Family

A family consists of people who are socially-related to one another. An exam of such a social relationship might be marriage or cohabitation.

Kinship is a related concept that means connections between people (either through marriage or lines of descent) that are “blood relationships“. An example of a kinship relationship might be that of a mother and a child. Thus, the relationship between them and their children is one of both family and kinship.

Marriage is an important concept when talking about family life in our society. We place a great deal of importance upon the concept of legal marriage as the cornerstone of the family group.

A household is a group of people who have a common residence. There is not necessarily any family or kinship relationship between them.

Family function

Living in a family is important for every human being. Our parents take care of us from our births until we grow up. We are often loved and even spoiled by grandparents, uncles and aunts. We are related to our families by blood. We may live far from them, but we always try to keep in touch with them.

Our family supports us when we need it. They are with us in all the important moments of our lives. It is in our families and in our homes where we can learn all the skills that we need for life: how to get on with people, be tolerant, selfdisciplined, polite and helpful.

Relationships within family

The people closest to us are our parents. Often they show how much they care by worrying about things like our health and how we do in school. We learn how to communicate and how to be helpful and understanding through our discussions with them.
Family members, especially from our extended family, get together on special occasions, for example at family celebrations, such as weddings, graduation ceremonies, birthdays and funerals.
A family gathering is a unique social occasion where we see our whole family and have a chance to talk to our cousins, aunts and uncles who we don´t see very often.

As members of a family we have different relationships with people we live with. The relationship with parents is special: we love them, but we have to respect and obey them as they are responsible for our upbringing.
Our siblings are much closer to us. They are from the same generation, share similar hobbies and probably have much the same opinions.

Relationships with grandparents are similar to those with our parents, but there is one important difference: grandparents aren´t responsible for us. We don´t live with them, so most of us see our grandparents only once or twice a month, and even then we usually spend only one or two days with them. Sometimes we spend only a few hours with them.

Duties

Being a member of a family means duties, such as cleaning, doing the washing up, working in the garden and taking out the rubbish. Daughters usually help their mums in the kitchen and boys usually help fathers with household repairs. If the household chores are not divided up equally among the family members, relationships within that family may get worse and result in arguments.

My family

We are four of us in our family: my father, my mother, my sister and me.
My father´s name is Igor. He is not very tall, not very slim, his hair is a bit grey adn his eyes are green and blue. He was born 45 years ago in a village in south Slovakia, Svodov near Želiezovce. He lived there for six years with his parents and then he moved to PN. He attended the secondary electro-technical school here and passed his finals. He´s a private businessman now. He greatly enjoys his work. He is always short of time and that´s why he spends very little time with us. But when he´s free we often take trips to nature. He wants to be fit as a fiddle and so he exercises regularly, he goes to a fitness centre every weekend to work out. In winter we all travel to the mountains to ski. When he has some free time, he likes working in the garden. He can spend hours planting, watering and taking care of the vegetables and trees. Apart from these hobbies he enjoys reading detective stories, listening to music and fishing.

My mum´s name is Anna. Her maiden name was Kutinová. She is pretty and as tall as my father. Her hair is auburn and she has got brown eyes. She has lived in PN since her childhood. She met my father when she was 20 and two years later she married him. She works as a clerk and deals with licences for business people. She is fond of sports, she takes aerobic classes in the nearby sports centre twice a week. She is also keen on reading, especially romantic stories. She helps my dad in the garden, she likes sunbathing and she is an excellent cook too.
My younger sister Dominika is 15 years old. She h
as been studying at elementary school in PN for nine years. She likes doing sports and being with her friends. She doesn´t like cleaning her children´s room, which is often messy.

My name is Ivana. I´m just finishing the grammar school in PN and after passing my finals, I´d like to study psychology or translation at university. I greatly enjoy going to the cinema with my friends when there is something interesting on. I like animals, mainly our dog Dantes and I walk him every day.
My grandparents on my father´s side and my mother´s side live in PN. I like to be with them and talk about many things I´m interested in.

