- Agreement Items
I strongly agree with the assertion that couples who live happily leads productive lives. It is important to understand that the institution of marriage is founded on the principle of love, trust and communication. For any marriage to be successful there is a need for the stability of these three elements. First of all, love promotes fairness within the unit of marriage such that there is no single partner who would be overburdened by the other. Trust is meant to make sure that love always transcends from deep down the hearts of the marriage partners. This ensures that a given institution of marriage is not for the purposes of convenience. Under this category, I strongly advocate for the idea that fair distribution of labor is important for the cohesiveness of marriage partners. I would also like to dough tail this idea with the assertion that power balance within the family balance is fundamental for the stability of a family unit.
- Discussion Items.
In this section I will be responding to two important assertions that the authors make in Chapter 7. First I will discuss the idea that a family unit should be characterized by fair division of labor (Olson, 2010, p.129). It is important to realize that many societies across the world have norms and cultural values that assign different household chores to different partners. For example, many husbands across the world are bread wieners within their families while their wives are bestowed with the responsibility of child bearing, rearing, and taking care of the households. However, it is important to note that the world is quickly changes such that there is a dire need for both partners to be involved in different household activities. The ability of many women to access better education has allowed women to favorably compete with men in the job market. This has created a scenario whereby both men and women are actively involved in the betterment of their families through wages. These changes within society indicate that there is an erosion of the stereotypes that connected different house chores to different marriage partner. There is a need for sharing of duties within a family unit.
- Discussion Point
One of the points that I consider import, and I believe should be discussed in the classroom is the idea the importance of communication within the family unit. Since communication is a way of resolving conflict within the family, it is important to learn more about of some of the important communication patterns that have to be followed for there to be a successful marriage.
- Discussion Response.
The other important point from this reading is the idea that there is a need for power balance within the family unit. In many cases marriages are either husband dominant or wife dominant. However, a marriage cannot be stable if it is based on a hierarchy. This is because partners within a marriage unit should have equal responsibility and rights. Without any of the partners within the institution of marriage, then the institution does not exist. The domination of one partner is in most cases likely to spur discontent within the marriage. The best organization of power within the family unit is the syncretic organization whereby joint decisions are made by both partners about matters facing the family unit.
References
Olson, D. H., & DeFrain, J. D. (2010). Marriages and families: intimacy, diversity, and strengths (7th Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
