The Family

The family
There is no place like home. Home is there our heart stays. Home is a place that we
consider as our own, because it consisting of our near and dear or in in the language of
sociology it is a place of our consanguineous relation. The place within the unit of home
becomes our family. Family is the basic structure of human society. It is the original and
basic unit of human society. Ma is a social animal who turns so through the process of
socialisation which is induce by the family, the primary unit. Family is not imposing anyone
forcibly. It is born out of man’s basic needs as a necessary means to fulfil those needs.
Meaning
Family is a primary social group, universally recognised to be bases of all human endeavour
and activities. The concept of family has been found to exist since time immemorial and all
levels of cultures. The word family comes from the `Latin’ word `Famulus’ which included
father, mother, children, servants and slaves. The Greeks used the word `Oikonomia’ for
family which implies an even bigger group. In Germany and France besides parents and
children even the servants are included in family. Thus different society and different
meaning has been attached to it.
 As functional unit
Family is regarded as a functional unit from the composition and integration it becomes
apparent of the family being a functional unit. It grows out of biological units and supplies
the biological rights. The family being basic unit imports of behaviour and responses. The
transmition of cultural tradition proceeds from generation to generation. The family also
acts simultenously as an educative unit.
 As an association
Family as a group is a deliberately formed association. As an association it is inclusive of the
form and contained of the family that is characteristics and composition as also its variation
from time to time and place to place.
 Family as a process
Family as a process has been viewed not only as a permanent functional institution and an
ever active affective association, but also as a process. The process called family is divided
into three or four well defined stages that is formative stage, nuptial stage, pre-nuptial
stage.
Definition
According to
Eliod and Merill, “family is the biological social unit composed of husband, wife and
children”.
Ogburn and Nimkoff, “family is more or less or durable association of a husband and wife
with or without children or a man or women alone with children”.
Characteristics
 Universality
Family is found all over the world and at all levels of culture. There is no human society in
which some form of family does not appear. The irresistible sex need, the urge for
reproduction, the economic needs has contributed to the universality.
 Mating and relationship

This relationship is an important and precondition for the establishion of family when sex
relationship established between male and female in that moment family establishes.
 Nomenclature
Family is responsible for nomenclature which varies from community to community. Most
of the hindus observes name giving ceremony on 21st day or 30th day after the birth.
 Tracing decent
Family is the medium in which for which one’s ancestors or lineage. One can trace through
father’s or mother’s lineage. In hindu society, it is generally named as gotra e.g: Kashyap
and Bharadwaj.
 Primary group
Family is basic unit and serves as a secondary element.
 Perform socialisation
The primary socialisation or the first agent of socialisation starts within the boundary of
family.
 Small or large group
Our family may be small consisting of parents, mother and children and father and children.
A large family is generally addition of more broad relation like uncle and aunt.
 Emotional basis
Family is the sheltering of sentiments, love, care, fellow felling and compassaion. Family is
the building of relationship. The things that ties together of the family at the outcome of
such an emotional factor as love and not an intellectual factor like
 Economic co-operation
Family is the place where one gets co-operation for economic transaction. For day today life
activities one needs money that is provided by the head of the family propound for the
economic co-operation.
 Sense of responsibility and duty

A sense of responsibility among its member in relation to each other is an aspect which is
more rational and reasoned than emotional. This feeling ensures its smooth working.
 Social regulation
Family instils the values, mores and folkways into the individual members into the family.
This ensures the regulation by promoting awareness of functions towards each other on the
basis of social relation and employes effective means of social control when a member is
deviant.
 Composition
A family comprises of husband, wife, children that is natural or adopted. Sometimes it may
include grandparents and significant others in the family.
 Nuclear position
The family plays an important role in so far as it prepares the individual for participation in
all the secondary groups, for the demand and situation. It serves as the nuclear for growth
of other types of groupings which never dealt with the culture that a newly born child is.
 Persistance and change

Family as an association is persistence to changes in its composition and structure even
within the same society. Time runs paralal to the family considered as an institution but gets
intimately involved in it where it grouped as an association.
THEORITICAL PERSPECTIVE
Functional perspective
A functional understanding of the family stresses the ways in which the family as a social
institution helps to make society possible. The functional perspective of the family maintains
that certain and far reaching family structure and process.
Social interaction theory

Social interaction is perspective on the family examined how family members and intimate
couples interact on daily basis and arrive at shared understanding of situation studies
grounded in social interaction is in gives us a keen understanding of how and why families
operate the way they do.
Patriarchal theory
In ancient time it was Aristotle and Plato who supported the patriarchal theory while among
in its modern proponent Sir Henry Maine is notable. According this theory the family in its
most ancient form was patriarchal in which father was most powerful.
Matriarchal theory
Breffault has supported the theory of the matriarchal as the origin of the family and has
supported in groups the mothers. Breffault has written that in ancient societies which
practice promiscuity (there was no knowledge of who the father is). It is more researchable
to believe that family was matriarchal. The patriarchal families originated in these
matriarchal families. The importance increases with the progress of civilisation and
development of agriculture.
Evolutionary theory
American sociologist Morgan has put forward this theory. According to him family has
passed through the following five stages:
1. Consaguine family
In this marriage between blood relations were not forbidden.
2. Punalument (punalua) family

In this some imposition between marriage and family, family came. In this brothers of one
family marry all the sisters of another family.
3. Syndasmia family
In this one man marries one women but the sex relationship of women marriage into family
were not certain.
4. Patriarchy family
In this one’s ancestry and authority was supreme. He could marry many women and can
have sexual relationship.
5. Monogamous family
This is the present stage of family in this one man can marry one women and vice versa and
inaugurate a stable life.
Types of family
The family is the most important primary group in the society. It is the most
simplest and the most elimentary form of society. In case of the western family
it is defined as an economic and social unit. In case of India, China and Japan
family is a cultural, religious unit. The base of classifying family is thus variable.
On the basis of birth

 Family of orientation
It refers to the family in which a person is raised. It is the family you
were born into voluntary. And individual’s family of orientation is one of
the primary agents of socialisation.
 Family of procreation
It refers to the type of family in which human recreates themselves. This
family is formed through marriage and by having or adopting children.
This is also called family of origin
On the basis of marriage
 Monogamous family
The family is based on monogamy system of marriage, hence known as
monogamous family. This family consists of a husband and his wife.
Under this type of family system neither husband nor wife is allowed to
have more than one spouse at a time.
 Polygamous family
This type of family is based on polygamy system of marriage. As in
polygamy

The Family

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The Family

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The family

 Mating and relationship

 Sense of responsibility and duty

 Persistance and change

Social interaction theory

2. Punalument (punalua) family

On the basis of birth

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