Assignment #8 The Second Shift

1.)According to Hochshild, what is the “Second Shift?”
The "Second Shift" is the idea that most women work one shift at their outside jobs and a "second shift" at home. So most women who are working to make an income are also at the same time coming back home and have to maintain the household are in reality having two jobs not just one.

2.)Briefly describe the story of Evan and Nancy Holt.
Evan and Nancy are married. Nancy describes herself has an ardent feminist and egalitarian who wants a similar balance of spheres and equal power. Unfortunately the distribution of household chores is not equal within the Holt’s home. Nancy often found herself Coming home from a full day of work just like her husband but was still doing mostly all the household work. Even after Nancy talks to her husband about helping her out and he agrees. Evan’s lack of responsibility within the household, proved how he felt it was acceptable for Nancy to do the majority of the housework because she was the woman in the house.
3. Hochschild argues that families create “myths” about their division of household labor. Describe the family myth created by Nancy and Evan Holt.
The family myth created by Nancy and Evan Holt was that women take a deeper interest than men in the problems of juggling work with family life which results in stress that women take out on their husbands. Most men unfortunately suffer the severe repercussion of what is a transitional phase of American family life. Because Nancy (Evan's wife and mother of their child) did so much work because she felt an obligation to, while Evan on the other hand did very little housework and played with his four-year old son Joey, at his convenience it created a and uneven platform in which Nancy did much more work then Evan did. Juggling the demands of work with family created much more stress for Nancy than Evan in that she did much more since she cared.


4. According to Hochschild, what is the purpose of family myths?
The purpose of family myths is so that couples can live with fairness in their relationships and to minimize conflict. Hoschschild shows how couples create family myths to live with inequality in their lives.


5. Was this reading surprising to you and why? How do you imagine you will divide family work (including child care) in your own marriage or cohabitation?
This reading wasn’t too surprising to me because it fits right into the social construct of how woman should be the primary caregivers and maintain the maintenance of the house instead of men and women have an equal share in the amount of work that needs to be done within the household.
When I start a family I plan to divide household labor and child care 50/50. On days I work more hours than my husband he will do the household chores and take care of the children and on days where he works more I will do the household work and take care of the children. If we happen to need outside help we will hire a nanny. On the weekends when we are off we will both spend times with the children and each other.

Assignment 6: Marriage

According to the reading by Julian Sanchez pp: 313-320 in your Risman text:
1) Identify one of the examples of ancient marriage described by the author and discuss how it differed from the "one man, one woman idea" of marriage
Ans: An example of the one of the ancient marriages described was that traditionally in Tibet prior to the Chinese occupation, about a quarter of marriages involved brother sharing one wife. To this day the Na people in southwestern China live not in couples but sibling clusters with groups of brothers and sisters collaboratively raising children conceived by the women during evening rendezvous with visitors. This differed from the “one man one woman idea” of marriage in that it had two brothers and one women joining together in union. So it was a marriage of more than two people.


2) Among which two groups has postponing marriage become the most likely? Why?
Poor women and middle class couples are postponing marriage because they want to be settled economically, begin their careers, and finish schooling before marriage. It is also mentioned that in particular, poor women have a fear of being economically dependent.

List all the wedding traditions in the clip.
Wedding Traditions included:
• Smashing of glass
• Signing of the ketubah
• Long white wedding dress for women
• Tradition of bad luck if the groom see’s the bride before the wedding in her dress.
• Man wears black tux
• Man sliding ring onto women’s finger


Choose one tradition and do a little research on-line - what is the history behind that tradition.
Write about a paragraph about the origin of the tradition and whether you will include this in your own wedding - if you plan on having one.
The breaking of the Jewish wedding glass is at the end of the Jewish wedding ceremony when the groom stomps on a glass to crush it and the guests shout, "Mazel Tov!" or "Siman Tov!"
There various interpretations of why breaking glass in Jewish wedding tradition came from. Here are a few of the most popular explanations:
• Temple: Breaking of the Jewish wedding glass is a reminder of the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem.

