Course Description:
This course uses a sociological lens in order to examine family as a social institution, one that is arguably the building block of most societies. Throughout the course, we will investigate the ways in which the institutional arena of the family (often thought of as a private arena) interacts with public institutions such as the state and market. We begin by studying the history of American families and then devote substantial time to understanding how family life is shaped by major axes of social inequality (e.g., race/ethnicity, immigration status, gender, social class, and sexuality). We end the course by studying recent demographic changes in American families such as the decline of marriage, delayed childbearing, and increasing rates of divorce and remarriage.
