Dangerous Families

What are five negative aspects associated with marriage or being part of a family?

Do you see...

Do you see yourself eventually getting married and having children? Why do you think that marriage/ kids is for (or is not) for you?

Bride given away

In American marriages, it is tradition for the bride to be given away to the groom by the bride's father. Why do you think this is done?

Families and Television

One of the ways we learn about how families are supposed to be is from television. For this activity, name two television shows that contain families, and say whether they show a positive or negative example of how a family is supposed to be:

Example:

The Simpsons are an example of how a family is not supposed to be because the dad (Homer) is an alcoholic idiot, the mom worries all the time (Marge), and the son is a delinquent (Bart). The Cosby show, in contrast, showed what a family was supposed to be like. The mom was a lawyer, the father was a doctor, and they lived a happy, middle-class life style.

Weddings

Describe a wedding you have been to. Was it big, small? What was the food like? Why do you think weddings are such a culturally important event?

Your family

How would members of your family feel if you dated (or married) outside of your race or religion? Why do you think they would feel the way they feel?

Remember the Three C's in your response!

Content: Thoughtfully answer all parts of the Question
Construction: Answer in complete sentences
Citizenship: Show Respect for the content of the class, peers, and the instructor!

Big Fat Greek Wedding

What has happened in the film so far? If you missed it, find an online summary and paraphrase how the film began (put it in your own words!).

Negatives of Family life

We've already talked about divorce- what are some other negative effects of family life for wives, husbands, and children?

Why do we choose to live in families?

Why do adults choose to form families? What do they get out of it?

Romantic love?

Not all cultures marry their partners based on romantic love. In India and Pakistan marriage are arranged based on the wishes of their parents. In some cultures, marriages serve to form alliances between different familes. Which way do you think is better? Explain your reasons!

DIVORCE

We leave gender to talk about love and marriage. 90% of all people get married, but for every 10 marriages, 4 end in divorce. Why do you think that so many marriages end in divorce?

Masculinity and Femeninity

Describe a person you know who us extremely masculine (macho) or feminine (girly) personality. What do they act like? How do you think they got to be that way?

Example:

Mr. Laskiewicz was always the jock type. He grew up playing all kinds of sports and was extremely competitive. When he got into high school, he would try to impress girls by lifting compact cars. When he was growing up, his father had put a football in his hands from before he could walk and telling him that, "quitters never win and winners never quit."

Cartoons...

What kind of TV shows did you watch when your were little? What kind of toys did you play with? Based on what we have been talking about, pick a character or a toy- were they portrayed in a masculine or feminine way?

Example:

When Mr. Laskiewicz was young, he used to play with Barbie. Barbie showed him that pretty girls are very thin, tall, and have long blonde hair who liked shopping and clothes.

Look at the list of masculine and feminine traits below. Which item from your gender list(males pick from masculine list/ females from feminine) most defines you? Which item least defines you? Explain why.

Feminine Traits
Submissive
Dependent
Unintelligent and Incapable
Emotional
Receptive
Intuitive
Weak
Timid
Content
Passive
Cooperative
Sensitive
Sex object
Attractive because of physical appearance

Masculine Traits
Dominant
Independent
Intelligent and competent
Rational
Assertive
Analytical
Strong
Brave
Ambitious
Active
Competitive
Insensitive
Sexually aggressive
Attractive because of achievement

What's wrong with this picture?

Based on what we have been learning, what is wrong with this picture?