Definition Essay On Family

Growing up in a big family can be tough some days, although I would not have it any other way. My mom has four siblings and my dad has five, blessing me with over twenty first cousins and an extended family that is too large to count. I was also fortunate enough to have both sets of grandparents and several great grandparents as an active part of my life. I am the youngest of three kids, having an older brother and an older sister. Being the baby of the family growing up I did not get in much trouble for I had two older siblings to blame my mistakes on. Some people define family as, “any group of persons closely related by blood, as parents, children, uncles, aunts, and cousins” (dictionary.com), while I define it as those

According to the dictionary family is a group consisting of parents and children living together in a household. Or family is from the descendants of a common ancestor. According to society family is a group, it can be related are not. My definition of family is anyone who is there for you through good and bad, someone who always have your back no matter what. Family is not just blood. However some of the best families are the ones you are not related to.

I define family by a group of people that communicate on regular basic, care for each other, and love each other unconditionally. I think that I was able to construct that definition when I realized that my “relatives” weren’t related to me at all. And then realized I talk to the people who I was related to all more than the people who were considered “blood”. I’ve never been to a family house where I have considered them perfect, every family has their personal issues as well as their own strength.

Family can be defined as people who are related to you, consisting of (but not limited to): grandparents, parents, siblings, and children. Our families affect who we are by raising us in a particular way that coincides with their culture and beliefs. As we age and learn more, we can decide whether we will keep these beliefs or accept a new truth. This can cause people to either embrace their family, or distance themselves.

Family is typically seen as something that is defined by genetics and the idea that blood is what makes a family. This could not be less true. In today’s society family should not be defined by the blood that runs through your veins or your last name, it should be the amount of love that exudes from your heart. Whether you were born into a family, adopted or in the foster care system, your family members are the ones who you share moments of love and joy with, not just a last name.

The meaning of family may vary according to different individuals. In agreement to the Urban Dictionary, family refers to a group of people of the same bloodline who sincerely love, trust, and care about. Family can be all the descendants of a common ancestors or a group of parents or children living in the same home. Each of these examples are true definitions of what family is considered. When most people here the word family he or she thinks of their parents, siblings, or even aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents.

I believe that that is a very basic definition of the word family. Family goes into far more depth than that. Take Willow Chance in Counting by 7s into consideration. Of course she loved her parents and they loved her and cared for her, but they died. Then, someone that she hardly knew, opened their arms up and took her in. Mae and her family let her stay with them in their home and cared for her. Mae and family and Willow aren’t related by blood. They hardly knew each other except for hanging out at Duke’s office for counseling. When Mae took Willow in, Mae was accepting her into the family. Mae and Willow are family now.

A family is a group of people associated by blood relationships or affinity living in a similar living arrangement. (Brinkerhoff, White, Ortega, & Weitz. 2008) A family is considered one of the most important and universal social institutions because it is the first known human social system that has its characteristics and functions that affect the community, but what creates a family may differ from a culture to another.

Secondly, for those who come from a single-parent family, family means, “a social unit consisting of one or more adults together with the children they care for”. Typically, when someone thinks of family, they think Mom, Dad, brother, and or sister. Everyone has a different definition of family. An example being a family may mean always sticking together or never leaving anyone behind. Growing up, family was always a group of individuals who loved, cared, and supported you, whether they were blood related or not.

For me and most of my classmate, family can be people whom we are related to most times by blood and are present in our lives and supports us. I know this definition is not only flawed but dismissive and cliche because that definition only represent some certain kind of family and not all of them. Google and co might give us a concrete definition of a family but in actuality that definition is flawed because, there isn't any one way to define family but rather the definition of family is drawn by what is not only happening to us but around us and most importantly the advancement of the community/society we live

According to the textbook, family is defined as a self-defined group of intimates who create and maintain themselves through their own interactions and their interactions with others. (West & Turner, Cengage Learning) To me family members don’t always have to be who you’re related to by blood. I have some friends I consider family because they have been through everything with me. I have some friends who don’t get along with their parents, and consider their friends and their friends families a family to them. The textbook definition doesn’t say that family is defined by blood, just that you must have an intimate relationship with them. If you are adopted you might resent your birth parents and not consider them family, and you might consider

Determining family structure and dynamics as well as defining the family is a complex process. Personally, I come from a very traditional family. Much like the assumptions made by the students in the article Defining Family: Young Adults’ Perceptions of the Parent-Child Bond by Mellisa Holtzman (2008). This is what comes to mind when most people define family; a nuclear family, with married parents, and biological children. However, a family is a complex system and can take on many different forms.

The word “family” is unique, special, and controversial among different cultures and ethnicities. As defined by Random House Western Dictionary, a family is “any group of persons closely related by blood, as parents, children, uncles, aunts, and cousins” (Dictionary.com). Although the definition from Random House follows the infamous proverb of, “blood is thicker than water,” my definition of family does not. Family is not defined or restricted by blood relations. In my mind, a family is simply a group of people, who loves, supports, and helps each other unconditionally, and endlessly. Regardless of one’s sexual orientation or preference, all families embody these common principles. Thus, a family unites its members through the strong

For most of us, the family is considered as a well-known and comfortable institution. The perfect model of the ‘ideal’ family is still mostly considered to be consisted from two different sexes’ parents, and one or more children. Until quite recently, the sociology of the family was mostly functionalist and just in the last few decades has been challenged from various directions.

According to Swartz and Scott (2009), family is defined as a group of people related to each other by blood, marriage, adoption or being sexually open in a relationship. The