• Superstitious: A loud noise is thought to drive away evil spirits.

• Sadness/Joy: A reminder that even in times of great joy that there is sadness. That life will bring sadness as well as joy.

• Hymen: A breaking of the glass represents symbolically the breaking of the hymen, and the consummation of the marriage.

• Fragile: The glass symbolizes the love and relationship of the couple and is fragile, so it must be cared for and not broken.

• Broken World: A reminder that although the couple came together as a single union, the world as a whole is broken and needs mending.

• Marriage is Forever: A broken Jewish wedding glass is forever changed, likewise, the couple are forever changed by the marriage and take on a new form.

• Be Fruitful: A hope that your happiness will be as plentiful as the shards of glassesor that your children will be as plentiful as the shards of glass.


I wouldn’t include this tradition in my wedding because I don’t really like some ideas in traditional weddings so I can see myself trying to do something away from tradition and more unique to my own style,taste, and preference. Another reason I wouldn’t break glass at my wedding is because I am not Jewish.

Asignmen t #5

1) According to the article, what percent of Americans polled support gay marriage and why is this news?

Ans: According to the poll 50% of Americans support gay marriage. This is news because the public perhaps has reached a turning point in that this new poll was the first poll to show majority support when it comes to same sex marriages. The new poll is a big change from 1996 where 25 percent of Americans said that gay and lesbian couples should have the right to marry according to an average of national polls.

2) Click on the link to Proposition 8 in the NY Times article. What is Proposition 8? Also, briefly describe the history of Prop 8 over the past few years.

Ans: Proposition 8 was a 2008 California ballot measure that had outlawed same-sex-marriage. The History of Proposition 8 involved huge debates and included the following:

· On Aug. 4, 2010, a federal judge in San Francisco struck down the ban, saying it unfairly targeted gay men and women,

· A week later the judge ordered that enforcement of the ban be dropped on August 18th, essentially making same-sex marriage legal again as of that date.

· Opponents against same –sex-marriage launched the Proposition 8 initiative campaign, asking voters to ban same-sex marriages. After an expensive and hard-fought campaign, the measure passed on Nov. 4, 2008, with 52 percent of the vote. (Florida and Arizona also passed bans at the same time.)

· On May 26, 2009 the state Supreme Court upheld the voter-approved ban but also decided that the estimated 18,000 gay couples who tied the knot before the law took effect will stay wed.

3) Go to this website: Defense of Marriage Act Amendment
According to the this amendment, what is the definition of marriage in the U.S.?

Ans: The definition of marriage in the U.S. means only a legal union between one man and one woman as a husband and wife.

4) Okay, one last website from National Public Radio. Go to this link NPR state by state map of gay marriage
You can click on a state to see their stand on gay marriage, adoption of Defense of Marriage Act etc. Choose two states and compare their positions on gay marriage. Please don't all choose NJ!

Ans: North Carolina passed a Defense of Marriage Act ion 1996. Idaho voters approved a state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in November 2006. The state already has a Defense of Marriage Act

Assignment #4

1) In your blogs: write about whether you believe children "naturally" act like girls or boys or how this behavior might be learned or fostered by the larger society and/or social institutions like education, the economy, government etc. For example, think about toys that children play with or the clothes/colors they are dressed in.
Do you think children want to play with these toys or do we create gender roles by rewarding children for gender appropriate behavior or punishing them when they display gender inappropriate behaviors? Many of you work in day care centers or schools - how do teachers react when boys want to play dress up versus when girls act aggressively? Why do girls like pink and boys blue?

