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Conjugal roles and the Symmetrical family
Do you want a job?•50 – 100 hours a week
•Few holidays•Less job satisfaction than assembly line
work•Job security threatened by divorce
•Unpaid•Involves sharing a bed with your employer
The value of domestic labour
• In 2004, report called ‘the value of a mum’(The Legal and General insurance firm) estimated a domestic labour figure.
• £21,840 per year• £407.39 per week
The nature and extent of changes within the family
1.The creation of the housewife
2.Changing nature of housework
3.Conjugal roles
4.The domestic division of labour / the new man and different masculinities
5.Consequences of unequal power: ‘the dark side’
Predict what you think the role of women was
During industrialisation And
After industrialisation
The creation of the housewife
• Oakley (1974)Before industrialisation• Women played important and
complementary role to men
During industrialisation• Women and children often
worked together in factories• Individual wage earners rather
than families
1841 – 1914• Excluded from paid work• Factory and education acts• Womens place in the home
• Catherine Hall (1980)
• Mainly m/c • w/c often had to
work for financial reasons +
domestic duties.
The creation of the housewife
• Hilary Land (1976)
* Family wage brought acceptance to idea that a mans wage sufficient to support family
• Parsons
• Functionalist
• Division of responsibility = functional assuring family economically and emotionally supported
Young and Willmott: the symmetrical family (1973)
• By the 70’s roles between husbands and wives had become more symmetrical.
• 72% of men did housework other than washing up during the week.
• Husbands and wives increasingly shared both leisure and decision making.
Criticisms
• Ann Oakley (Radical Feminist)
• Inadequate methodology• ‘help for at least once a week with
any household jobs?’• “a man who helps with the children
once a week would be included in this %, so would (presumably) a man who ironed his own trousers on a Saturday afternoon.”
• In pairs, one partner to sit behind the other. 4 questions are read out. If the person sitting in front thinks their partner behind them knows the answer, they mark Y on the paper. If not, they mark N. swop over for next 4 questions. If you guess N and your partner does know the answer, you lose a mark and vise versa. Read out questions again and individuals must answer. Compare answers with estimates. One mark for each correct estimate.
• What caused the creation of the housewife according to Oakley?
• Which Feminist said it was mainly m/c who could afford the luxury of being a housewife?
• According to Parsons why was it functional to have a division of responsibility in the home?
• What is meant by the term symmetrical family?• Which sociologists came up with the concept of a
symmetrical family?• What % of men helped with the housework?• Who criticised Y and W methodology?• Why were they criticised?
Lets test your understanding!!!!!!!!!!
Practice exam question
(C) Suggest 3 ways the housewife role is a social construction (6
marks)
Social construction
"invented" or "constructed" by participants in a particular culture or society that exists because people agree to behave as if it exists or follow certain conventional rules.
Changing nature of housework: the impact of paid work
• Today about ¾ of women are in paid employment.
• Does this mean that men are doing more housework today?
The impact of paid work
• Read (p83 Nelson Thornes)
• Lydia Morris (90)• Jonathon Gershunny (94)• Man-Yee Kan (01)
• Summarise the studies into no more than 20 words each. Come up with a way to remember the study…….
Must Know Key terms
• Double shift: women having paid work and also doing most of the housework
• Triple shift: paid work, housework and emotional work.
What are conjugal roles?• Conjugal roles are the roles of the man and
woman [husband and wife] in the home.
Elizabeth Bott• There are two different types of conjugal roles that
people can have: When husbands and wives share housework and
childcare, decisions and leisure time they have joint conjugal roles.
• When husbands and wives do not share housework and childcare, decisions and leisure time they have
segregated conjugal roles.
What factors have influenced the
Gender roles within a family past and present?
You have
3Minutes left
You have
2Minutes left
You have
1Minute left
Times up!!!!
What factors have influenced the Gender roles within a
family past and present?
industrialisationFemale dependencyOn men
Life expectancy
Female employmentFamily size1860’s: 6 – 7 children1870’s: mc ltd – stratified diffusion to wc1990’s – below 2marriage Role models through
The media
Contraceptive revolutionHakim
Resources and decision making in households
Who makes the decisions inYour family?
Gillian Dunne (1999)
•Examined 37 co-habiting couples
•Equality within lesbian households
•No stereotypical role to conform to
•Often both partners would spend equal time with the children
What would happen in a lesbian household?
Read A3 sheet and make summary notes
Plenary: Anagrams
A Altar Chirp
Patriachal
Grey Shun
Gershuny
Grannies earnings
Durnbe Dalu Dual burden
Wonkier Moot Emotion work
lesbian
AbleIns
Practice (c) question
(c) Suggest 3 reasons why feminists would disagree with the claim that the family is symmetrical.
Domestic division of labour and the ‘New Man’
Parsons: Instrumental and expressive roles
• In traditional nuclear family the roles of husbands and wives are segregated.
• Positive (Like NR thinkers)• Based on biological differences
• Husband has an instrumental role, geared towards achieving success at work so that he can provide for his family financially.
• The wife has an expressive role, geared towards primary socialisation of the children, and meeting the families
• emotional needs
What is the new man?
Connell (1995) Masculinities• Until recently, most British men socialised into HEGEMONIC
MASCULINITY. (financial providers; authority figures; disciplinarian; risk takers; ambitious)
• Masculinity today experiencing change
• COMPLICIT MASCULINITY = men who believe that men and women should share roles within familes, but in these homes women still do the majority of the chores.
• NEW MAN = more in touch with his feminine and emotional feelings. (creation of advertising industry????)
• SUBORDIANATE MASCULINITY = Homosexual men
• MARGINALISED MASCULINITY = ‘crisis of masculinity’; older men feel threatened by the change; Younger men see bleak futur
Watch the clip where Rachel and Ross hire a male nanny.Sociologically analyse the stereotypes……
New Man: Fact or fiction?
Chavs and metrosexuals
Back to the future?The domestic division of
labour
Homework: Using the above
resources, design a leaflet answering the
above question Domestic violence
Consequences of unequal power
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/violence/index.shtml
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7542250.stm
Two women are killed every week in England and Wales through domestic violence
Dobash and Dobash (1980)
•Radical feminists
•Interviewed female victims who had left their abusive partners
•Many do not report most incidents because of fear
•Patriarchal power
Radical psychiatry
How would you link this perspective into the topic of power relationships?
Summary
• Complete a glossary highlighting key concepts and main sociologists for this topic.
• Exam practice questions
• mindmap