1. History of the Family Familial mode of production Hunting/gathering
Agricultural
Early America
Labor market mode of production
Industrialization
Modern American family
American ethnic groups
20th century

2. Familial Mode of Production (Historical)
Families served most societal functions, including economic production
Family as basic unit of social organization

3. Hunting and Gathering Societies:
Survival was main concern
Cooperation was necessary
Men hunted in groups
Women cared for children, gathered food, processed game
Little differentiation
Roles not valued differently

4. Agricultural Societies
Improved food production:
job specialization
private property
Money economy
Paid work got higher status
Women and men worked together
Men participated in public life
Women and children were men’s property

5. American Indian Families
Primary units were tribes
Based on lineage (matrilineal, patrilineal)
Children cared for by community
Tribe as extended family
Passed on traditions thru stories, teaching

6. European Colonists’ Families
Performed public services
Education
Health care
Corrections
Orphanages
Nursing homes
Poor houses
Children were economic assets
High child mortality, large families
Little privacy or private life

7. Labor Market Mode of Production (Recent)
Families serve fewer societal functions
Economic production more formalized
Family as basic unit of reproduction, consumption
Emotional bond replaces economic contract or duty

8. Industrialization Removed work from home Increased value of education
Separated men’s and women’s work
Increased value of education
Lengthened childhood dependency
Increased cost of children
Raised standard of living, aspirations
Shifted economic production away from families
Family formation as personal choice

9. “Modern” American Family: 1776 to 1900
Individualism— increased choice
Marriage based on respect, affection
Children as vulnerable
Family size declined
Parental authority eroded

10. “Modern” American woman:
Worked inside the home
Thought to bring out best in husband
Ideal woman was:
Pure, spiritual
Submissive to man
Domestic

11. Working class families
In 1900, 15% of population born in other countries
Long hours, low wages
Crowded, unsanitary living conditions
Breadwinner-homemaker not possible
Children worked for pay
Wives worked in home: laundry, piecework, took in lodgers

12. African-American Families
Maintained strong ties to kin
Children before marriage
Women worked
Organized by lineages
Gutman: slaves often married for life; kept track of extended family

13. Mexican-American Families
Landowners and farmer-laborers
U.S. acquired southwestern area
Mexicans forced into segregated neighborhoods (barrios).
Other Hispanic groups (Cubans, Puerto Ricans) had different experiences

14. Asian Families Patrilineal heritage Emphasis on loyalty
Arranged marriages
Japanese internment (WW II)
Immigration Act (1965) changed restrictions placed yearly quota
Different groups had different experiences

15. Rise of the Private Family: 1900-1930
More premarital sex
Fewer births
Rise in marriage rate
Greater emphasis on emotional satisfaction
Marriage became less necessary

16. The Great Depression Divorce rate fell
Postponement of marriage and childbearing
1 in 5 never had children (1 in 10 norm)
Possibly more abortions
Children helped out by working

17. 1940’s - 1950s WWII – women entered labor force – temporarily
Post-war economic boom –
early marriage
Baby boom - renewed
emphasis on marriage, children
High point of breadwinner-homemaker model

18. 1960s and Beyond Birthrate plunged –
“Contraceptive Revolution?”
Changing opportunities for women?
Marriage 4-5 years later than before
Young people wanted independence
Divorce rate doubled 1960s–70s
Cohabitation—1970s
Wives, mothers working outside home

19. Transition over time from:
“F”amily
Extended
Powerful
Context for life
Social, financial support
Based on economics, obligation
To “f”amily
Conjugal
Weaker
Isolated from society
More freedom
Voluntary, based on emotional bond