Ans: I do feel that biologically speaking children naturally are born boy or girl but I strongly feel that its society who shapes the way boys and girls should act, dress, look, and even speak. From before we are even born most parents like to know the sex of their baby. Once they find out the sex of the baby, baby showers are centered either surrounding the theme of boys with blue surroundings or for girls with pink surroundings. Family members and friends buy gifts for baby’s on the basis of if the parents are having a girl then we get pink “female Alf its” (skirts, shorts, pink dresses), or maybe princess baby toys, and for boys buy blue boy toys, shirts with cars on them, and action heroes. In schools girls are taught to act like ladies, always sit with your legs closed and never open, some mothers even pierced their baby girls ears even as infants and dress bay girls ears up with feminine earrings. The idea that girls should act like girls and boys should act like boys is definitely fostered by the larger society and/or social institutions like education, the economy government. I do also believe that society creates gender roles by rewarding children for gender appropriate behavior or punishing them when they display gender inappropriate behaviors. An example of this is when boys are seen as normal if they fight or are physically aggressive towards other boys. But girls are seen as tom boys if they fight, show aggression or do anything that’s a gender role of a boy, Even the expression tom boy that is used for girls who tend to exhibit characterizes and behavior considered typical of a gender role of a boy. This is a term that has been socially constructed, why can’t a girl just be a seen as a girl no matter what she likes or prefers to do. In the pre-school I work at teachers when boys want to play dress up which is very rare its allowed even if they want to dress up in the princess al fits. Both girls and boys are pretty much treated equally when it comes to acting aggressive its not allowed and if we see it we automatically address the issue no matter the gender of the child. I think girls like pink and boys like blue because these are distinct colors a lot of parents and families introduce to their children at very young ages. Feminine colors are usually lighter colors (pink, yellow, white), while masculine colors are usually darker (blue, black, green, red). Society does have a tendency to socialize boys and girls, differently based on their gender. Boys and girls are each socialized by gender role “what a girl should do or act like, or what a boy should do or act like.

2-5.) Go to this website: True False Quiz

Women in the Workforce

Directions: Study the Mothers Participating in the Labor Force 1955-2004 table. (The table can be found online at http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0104670.html.) Then read each statement below. On the line before each statement, write T if the statement is true. Write F is the statement is false. Ans: ___F__ In the year 2000, 64.6 percent of mothers with children younger than age 6 were part of the labor force. ___F__ The number of working mothers with children ages 6 to 17 increased by 15 percent between 1975 and 1980. __ F___ During the period 1995 to 2001, the number of working mothers with children younger than age 6 increased by more than 5 percent. __T__ In the last five years on the chart, the percentage of working mothers with children younger than age 18 decreased. _ T____ The number of working mothers with children younger than age 6 went above the 50 percent mark for the first time between the years 1980 and 1985. F____ The number of working mothers with children ages 6 to 17 has not been below 70 percent since 1980. __T___ The number of working mothers with children younger than age 6 decreased between 1997 and 2001. __F __ In 1955, fewer than one-fourth of all mothers with children under age 18 were part of the U.S. workforce. __T___ Working mothers with children younger than age 6 have always made up a smaller percentage of the workforce than those who have children ages 6 to 17. __T__ In the year 2001, more than three-fourths of all mothers of children ages 6 to 17 were part of the labor force.

6.) Do you think women are doing as well as you as expected, less well, or better and why?

Ans: I feel women are doing an excellent job in the workforce. More women are working which is excellent. The increase of mothers in the work force shows that a lot of women are becoming more and more independent and have strong views when it comes to fending for themselves without having to be fully dependent on a man for full financial support. I do feel that although women are getting more and more opportunities in the workforce that they are not being treated still equally with men when it comes to how much they are getting paid in all jobs(ex: Wal-Mart). I feel this is something that needs to be changed soon.

Assignment #3

1. According to functionalist theory, what was the definition of the "instrumental leader" and what was the definition of an "expressive leader." What family roles were connected to each of these leader definitions?

Ans: The instrumental leader was defined by Robert Bale as one who leads the group discussion about how to accomplish the task they had been assigned. The expressive leader was the socioemotional leader who kept up the groups’ spirit with warm, supportive remarks and jokes. The family roles that were connected to each of these leader definitions were as follows: The husband, was the instrumental leader because his labor provided the financial support for the family, and the stay-at-home wife was the expressive leader because she provided emotional support to her husband and children.

