Write an article in about 120 to 150 words expressing for view point on the values associated with the joint family system.
Answers
Indian culture has always encouraged the concept of a joint family. However, in recent times with cities developing fast, the nuclear family is becoming a social norm. Kids in a nuclear family miss the fondness they receive from uncles, aunts and cousins living under one roof.
Children who are surrounded by family lead a sheltered and happy life. There are several reasons why people prefer living in a joint family, and one of the primary reasons is that it ensures strong family bonds. Children learn important values such as sharing, mingling, bonding and understanding while living in a joint family. However, several families now are forced to live in a nuclear setup due to financial and practical reasons.
Advantages: It is the best pattern of living that is most conducive to the growth.It is based on a principle of equitable economy. It holds it as a rule of creation that all men are not equal. Naturally it imposes a kind of unwritten discipline that those who are more able economically shall share some of the burden of those who are not.The joint mess, naturally, runs on an understanding of mutual adjustment. Naturally those who are benefitted by the generosity of others remain obliged and grateful.Similarly in a big joint family the study groups of boys are formed according to their age matching. Naturally the cousins study together, play together, quarrel together and are even punished together. As a result there grows in them a feeling of camaraderie that is free from any discrimination of one being a full brother or a cousin.In marriages also the grooms for marriageable girls become a concern for all the elders in the family. Even if a daughter of a junior brother is selected by someone because of her beauty or brilliance, he would not agree to her marriage until her senior cousin sister is married.The basic necessities of all the family members are taken care of. Each member is guaranteed the minimum subsistence for living.It supports all the members of the family. Old and elderly people are respected. Proper care is taken for old, widowed, physically weak and disabled family members.As such the disciplines in a joint family are self-imposed on its members. The head of the big family becomes virtually its patriarch and the family prospers squarely if the patriarch and the other constituents observe the norms soundly and healthily.Finally, the spirit of oneness prevails in a Joint family system.
Disadvantages : It often creates parasites who love to feed on other’s income. They exploit the goodness and principled behaviour of its partners.Sometimes some crooked member of the family plot to torture and exploit another innocent member of the family.High earning members often insults the low earning members.The cost of education has gone up high. The high earning members often want their children to study in costly schools but they don’t want to share the burden of the children of the other members of the family.In large families, most of important decisions are made by the head of the family. Since, all the individuals within the family doesn’t get the opportunity to participate in major decisions of the family, they often feel lost or develop a feeling of inferiority complex.