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DR. RAM MANOHAR LOHIA NATIONAL LAW

UNIVERSITY LUCKNOW(U.P.)
2014-15

SOCIOLOGY
THE FAMILY

Submitted to:- Submitted by:-
Dr. Sanjay Singh Shubham Nider
Assistant Professor(Sociology) R.no.=135 Sec-B
Faculty Member B.A.LL.B(Hons.)
1
st
Semester


Teachers sign:- Students sign:-



ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:-
Firstly, I would like to thank respected Assistant Professor Dr.
Sanjay Singh, for giving me such a golden opportunity to show my
skills and capability through this project. This project is the result of
the extensive ultrapure study, hard work and labour, put into to make
it directly or indirectly contributed in the development of this work
and who influenced my thinking, behaviour, and acts during the
course of study. Lastly, I would like to thank the almighty and my
parents for their moral support and my friends with whom I
shared my day-to-day experience and received lots of
suggestions that improved my quality of work.
By:-
Shubham Nider






Content:-
1. Introduction 4
2. Marriage 4
3. Kinship 4
4. Function of The Families 5
5. Types of The Families 6
Conjugal Family 6
Matrifocal Family 6
Extended family 6
Blended Family 7
6. Families in India 7
7. Marriages in India 8
8. Global trends of marriages and family....................10








INTRODUCTION:-
If there is a social institution it is the family. Every society needs some form of social
arrangement to regulate sexual relations and to provide for child rearing and socialization.
Family have survived through the ages because it provides a numbers of essential social
functions. Yet there are wide variations in the structure and pattern of family.
A FAMILY is a social group of two or more people who live together and are related by
blood, marriage, or adoption. A kinship group is a network of families related by blood,
marriage, or adoption. The culture determines which family relationships are considered
significant.
Generally, we think of a family as a domestic Generally, we think of a family as a of people,
or a number of domestic groups linked through descent from:
(1) a common ancestor,
(2) marriage,
(3) adoption, or
(4) some other committed (romantic or otherwise) relationship.
While many families have some form of kinship, many others possess no such tie.
Marriage:-
Marriage is a governmentally, socially, or religiously recognized interpersonal relationship,
usually intimate and sexual, that is often created as a form of contract. The most frequently
occurring form of marriage is between a woman and a man, where the feminine term wife and
the masculine husband are generally used to describe the parties to the contract. Other forms
of marriage also exist. For example, polygamy, in which a person takes more than one
spouse, is present in many societies. (See, for instance, the Kaingang, of Brazil, where close
to 40% of the marriages were not monogamous but included multiple spousal partners.)
Kinship:-
Kinship can refer both to the patterns of social relationships themselves, or it can refer to the
study of the patterns of social relationships in one or more human cultures (i.e. kinship
studies). Over its history, anthropology has developed a number of related concepts and terms


in the study of kinship, such descent, descent group, lineage, affine, cognate and fictive
kinship. Further, even within these two broad usages of the term, there are different
theoretical approaches.
Broadly, kinship patterns may be considered to include people related by both descent (one's
social relations during development), and by marriage. Human kinship relations
through marriage are commonly called "affinity" in contrast to the relationships that arise in
one's group of origin, which may be called one's descent group. In some cultures, kinship
relationships may be considered to extend out to people an individual has economic or
political relationships with, or other forms of social connections. Within a culture, some
descent groups may be considered to lead back to gods or animal ancestors(totems). This may
be conceived of on a more or less literal basis.
The Function of Families:-

The primary function of the procreative families (e.g., families built around the pursuit of
parenthood) is to reproduce society, biologically through procreation, socially through
socialization, or in both ways. Given these functions, one's experience of one's family shifts
over time. From the perspective of children, the family is a family of orientation: the family
functions to locate children socially, and plays a major role in their socialization. From the
point of view of the parent(s), the family is a family of procreation: the family functions to
produce and socialize children. In some cultures marriage imposes upon women
the obligation to bear children. In northern Ghana, for example, payment bridewealth
signifies a woman's requirement to bear children, and women using birth control face
substantial threats of physical abuse and reprisals.
In other cases, procreative families utilize marital privileges, rights, and laws (if they have
access to these opportunities legally) to establish legal parenthood of a child, gain control
over sexual services, labor, and / or property, establish a joint fund of property for the benefit
of children, and / or establish relations between partner's larger familial networks. No society
does all of these; no one of these is universal, and many people different societies lack access
to whatever marital and family privileges available in their given social context. In societies
with a sexual division of labor, marriage, and the resulting relationship between a marital
members, increasing economic opportunities and decreasing tax burdens, which can aid the


establishment of financially stable families. In modern societies marriage entails particular
rights and privileges - for those allowed to marry - that encourage the formation of new
families even when there is no intention of having children.
The primary functions of non-procreative families (e.g., families that are built around pursuits
and desires that do not involve parenthood) is to facilitate social, economic, emotional, and
interpersonal support networks, combine resources for the pursuit of financial gain and / or
stability, formalize long term commitments to one another and to larger familial and social
networks, claim some of the rights, benefits and privileges granted to procreative families in
many countries, and / or adhere to religious / spiritual beliefs about emotional-sexual
commitment, trajectory, and purpose.
Types of Families:-

Conjugal (nuclear) family:-
The "nuclear family is commonly used, especially in the United States, to refer to conjugal
families. A "conjugal" family includes only the husband, the wife, and unmarried children
who are not of age. Sociologists distinguish between conjugal families (relatively
independent of the kindred of the parents and of other families in general) and nuclear
families (which maintain relatively close ties with their kindred).