2. What main demographic change during the 1960s and 1970s led theorists to be critical of the functionalist perspective?

Ans: The main demographic change was married women began to pour into the workforce and this meant that the viewpoint of the male being the “bread-winner” and the women being the “homemaker” lost its dominance.

3. In contrast to functionalist theorists, in your own words, what is the main theme of conflict theory?

Ans: The conflict theory is the study of individual’s conflicts rather than on individuals function within society, family, and/ or a group which is the functionalist theory. The conflict theory focuses more on the conflict between the capitalist and the working class and a focus on inequality social change and power is more focused on. Conflict theorists observe the dominance that groups with power have over groups with little to no power.

4. Social exchange theory is based on ideas from what discipline (not sociology). What do exchange theorists say about husbands bargaining power versus that of wives?

Ans: Social exchange theory is based on ideas of economics which deals with the production, distribution and use of goods and services of the material welfare of humankind. Exchange theorist say that husbands are in a stronger bargaining position when they are the sole earners in their families because their wives have fewer alternative sources of income. The exchange theory suggest that when wives earn money their own, dependence decreases meaning wives independence increases, therefore the power the husband has decreases.
5. Feminist theory is based on what main idea?

The feminist theory is based on the main idea of gender inequality. The domination of men over women is said to have a cultural origin and also is something that has been socially constructed.

6. After reading about the various methods or ways that we collect data to study the family, tell your group members :

A) A research question about family/relationship satisfaction:

If children are not in a stable household, how may this affect how well a child is able to focus in a school setting? (examples of unstable household would include: being raised in a neighborhood where crime is prevalent, low income family, being raised by a single parent)
B) Do you want to study the family at the micro or macro level?

Families will be studied at the macro level

C. What method will you use to collect data?

To collect data the method I would use is field research because it will enable me to directly observe families and the behaviors that are taking place within households. I will be able to research participants directly in the social life of the individuals within a family and/or group in my question.

D). How many people will be in your study?

20families will be in my study including: 10 families living in rich communities that provide more opportunity for the children and 10 families within poor communities that provide little to no opportunities for children.

E) Devise 3-4 questions you will ask them to answer your research question.

· Ask how well child is doing in school?

· What is the annual income your family earns?

· How does the child/or children get to and from school daily and what is the crime rate in their families community?

· Ask children on a scale from one to ten how well would they rate how well they feel they are doing in school and if they feel they are ever distracted from school to worry about?

Part 2 on Assignment 2

Part 2 Assignment 2

1.) What is different about women today versus 40 years ago?

Ans: There seem to be a lot more SYF (Single Young females). Women especially but not only are getting married and having kids considerably later than before.

2.) What is the norm in terms of what women are doing and when they are marrying?

Ans: The norm in terms of what women are doing and when they are marrying is that in the past women would marry young and at the very least contributed anything to family funds. A lot of the Single Young Females’s today are moving out on their own where jobs, boys, and bars are and they are spending their earnings on themselves.

3.) Do women work more or less than in the past etc?

Ans: Women work more now than in the past and seem to be more independent.

4.) Next, please write about what you plan to do as you finish school and reach adulthood. Will you work and get your career started and then marry or the other way around?

If you are not familiar with the show, give us a short description of a show about families and how you see it relating to topics in this class.

Ans: My plans are to finish school and get my BA then come back for my Masters. I hope to be comfortably in my career as a teacher by age 23. Then I’ll worry about marriage between the ages of 25-30(after career is taken care of). So I will work and start a career then marry.

I’m not familiar with the show Sex and the City but I guess one show that I know of that relates to family is the Tyra Banks show. Tyra is a talk show host that has discussed topics on Gender, topics on interracial marriages as well as topics on divorce. Her show covers all types of topics that are relevant today.