The family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The family - Essay Example This traditional notion of the family is not only being challenged by new social realities but by anthropologists such as Jane Collier, Michelle Z. Rosaldo and Sylvia Yanagisako, the authors of â€Å"Is there a family?† who quite persuasively argue that the family is not â€Å"†¦a universal human institution.† They argue, â€Å"†¦the family is not as a concrete institution designed to fulfill universal human needs, but as an ideological construct associated with the modern state† (Collier 1). As controversial as this argument may sound, one finds support from Diane Ackerman’s, â€Å"A Natural History of Love† and in Sara Ruddick’s â€Å"Thinking about the Father.† Scientific and anthropological perspectives concerning the family concept invalidate earlier understandings. It establishes that the family is not a universal phenomenon and that even when it does exist in its traditional form it reflects the human desire for familiar patterns which is derived from the biological instincts. The most generalized concept of family, as the nuclear family which consists of a father, a mother, and children, still exists overwhelmingly in human society, however, new perspectives on the concept of the family is gathering strength. Social anthropologist, Bronislaw Malinowski is responsible for the popular traditional concept of the family as a universal phenomenon. He states, â€Å"The human infant needs parental protection for a much longer period than does the young of even the highest anthropoid apes. The father and mother have to look after the children for a long period, and in turn, derive certain benefits from the care and trouble taken† (Collier 2). According to his argument, the family fulfilled the universal need and so it is a universal institution. The universal function of a family is to nurture children. As he noted, the family unit was preserved and protected by the commitment of its members to one another, by the well-defined roles