Family Analysis

A family and its definitions

A family is a social group made up of a parent or parents and their offspring, who may live together or apart. A family, in my opinion, is a group of people who are linked to one another through birth, marriage, or adoption. One or more parents and their child(ren) make up the majority of the group. Parents, sons, daughters, spouses, brothers, and sisters make up the immediate family, while grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, siblings-by-marriage, nieces, and nephews make up the extended family. The blended family consists of mixed children and parents as a result of remarrying of parents whereby each or both come along with his her children from the previous family. A traditional family consists of a father, mother and their biological children, whereby the father is the bread-winner, and the mother stays at home to undertake domestic duties. A family is significant as it provides socialization of children. A nuclear family is composed of a mother, father, and children. The paper will discuss the description of my family, the bonding or uniting factor of family members, comparison of the biological and sociological definition of a family, and further elaboration of family ties.

My family

My family is a nuclear family of four members; my mother, my dad, my sister and I. My parents got married 26 years back and bore two children, that my sister and I. We reside together in California while my majority of members of the extended family live in Rhode. I was brought up and live in a nuclear family. I would describe my family as a family of procreation as I was born after my parents got married to each other. Me and my sister we are the biological children of my parents, therefore we are all related through blood. Ours is not a mythical family since my parents live a life of their own and not necessarily follow the myths associated with an American family. Also, roles are shared based on their agreement as my mom mainly assumes the domestic roles in the family while my dad concentrates on family expenses. My dad works in a law firm, and my mom works an accounting firm, unlike the mythical families where women are believed to stay at home while the husbands work to provide for the family.

The definition of a family

A person becomes part of the family either through birth (being born in the family by any member of the family hierarchy), through marriage, through adoption or as a result of intermarriage of the mixed parent. Also, people became members of a family through friendship where one begins to reside with a friend in the family permanently. My definition is based more on sociology as it mainly describes a family as a formation created as a result of socialization. The socialization and relationships lead to marriages while others lead to the adoption of individuals into the family. Also, for a family to stand there must be a kind of socialization and friendship.

The inner connection within a family

Blood is thicker than water, as in most cases family members tend to shield and help each other when challenges emerge as opposed to how friends or neighbors shield and help other in times of trouble. The inner connection between family members triggers the automatic cohesiveness and the positive attitude among family members which makes them stand for each other especially during difficult times. The general society may disagree with me as current today formation of families have been difficult due to the conflict, disunity, and hatred between the members.

The significance of a family

In conclusion, a family is significant as it’s the foundation of all developments in the society. A family is a tool of unity and of instilling morals and values. It fosters socialization and intergenerational transfer of cultural beliefs. It further influences a child upbringing, attitude, perception, and life skills. The family influences the society as every member plays a unique role in the country. Formation of a family is stimulated by socialization and inner feelings that drive people into a relationship which later mature and become a permanent engagement. Members of the family who grow up together tend to influence and protect each other thereby proving the aspect of blood is thicker than water.