The study of the family used to seem to many one of the dullest of endeavors. Now it appears as one of the most provocative and involving. This survey course explores central issues in the sociological study of the American family with a primary focus on contemporary contexts and some attention to historical ones. Recognized and assessed throughout the course are the socially structured inequalities in American society based on wealth and income, race and ethnicity, and gender. Generational differences , especially parent-child relations, are also investigated.
Some assessment is made also of the traditional use of functionalist theory.
Kathryn Edin and Laura Lein. Russell Sage Foundation. Arte Publico Press. Carolyn Pape Cowan, Philip A. Cowan. THE JOY LUCK CLUB, Amy Tan.