Matrifocal family:-
A "matrifocal" family consists of mother and her children. Generally, these children are her
biological offspring, although adoption of children is a practice in nearly every society. This
kind of family is common where women have the resources to rear their children by
themselves, or where men are more mobile than women.

Extended family:-
The term "extended family" is also common, especially in United States. This term has two
distinct meanings. First, it serves as a synonym of "consanguinal family" (consanguine means


"of the same blood"). Second, in societies dominated by the conjugal family, it refers to
"kindred(an egocentric network of relatives that extends beyond the domestic group) who do
not belong to the conjugal family. These types refer to ideal or normative structures found in
particular societies. Any society will exhibit some variation in the actual composition and
conception of families.
Blended family:-
The term blended family or step family describes families with mixed parents: one or both
parents remarried, bringing children of the former family into the new family. Also in
sociology, particularly in the works of social psychologist Michael Lamb, traditional
family refers to "a middleclass family with a bread-winning father and a stay-at-home mother,
married to each other and raising their biological children," and nontraditional to exceptions
from this rule. Most of the US households are now non-traditional under this definition.
In terms of communication patterns in families, there are a certain set of beliefs within the
family that reflect how its members should communicate and interact. These family
communication patterns arise from two underlying sets of beliefs. One being conversation
orientation (the degree to which the importance of communication is valued) and two,
conformity orientation (the degree to which families should emphasize similarities or
differences regarding attitudes, beliefs, and values).
Families in India:-
The essential themes of Indian cultural life are learned within the bosom of a family. The
joint family is highly valued, ideally consisting of several generations residing, working,
eating, and worshiping together. Such families include men related through the male line,
along with their wives, children, and unmarried daughters. A wife usually lives with her
husbands relatives, although she retains important bonds with her natal family. Even in
rapidly modernizing India, the traditional joint household remains for most Indians the
primary social force, in both ideal and practice.

Large families tend to be flexible and well suited to modern Indian life, especially for the
more than two-thirds of Indians who are involved in agriculture. As in most primarily
agricultural societies, cooperating kin help provide mutual economic security. The joint
family is also common in cities, where kinship ties are often crucial to obtaining employment


or financial assistance. Many prominent families, such as the Tatas, Birlas, and Sarabhais,
retain joint family arrangements as they cooperate in controlling major financial empires.

The ancient ideal of the joint family retains its power, but today actual living arrangements
vary widely. Many Indians live in nuclear families-a couple with their unmarried
children-but belong to strong networks of beneficial kinship ties. Often, clusters of
relatives live as neighbors, responding readily to their kinship obligations.

As they expand, joint families typically divide into smaller units, which gradually grow into
new joint families, continuing a perpetual cycle. Today, some family members may move
about to take advantage of job opportunities, typically sending money home to the larger
family.
Marriages in India:-
Whenever we talk of Indian wedding we try to equate it with arrange marriages. In India the
social structure is such that we associate Indian marriages mainly with arrange Marriages.
Most of us have the feelings that arrange marriage is the concept of Indian society. But
history tells us that arranged marriages use to happen even in the Victorian age. The history
of England tells us that most of the kings and queens had arranged marriages. In India
arrange marriages originated when child marriages was customary in the country. Caste
system gave birth to arrange marriages, as the upper caste families didn't want their children
to marry outside their community and caste. The concept of love marriage was a taboo in
ancient India as India always had a tradition of arranged marriages. But after World War II
and industrial revolution people's perception started changing and they became familiar with
the concept of love marriages. In India the influence of the British culture gave rise to love
marriages. The idea, which was once a taboo, became more open and acceptable in the Indian
society. But this change was seen only among the educated and high society Indians. The
rural parts of the country remained ignorant and unaware of love marriages. In spite of the
social changes arranged marriage persisted. Love or arranged marriages is still a debatable
topic in the Indian society. People still debate on the issue, which one is better. What should
be the basis of the marriage love or social norms? We are still confused about these issues.
Education and media played a vital role in changing the perception of the Indian mind. As
people started thinking beyond the social customs and traditions of arranged marriages. They


