Our lives are inherently subject to economic, political and sociological trends. Fortunately, the plasticity of human nature allows us to adapt to these ever-changing environments. Over the past 60 years, the United States has emerged as one of the quintessential examples of these fluctuating phenomena. This essay will analyze how my family, across three generations, has responded to major sociological trends. In general, my family varied in accordance with prevailing trends across three generations. The first generation on my mother’s side of the family begins with my grandparents Ana Carreon and Charles Ramirez. Charles was a medic during World War II and met Ana, a local, while he and the U.S. Army were fighting the Japanese in the Philippines. They married spontaneously at ages 24 and 22 and started a family in San Gabriel after the war ended. In 1947 they had their first child, Ronald, and over the next ten years they had three more. Their newly intertwined lives began in the middle of the first big trend relevant to my family: the long decade. This is the period which extends from 1947 to the 1960s and which is recognized for having created the notion of the “traditional family”. “This idea consists of a breadwinner husband and a housewife living with their children in a single-family home. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The long decade was the result of drastic economic growth that was accompanied by rising wages and freedom for the majority of citizens. In his book “Marriage, a History,” Coontz asserts that “more families than ever before could achieve a decent, if modest, standard of living on the income of a single man as breadwinner” (74). In this regard, my grandparents were able to live in a home and raise their children. However, the Ramirez family depended on Charles working days in a warehouse for a furniture company and nights as a nurse in a convalescent home. Additionally, Ana worked from home as a seamstress. Clearly, a single income was not viable to support the household. Their family experienced racial discrimination when it came to homeownership. Charles remembers being denied a $17,000 home loan for more than 10 years because of his last name. This was a common theme for Latinos during this time and in a broader context, people of color were denied privileges afforded to white families. Maxine Baca Zinn comments on the origin of these feelings in “Social Science Theorizing For Latino Families in the Age of Diversity.” She explains that the distorted concepts of early 20th century sociologists influenced the prevailing idea that Latin American immigration caused socioeconomic problems in urban centers. The lives of Latin American families experienced “the slowness to acculturate and adopt Western models of family development that left them behind, while other families in American society modernized” (231). My grandparents' family unit existed halfway between the economic prosperity of the long decade and the historical limitations imposed on families of color. Societal restrictions required both parents to work in order to obtain the lifestyle maintained by single-earner families. Charles held authority within the household and Anna took care of the children and major domestic duties. Raising their children Catholicstrict and exercising strict surveillance over girls gave rise to conflicting values ​​as they grew up in an unstable social environment. Their children, now approaching adulthood, were in a better position to start families of their own. In fact, having completed high school better prepared them for the unstable social environment of the 1970s. Overall, Charles and Ana's family has had mixed adaptations to prevailing societal trends. Media and family experts in the mid-20th century were adamant that the family model of male breadwinner and female housewife would stabilize throughout the century. The increase in consumerism and appliances at home has allowed women to complete their daily tasks more quickly. With more time in their day, women sought new responsibilities. Many of them found meaning in their jobs. The increase in the number of women entering the workforce in order to support their families was the result of an expanding economy in the fifties and sixties and a recession in the seventies. Earning real wages and new progressive laws created a sense of independence and self-expression. Coontz says, “People started getting married later. Divorce rates have soared. Premarital sex has become the norm. And the division of labor between the husband, breadwinner, and the wife, housewife. What sociologists of the 1950s considered vital to industrial society has collapsed” (247). My mother, Jacqueline, married her first husband in 1984 and started her first family with my half-sister Brigitte in the late 80s and later in the early 90s with my half-brother Beau. Like Ana, Jacqueline worked alongside her husband while raising their children in their West Covina home. My mother worked full time as a secretary and took care of the cooking and cleaning around the house. Her husband worked full time as a karate instructor and rarely helped around the house. The influence of Catholicism was present from infant baptism, but was not emphasized in practice. Beau and Brigitte were raised with the typical expectations of not participating in drug use, staying out late, being courteous, treating others with respect, etc. Jacqueline and her sisters were raised with the expectation that she would not have sex before marriage. She never had a conversation with her parents on this subject; it was “known that you would be humiliated in church and disrespect the wishes of your parents.” There was a clear difference in the way Jacqueline approached this subject with Brigitte. She wanted a better relationship with her children that involved meaningful conversations and an open environment. She reassured Brigitte that her only wish was for her to be safe and that she knows how important contraceptives are. This was in keeping with society at the time: "by 1970, 60 percent of all adult women, single or married, were using the birth control pill or an intrauterine device or had been sterilized. » (254) Their family also reflected the major trend in divorce rates. Coontz states, "The divorce rate more than doubled between 1966 and 1979." In 1996, Jacqueline divorced her husband under the no-fault divorce law. She felt stagnant in her relationship and like she was drifting away from her husband. Even though she worked full time, she still expected the man of the house to take care of her and her family, asCharles was doing it for Ana and their family. Her husband took a more active role in their children's lives, and Jacqueline was looking to start another family. This is rare, as fathers typically disengage from their children and mothers assume sole custody. She worked two days, which included a full shift and all household chores. Having a separate income made the transition to her new independent life easier. The trend of divorce has also made its way into the lives of his siblings. Two of his three brothers divorced and his sister had two. Shortly after, Jacqueline married Daniel Paulos, who was previously divorced, in 1996 and had my brother Nick in 1997 and me a year later. We grew up in a house in Fullerton that my father bought. My brother and I were both baptized, but we lost interest in religion as we spent our free time playing hockey. Daniel worked full time as a paper salesman and my mother began working part time as a secretary. My mother was able to stay home and raise me and Nick until third grade, when she returned to work part-time. My mother continued her double days to take care of the cooking and cleaning inside the house. My father, however, emphasized that between him, Nick and I, we would handle all the outside chores. Our family embodies the male breadwinner and the female model of a housewife compared to previous generations. My father plays an important patriarchal role as he manages all the finances. The exception would be if Jacqueline still works part-time, but this is a deliberate choice rather than economic necessity. It's interesting to observe how important earning a real wage was to my mother and how it cultivated her identity. This family resembles the one in which Jacqueline grew up and found a partner who symbolizes an anchor of trust and reliability. Fortunately, during his marriages, it was socially acceptable to divorce and focus on finding the right person while earning a real salary. The next generation of families involves my half-sister Brigitte. This period covers the early 2000s until 2010. During this decade, society reached a peak of tolerance for an indulgent family structure. According to the Pew Research Center, 86% say a single parent and one child constitute a family; almost 80% of them say that an unmarried couple living with a child constitutes a family. Marriage has lost its importance in the lower strata of the socio-economic hierarchy. The Pew Research Center reports that the marriage rate of college graduates is 64 percent, while that of high school graduates is 48 percent. Additionally, in 1960, 68% of adults aged 20 to 29 were married. In 2008, only 26% were married. Women's workforce participation and divorce rates continue to rise. The Pew Research Center concludes that 47% of the American workforce is made up of women, up from 33% in 1960. Referring to the statistics provided, one can observe why marriage has seen a drastic decline. The increasing rate of female participation in the labor market creates difficulties in reconciling work and motherhood, which ultimately delays marriage. The general consensus of contemporary society is that marriage is not necessary to obtain "family" status. » Brigitte and John, aged 26 and 25, started their family out of wedlock in 2011 with the birth of Noah. They rent their house in Claremont and divide up the household chores. John did not pursue higher education and., 21(1), 1-21.