UNIT 1. FAMILY LIFE

UNIT 1. FAMILY LIFE

Part 1

Every Family is different

There are different views on family life. Some people can’t do without the support and love of their families. Others say it is the source of most of our problems and anxieties. Whatever the truth is, the family is definitely a powerful symbol. It is also a castle. Moreover it is the most basic and ancient of all institutions, and it remains the fundamental social unit in every society. Thus, the family is a group of people related by blood or law, living together or associating with one another for a common purpose. That purpose is usually to provide shelter and food, and to bring up children. The nature of family keeps changing: there are a number of types of family that exist in a society at any time.

Sociologists divide families into two general types: the nuclear family and the extended family, which may include three or more generations living together. In industrialized countries and increasingly in the large cities of the developing countries the nuclear family is regarded as normal. Most people think of it as consisting of two parents and two children. But a more accurate conception of the family must take account of the many different forms that have existed or still exist both in Britain and in other cultures. Nevertheless the nuclear family has largely replaced the extended one.

What characteristics, then, are common to this family form? To answer the question let’s discuss some attitudes towards personal relationships and family life of one well-to-do English family – Bill and Carol Taylor.

They are probably quite like many of the families you will meet if you come to England. The family lives on a housing estate in a pleasant outer suburb of West London. Bill and Carol Taylor are both in their early fifties. They are kind, thoughtful and intelligent people. They have been happily married for thirty years. To tell the truth there’s no one they call the head of the family because they usually share important decision-making. As for Bill he studied engineering at university, and now he works for a firm, which provides advice and materials for health and safety at work, he is a technical specialist on noise stress. It’s due to Bill, that the company is a flourishing one. When he was younger he dreamed of becoming a professional musician.

Carol did not go to university. She graduated from a teaching training college and taught for four years at a primary school before her eldest child was born. In the traditional family, the wife stayed at home with the children while the husband earned money, although at present 60 percent of all married women work outside the home. So a majority of couples have two wage-earners. One reason for this change is that women want and expect to have careers. Another reason is economics. With rising prices, many families cannot survive on one’s person’s salary. But Carol took her marriage for granted and devoted herself to the family. Carol and Bill like many couples of the middle class planned to have three children. (A number of single children in Russia astonishes many British visitors). So there are five people in their family. From the parents’ point of view, they want to bring up their children to be healthy, happy, hard-working, attractive, kind, sociable, good at lessons, good at sport, with other interests as well, and have successful careers in which they will earn a good living and live happy lives. That’s why the Taylor children live in comfort in an impeccable family with amiable dispositions and you simply can’t imagine how Bill and Carol adore them.

To tell the truth sometimes Carol and Bill have had plenty of worries over the children as they were growing up. As usual, there are a lot of family problems that the parents are glad to discuss with their children and help them in a difficult situation.

Sarah is shortsighted and very shy. It’s only due to Carol she worked hard and got quite good marks for her lessons. Sarah inherited her father’s musical gifts and played the flute. She had quite good marks for geography in the national A-level exam. She applied to read geography at a provincial university with a good reputation in the subject.

As for Peter, he was a cheerful boy, energetic and lazy by turns. Peter was fed up with exams and schoolwork. And he thought he could get a job in the local supermarket. But his parents found it ridiculous: one needs a proper income to bring up a family: for that he needs qualifications. So he attends courses in engineering and technical studies at the local College of Further Education, while he continues to earn money working part-time in the various shops in the area.

Kate is a restless girl of eight. She is everybody’s pet. Sometimes she is very naughty. On the one hand she is a trouble-maker, on the other hand she is a loving daughter and sister.

No wonder the Taylors have been trying to find clues for everybody of them: either children or parents. The parents are easy to deal with. As I have already mentioned there are no problems of misunderstanding with adults in this family. The parents understand that children want to live their own life, to make their own mistakes. No wonder that there are amiable dispositions between all the members of the family. They trust each other and try to do their best to make their home cosy and worth. They are inclined to think that the family is a kind of retreat from the stress and tension of the working day. It’s a place where they can have a rest and feel their protection and care. As a result the Taylors managed to build up a friendly family. When they are sick and tired of their usual routine, their family is a shelter from any troubles and misfortunes.

A few years later children will leave their home, marry and set up households of their own. Although the nuclear family unit is economically independent of the rest of the family, members of the whole family group often maintain close kindred ties. Visiting between married sisters and brothers is frequent when they live close to each other. If they live in different communities they keep in touch by writing letters and by telephone.

In the story of Bill and Carol Taylor and their children grandparents are absent. Where are they? Do they miss seeing their grandchildren very much? Is it true that the British do not care for their elderly people and choose to put them away into old’s homes and forget them? You see, the most important thing is that the retirement age for most jobs in this country is 60 for women and 65 for men, but in practice, many people expect to work until they are 65-70. People are living longer – often 20 years after they’ve retired from their job. Modern culture tends to value youth rather then age. So grannies and grandpas are actually physically active, living in their own homes along way from their children with their own interests and ideas.

Tasks

1. Read the text for detailed understanding. Translate the following paragraphs of the text: 1, 2, 4, 10.

2. Give the summary of the text

3. Retell the text as if you were:

1) Bill Taylor

2) Carol Taylor.

3) Granny or grandpa

4) Sarah, Kate, Peter

5) Russian visitor

6) Bill’s boss.

Part 2