SY201 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Nancy F. Cott, Kin Selection, Nuclear Family
Document Summary
Lesson 1: introduction to the family: a historical overview. Commonsensical understandings of family are shaped by experience. Nuclear family: heterosexual married couples with children: early sitcoms did not show the dark side of this family living, nonconforming family relations may be deemed deficient or less than perfect. In the pre-industrial era, children were viewed as an economic resource. Mothers devoted little time to childbearing because their productive work was necessary for survival (4 or 5 years) Wet nurses: many babies sent away from the household to be raised by them, and returned when they were old enough to do productive work. The basic axis of kin assistance in both nuclear and extended families was siblings with each other and parents with their children. Living in proximity to one"s kin was essential for survival particularly during difficult times when assistance was needed.