realized that they have the right to choose their life partner without any kind of social
pressure. It is after all their life. They can decide without having to rely on parents, relatives
and matchmakers. This change in the mental set up of the people gave birth to love
marriages. Now in India people are open to love marriages. It is no more forbidden in the
society. In our country we are having both love and arranged marriages. If we start
comparing love and arranged marriages we will see that both has certain pros and cons. But
the common factor in both the concept is physical attraction. When a man and a woman go
out on their first date physical attraction is the deciding factor. Same in case of arranged
marriage where the relation starts only after the girl or boy likes each other. But there are
certain things, which are found in love marriages and not in arranged. Like spending time
together and getting to know each other. Because when you have decided to spend the life
together it is important you know the person. There should be metal compatibility and
understanding among both of you. And this happens when you spend time together. On this
people may argue that even after knowing each other for so long than why people get
divorced after marriage. It is because when two people are in love they are at their best to
impress each other. They behave, they talk and they wear what the other person likes. But it
is after marriage that you get to know the real person. There are couples who are still
discovering each other even after twenty years of their marriage. This is the actual beauty of a
relationship where everyday you discover a new thing about your partner. In case of arranged
marriages the relation starts when the girl and the boy get to know each other in a couple of
meeting before the final commitment. Before deciding anything the parents check the family
background and financial stability. Which is also very important. As most of the people have
an idea that those who go for arranged marriages are not in an advantageous position but it's
not so you may get the right person for whom you have been waiting. Even in love marriages
after many years of courtship people find their partner not suitable and they break up. So it is
not about spending time together but successful marriage is all about understanding and
respecting each other's feelings, love and concern. It is argued that love marriages offer more
independence and freedom as compared to arranged marriages since both of them knows
each other so the social pressure and family pressure is less. If you know somebody before
marriage it allows partners to have better respect and understanding for each other's needs
and desires. In love marriages expectations are more compared to arrange marriages, as they
know each other and want their partner to act in the best possible manner. Arranged
marriages, offer more protection, security to the women. As the parents decides the family.
Parents make use of maturity and wise decision while choosing suitable spouses for their


children. The mature decision of parents sometimes helps to make the right choice. But it
doesn't mean that arranged marriages are ideal marriages. Even in an arranged marriage there
is a different sort of social pressure. Social evils like dowry, caste system, matching of
horoscopes and community issues are taken at such extreme levels that people don't support
arranged marriages. So whether it is love or arranged ultimately it is up to the individual to
decide, which one to go for. Love or arranged both is based on empathy, responsibility,
commitment, love and concern. So it's not just about initial love and attraction it needs a lot
of dedication and effort to sustain a marriage. So there is nothing like an ideal marriage it's all
about the way you perceive your marriage. After all you should be happy with your life
partner irrespective of love or arranged marriage.
Global trends of marriage and family:-
Most of them are not prevalent in India. At least not on a significant level.
Single-parent families, globally, one-quarter to one-third of all families are headed by single
mothers, calling into question the normativeness of couple headed families. Developed
countries, in particular, are experiencing an increase in single-parent families as divorce
becomes more common. The United States has the highest percentage of single-parent
families (34% in 1998) among developed countries, followed by Canada (22%), Australia
(20%), and Denmark (19%). In developing countries, divorce is not as common, but
desertion, death, and imprisonment produce single-parent families, primarily headed by
women (Kinnear 1999). Rates vary country to country from a low of less than 5 percent in
Kuwait to a high of over 40 percent in Botswana and Barbados. In countries such as Ghana,
Kenya, Rwanda, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, and Tobago more than 25 percent of
households are headed by women.

Cohabitation is an arrangement where two people who are not married live together in an
emotionally and/or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis.
"Cohabitation" usually refers to unmarried couples who live together without formally
registering their relation as a marriage. Such arrangements have become increasingly
common in Western countries during the past few decades, being led by changing social
views, especially regarding marriage, gender roles and religion.
More broadly, the term cohabitation can mean any number of people living together. To
"cohabit", in a broad sense, means to "coexist". The origin of the term comes from the mid
16th century, from the Latin cohabitare, from co- 'together' + habitare 'dwell'.
On average, marriage preceded by cohabitation is 46% more likely to end in divorce. The risk
is greatest for serial cohabitors who have had multiple relationships. Some studies indicate


that those who live together with definite plans for marriage are at minimal risk; however,
there are no positive effects from cohabiting. Cohabitation puts children at risk. Forty percent
of cohabiting households include children. After five years, one-half of these couples will
have broken up, compared to 15% of married parents
Divorce(or the dissolution of marriage) is the termination of a marital union, the cancelling
and/or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving
the bonds of matrimony between a married couple under the rule of law of the particular
country and/or state.
Divorce should not be confused with annulment, which declares the marriage null and void;
with legal separation (a legal process by which a married couple may formalize a de
facto separation while remaining legally married) or with de facto separation (a process
where the spouses informally stop cohabiting).
Divorce laws vary considerably around the world, but in most countries it requires the
sanction of a court or other authority in a legal process. The legal process of divorce may also
involve issues of alimony (spousal support), child custody, child visitation / access, parenting
time, child support, distribution of property, and division of debt. In most
countries monogamy is required by law, so divorce allows each former partner to marry
another; where polygyny is legal but polyandry is not, divorce allows the woman to marry a
new husband.
Divorce can be a stressful experience: affecting finances, living arrangements, household
jobs, schedules, parenting and the outcomes of children of the marriage as they face each
stage of development from childhood to adulthood. If the family includes children, they may
be deeply affected.











BIBLEOGRAPHY:-
CONTEMPORARY SOCIOLOGY By FRANCIS ABRAHAM
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