Arguments in family

Real arguments – where both sides feel absolutely passionate about an issue – are an ordinary, healthy part of family life. Ordinary because any family which says they don´t argue is either fictional, lying or harbouring years of pent-up frustration. And healthy because, psychologically, repressing strong emotions and opinions is not good for you. Discussing problems when they arise might dissolve into an argument, but it might not – so why not take a gamble?

There is an art to getting what you want and it does not involve slamming the door, bribery or violence. First, state your case calmly and clearly, and justify why you deserve your desired objective. Then, listen to the other side of the argument, without interrupting. Finally, try to reach a conclusion that each side is happy with – this might involve some compromising on your part, but you´ll earn some respect for being reasonable and this will help next time you want something.

Pride

Parents like to feel proud of their children and are surprised by the amount of knowledge their children have. Children know terms from the fields of science and technology, can speak foreign languages and are better at using computers and the Internet. They know all kinds of things that their parents at their age had no idea even existed. Today´s children not only manage to do well at school but take part in various out-of-school activities. They go to hobby clubs, attend language schools, do sport and prove their talent and abilities in competitions. Parents try to provide good conditions for their children to be wiser and more successful.
Pocket money

Parents, not the children should decide how much money they will be given. Children´s complaints that their friends get more money could be exaggerations. If this is the case, you should explain that every family has different ways of doing things – that´s life.

You should make difference between the amounts you give to different-aged children in the family.
You should keep pocket money separate from extra money earned by doing chores. This may help to avoid arguments about whether pocket money is deserved or not and gives kids the opportunity to earn a little extra cash.
Don´t use pocket money to punish, bribe or reward. Spell out any guidelines you have on how your children should spend their money. The youngest will probably spend it on buying comics or sweets, but can older kids buy what they want? Let them know.

Family structures:

• extended families – this type of family structure consists of three or more generations living in the same household or very close proximity
• the nuclear family consists of two generations of family members living in the same household , family contacts amongst kin are usually weaker and less frequent than amongst members of extended families , contact with wider kin is more likely to involve “impersonal contacts“ such as the telephone
• single-parent families involve a single person plus dependent children, this type is sometimes reffered-to as a “broken nuclear“ family , the presence of this family structure can be attributed to three main factors: divorce, pregnancy outside marriage, death of a marriage partner
• reconstituted families (step-families) – this type of family is usually nuclear in form and involves parents, children of either spouse from a first marriage and possibly children from their present marriage

Types of marriages:

• monogamy type – you can only be legally married to one partner of the opposite sex at any one time
• strict monogamy – you are married to your partner until their death – divorce is prohibited (Southern Ireland)
• polygamy type – a man can be married to more than one woman or in rather more extreme cases, a woman can be legally married to more than one man
• arranged marriage – parents have a great say in the individual´s choice of marriage partner , in our past, arranged marriages amongst the upper classes tended to be the norm, mainly because the wealthy parents wanted to ensure that their family wealth was not diluted by the son or daughter´s inappropriate marriage (India)

Description of a family member

I have got the closest relationship with my mum. We often talk together, we are open to each other. I can speak with her about everything I want. I can rely on her in every situation. I have always followed her advice and she has never disappointed me in anything. She´s not very tall, but slim. Her dark auburn hair falls past her shoulders and she´s got really pretty brown eyes. When we talk and smile together nobody knows what´s going on. And both of us like dancing. We often dance to the music from MTV together. Sometimes we quarel but we still like each other very much.

Stable family in SR

The extended families, where grandparents, parents and children lived under one roof, are gone. Grandparents and independent children live separately now. The reason for this change is the rapid development of industry and trade made people move and try to find prosperous jobs in fast-growing towns.

