economic, sexual gratification, and reproduction. If they do not fulfil these functions, then they are not defined as a family, according to Murdock. These roles are important for the family to carry out because if they do not, they will not be able to produce children who are successful members of society, and if no family fulfilled these functions, society would cease to exist. Therefore, a "universal family" is needed to carry society on as it is now, otherwise it could just fall apart and society as it is now will disappear.…

    • 804 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Impact of Societal Institutions On Caribbean Culture and Society Objectives • Gain a thorough understanding of the different social institutions: family, education, political systems • Understand the main ideas of the Marxist and Functionalist perspectives • Understand the Marxist and perspective on social institutions Functionalist Social Institutions • Social Institutions are a fundamental part of the operations of society. They are the major organising framework in social life. Social institutions have evolved overtime and therefore embody what the society holds valuable in relation to family, education, religion, the justice system, the economy and health.…

    • 1215 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays