You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
This book is the first of a series of surveys by the Institute of Community Studies of family relationships in an industrial society and its associated housing estates. The authors look at family life in Bethnal Green and 'Greenleigh', primarily through the eyes of middle-aged husbands and wives. They give a vivid picture of the social background of their subjects, and attempt an analysis of the present system of family relationships and how the past shapes family behaviour in the present. In their investigation of nearly a thousand families, the authors find how dependent these are on the reality of the relationships which bind together the three-generation family in a complex system of rights and obligations. The key to the structure is the 'Mum' in the oldest generation, the evidence showing the main emphasis to lie on the strong tie between the mother and married daughter.
The second part of the book deals with the changes in family relationships resulting from the move to 'Greenleigh' twenty miles away, where parents and children are on their own. Here the emphasis lies on the loneliness of the married daughter, and shows how the quality of life changes. The only basis of judgement is external appearance; this means appraising and being appraised in terms of material things, clothes, curtains, TV sets, and cars.
The authors conclude with the suggestion that directors of housing policies in the future should make it possible for individuals to have the freedom to live with or near a younger or older generation, thus taking into account the reality of the relationships which bind together the wider three-generation family.
This is a warm and fascinating book which is to be welcomed as a contribution to building up an objective picture of the family under the social conditions of today.