Define "Family"

[DaShi]

The word family is thrown around a lot in America. Usually by megacorporations like Disney or conservative politicians like. . .well all of them. But clearly their definitions of family differ from that of other people. Republicans will consider a father, mother, and children a family, but a father, father, and children not one. And what is called family entertainment by Disney is usually a codeword for sentimental tripe involving children and talking animals.

It's the Disney definition that I find the most troubling. Perhaps because it's more insidious. It leads us to believe that family life must be devoid of intellectual pursuits or challenging issues. Of course, part of this is an attempt to not offend anyone and to promote "christian" values. But it's these values that allow common people to cheer behind Republicans who narrowly define families. Gays, blacks, and just about everyone non-white are placed into their modern stock roles, if present in these types of shows. And we're all told that this is good for us because it's a family film.

So do you agree that the types of programs on channels like ABC family or Disney movies are suitable for your families? Or do you have another definition of family and what should be called family entertainment?

Merry Christmas to you and your families!

[Krill]

"Family Entertainment" is a large arguement that ends in someone going to A&E.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

It's like "friends", but you're not allowed to have sex with them.

[Zkribbler]

A family is one or more adults nurturing one or more children.

[VetLegion]

What is a "nuclear" family? I don't hear that much anymore.

[Reiko]

A family to me is my parents and my close cousins ages ranging from 7 to 30.
We are close nit and look after each other.

Family entertainment to me would be something all of us can enjoy no matter the age.

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by VetLegion
What is a "nuclear" family? I don't hear that much anymore.

It went out with the cold war. Something to do with 'Mutually Assured Destruction".

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by VetLegion
What is a "nuclear" family? I don't hear that much anymore.

Mom, Dad & a couple of kids....an Ozzie & Harriet "I Like Ike" kinda family.

[Starchild]

A complex mix of love, genetics and the law, often with very little say on who gets to join. My closest friends are closer to me than some people who share my dna,

[Agathon]

What counts as family is culturally relative. It's not a scientifically or philosophically respectable concept.

[Dis]

Originally posted by VetLegion
What is a "nuclear" family? I don't hear that much anymore.

I always thought it was silly to use the word nuclear with family.

[Kuciwalker]

What counts as family is culturally relative. It's not a scientifically or philosophically respectable concept.

That's a non sequiter.

Morality is culturally relative, so it's not a philosophically respectable concept?

Also, family is easy to define scientifically, both absolutely and in terms of degree.

[Harry Tuttle]

Family: Socially close individuals that associate themselves as being of the same clan and/or, individuals associated with each other through blood relations extending out to those with similar surnames. The length of blood relations depends on culturally significant dissimilar association.

[Agathon]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker

What counts as family is culturally relative. It's not a scientifically or philosophically respectable concept.

That's a non sequiter.

Morality is culturally relative, so it's not a philosophically respectable concept?

Also, family is easy to define scientifically, both absolutely and in terms of degree.

You can be a tiresome person. And you can't spell "non sequitur" properly.

To say that ethics is culturally relative is to make a somewhat controversial claim. But even if it is, that doesn't mean that the concept "morality" cannot be strictly defined. You're making the mistake of confusing the definition of a meta term with the definition of an object term. You could crudely define "morality" as "a system of human conduct dependent upon the concepts of the good and the right" without accepting that the good and the right are going to be the same in all cultures.

It's no different than defining the concept of "board game" and noting that there are many different board games that fall under the concept.

Scientific definitions of the family are irrelevant here, since the use of the term "family" in ordinary language does not necessarily track the scientific use of the term. When people ordinarily talk about family, they are not using the term in your sense, but in the sense provided by their culture. For example, the Maori word "whanau" is their term for family (but is closer to the Greek term "genos" in meaning). That's because Maori people have a different conception of the term family than Europeans do. There's no meta definition of the term "family" that captures what is common to all these concepts that is going to be anything other than otiose. In other words "family" is not like "board game" or "morality".

Although we might follow Wittgenstein and accept that "family" is what he calls (ironically) a "family resemblance concept".

Science students can be so dense...

[Agathon]

Originally posted by Harry Tuttle
Family: Socially close individuals that associate themselves as being of the same clan and/or, individuals associated with each other through blood relations extending out to those with similar surnames. The length of blood relations depends on culturally significant dissimilar association.

The problem with this definition is that modern definitions of "family" do not extend as far as the term clan. You also have some cultures where non blood relations are considered family members. For example: I might foster a child and make it part of my western family. Or I might marry a woman who doesn't take my surname.