However, family relationships haven´t been weakened by this change. With the development of communication technologies, it´s quite easy to keep in touch with our family, even if you live a thousand miles away from them. E-mails, chatting over the Internet, videophones – all these methods can be used to find out what´s new in your family.
When a young people decides to get married, they start looking for a place to set up their own home. They can get a mortgage from the bank to buy a flat or a house, rent a flat or a house in a housing estate. Young people prefer living on their own to living with their parents.

Most Slovak women nowadays work. They have very good job prospects. They work as engineers, surgeons, educators, politicians and entrepreneurs. They have equal social status, pay and opportunities.
The birth rate in Slovakia is falling, so some people say that young people are more selfish and egocentric today. Others claim that it shows that young people are being responsible by not having more children that they can afford. They say it shows their concern for the quality of life they can give a child and that young couples are just careful in planning the size of their families according to their resources – both material and financial.
The roles of husband and wife has changed as well. Young men now take more active role in the raising of their children. If children see such dual participation, it helps them later in life. They are more mature, independent and able to cope with life than their classmates who always had only mother at home to rely on. It helps children when both parents share duties at home.

Cohabitation without being married

• partners don´t considerate the paper about being married as important
• partners want to have freedom
• partners don´t want to belong someone, they can be scared of marriage
• one of the partners might got divorce and don´t want to try a marriage again

Divorces

• spows notice they have different qualities in life
• cheating
• when one of them has an affair – the lost of trust
• different social status
• earning money
• alcohol, drugs, violence

expect = očakávať
gamble = hazardovať
spoiled = rozmaznaný
gather = zhromaždiť sa
obey = poslúchať
upbringing = výchova
sibling = súrodenec
duty = povinnosť, služba
chore = drobná práca
divide = podeliť sa
equaly = rovnako
result in = mať za následok
claim = tvrdiť
supervise = dohliadať
interfere = prekážať, rušiť
even = dokonca
scold = karhať, hrešiť
face = čeliť
approve = schváliť
disagree with/disapprove of = neschvaľovať
it´s none of your business = to sa ťa netýka
fortune = majetok
look up to = vážiť si
see eye to eye = mať rovnaký názor
to take someone´s side = stáť na niekoho strane
reproache = vyčítať
tell of = hrešiť
reprimand = karhať
be grounted = mať zaracha
punish = potrestať
tap a bottom = dostať na zadok
whacks = facka
rigid = prísny
permissive = zhovievavý
chicky = drzý
get one´s way = idú svojou cestou
confine = zveriť sa
polish = leštiť
dust = prach, utierať prach
load the washer = dať do práčky
hang up = vešať
clothing line = šnúra na prádlo
sweap = zametať
rake leaves = hrabať lístie
power cut = výpadok prúdu
nappies = plienky
stine = škvrna
socket = el. zásuvka
baby carriage/pram = kočík
triplets = trojičky
foster parents = adoptívni rodičia
nephew = synovec
ancesor = predok
offspring = potomok
matternal = z matkinej strany
patternal = z otcovej strany
establish = vybudovať
sis = segra

widow = vdova
newborn = novorodenec
contribute = prispievať
budget = rozpočet
disruptive = neposlušný
estimate = odhadovať
exaggerate = zveličovať
mortgage = hypotéka
reveal = odhaliť
shortage = nedostatok
guideline = návod
bribe = podplácať
complaint = sťažnosť
cope with sth = čeliť niečomu
entrepreneur = podnikateľ
flourish = nastať
pay off = splatiť
reunion = stretávka

Family members:

spows, spouse, parents, mother, father, foster parents, foster mother, foster father, children, daughter, son, siblings, sister, brothers, godparents, godfather, godmother, godchildren, godson, goddaughter, aunt, uncle, cousin, nephew, niece, grandparents, grandmother, grandfather, grandchildren, granddaughter, grandson, great-grandparents, great-grandmother, great-grandfather, great-grandchildren, great-granddaughter, great-grandson, parents-in-law, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law