Coontz

Stephanie Coontz is a teacher, historian, author and a scholar activist. She has also very indulged in the world of public debate on families, this mostly due possible because of her extensive skills to study modern families as well as historical patterns. In her book The Way We Never Were, Coontz presents a historical look at the family and how it has changed over time. Her interest in the subject comes for her need to understand how families functioned in the past and present, and what lead to notion and definition of family nowadays.

Responsibilities have increased from technology and because of technology rising and becoming more resourceful it is causing stress to teens who feel pressured. Schooling has caused teens stress because they want to ask for more and they believe we can give more because of stuff like the internet being easier to find. But in reality it’s only harder to because laws and organizing a lot of information can be confusing and gets them lost. Additionally, a teens future is very important to them and they want the best for themselves rather than kids in the 1960’s didn't half to worry as much. Overall, teens have a lot of stress today compared to the average teen in the 1960’s due to a lot of common

For those of us that are parents, we know that raising a child to adulthood is not an easy task but one which we do lovingly (hopefully) and responsibly. I’ll go out on a limb to say here that everyone agrees that the teenage years are the most challenging. The general consensus is that teenagers are unruly, aggressive, careless, spoiled and dependent on technology. On the other hand, I believe along with a small group of other parents that teenagers are also brilliant and in the process of becoming and reaching their potential and that they deserve much more respect than what they are given.

In the past, plenty of issues were concealed instead of confronting them, which is no longer the case nowadays. Coontz has noted, “There are plenty of stresses in modern family life, but one reason they seem worse is that we no longer sweep them under the rug” (96). We talk candidly about controversies now, no longer hiding issues. We straighten out the problem instead of hiding or ignoring it. There are two disputing narratives about American families. One

ntroduction: Family is an integral part of many American’s lives it shapes how we grew up, how we interconnect with society, and how we choose to live our lives. “The American Family” by Stephanie Coontz is an essay comparing the way of the family from several points in time to show what changes have come about for better or worse. Her points may be biased and in order to seek confirmation of her points, the memories of individuals who have lived through the longer span of time will provide incite as to whether others agree with her. I have conducted such an interview with my grandparents Linda Jolliffe, being 70, and Earl Jolliffe, being 73. By reading Coontz’s essay aloud I was able to record and analyze their thoughts and opinions from their perspective, and compare theirs with mine while taking a look into why bias has such an effect when writing.

The article “Inside the Teenage Brain” by Marty Wolner states that recently, brain researchers have been able to do a great quantity of detailed studies on the human brain. Despite previous thoughts about the teenage brain, development of the brain through the teenage years is very dynamic. The teenage brain is still learning how to process certain information properly in the thinking part of the brain, so often teens may not process all the information necessary to make responsible decisions. Nevertheless, the teenage years can be very stressful for both parents and for teens. Getting through the teenage years can be difficult, but with the right amount of healthy communication, discipline and support the road ahead won’t be so rough. At this

As we age, our lives are divided into stages with inescapable hardships. The most difficult of these stages has proven to be adolescence and young adulthood, the years in which our personalities are defined. This juncture is the pinnacle of maturation, however, it is gradually becoming a plateau wherein inactivity is most prevalent. It is indisputable that American children and young adults alike are lingering in their youth for far too long. Many in their teens and twenties are holding tight to the freedom of childhood by depending on their parents, refusing to settle down, and avoiding responsibility. Through their lack of independence, inability to commit and their indolence, certain action must be taken against adolescents

The second part of section one was written by Stephanie Cootnz titled “ How History and Sociology Can Help Todays Families” talks about how sociological imagination can be used to

Robert Bly addresses that the community is slowly becoming a “World of Half Adults”. He illustrates to his readers that adolescents are not growing up into adults, they are stuck in the middle. Bly describes that America is drifting away from the “paternalistic” society, (where you get your structure, learn respect, and to grow from the example of his or her elders). Instead America is leaning towards a “sibling” society that provokes disrespect for elders, only wanting to “half ass” everything they do, and only reaching half of their full potential because of the lack of role models (page 57). Adolescents are not becoming adults because of parents, technology, and the “sibling” society.

In The Way We Never Were, Stephanie Coontz suggests that society romanticizes past generations of family life and points out that these memories are merely myths that prevent us from “dealing more effectively with the problems facing today’s families” (Coontz x). Coontz proposes that researchers can take empirical data and create misleading causality for that data, thus feeding cultural myth and/or experience. Coontz believes that “an overemphasis on personal responsibility for strengthening family values encourages a way of thinking that leads to moralizing rather than mobilizing for concrete reforms” (Coontz 22). She calls on us to direct our attention to social reforms, which can be accomplished by avoiding victim-blaming

The family affords its members with a social uniqueness. Offspring are born into their parents’ social class, culture and race, religious conviction, and so forth. Some kids have benefits throughout life because of the social uniqueness they obtain from their parents, while others face many hindrances because the social class or race/ethnicity into which they are born is at the bottom of the social ladder. The conflict perspective accentuates that many of the problems we see in today’s families stem from financial inequality and from patriarchy. The problems that many families experience echo the fact that they live in or near an impoverished

I believe that Coontz's opinion supports the information presented in your textbook for the most part. The reason I say this is her article discussed the times during the 1800s as well as 1900s. The information given in her article covered an enormous range in time. The text book discussed changes over the recent 30 years. I would also like to add that although Coontz said that society is better now than ever before. I agree with this, but also believe that America still needs to work on the problems that are still associated with issues regarding delinquency, prostitution, drugs, abuse among others that have not been mentioned.

One of the very first forms of oppression that we face is adultism. Adults consistently criticizes the youth’s misbehavior, condemn their actions and complain about them. When forming and maintaining healthy relationships, it’s important not to deconstructively criticises , hold grudges, condemn and complain about how there’s no way to help. Dale Carnegie once said, “ Any fool can criticise, condemn, and complain- it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving.” It’s a common belief that the youth have no morals, disrespect their parents, have sex constantly, and fight and that adults are all knowing and have to mentor the youth in order for them to lead successful lives. This philosophy is untrue and harms society more than it helps

For instance, young adults may join social groups their parents do not approve of and/or test boundaries of everyday life by combatting authority figures. Yet, even during this stage adolescents still carry the worldview of their family members because they are not, yet self-sufficient adults.

Over time the way teenagers are in high school has changed dramatically. Hearing stories from my mom about her high school years and reflecting on how mine were, it’s very different. The way she was brought up, her responsibilities, relationship with her parents, and their roles of contributing to the family, and sibling relationship al differ from mine dramatically.