A review by bedsidearchive
The Anti-Social Family by Mary McIntosh, Michele Barrett
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
“The Anti-Social Family’s main theme is the idea that while individual families may often approximate to an ideal of loving, caring, mutual aid, and support, these values have only shallow roots elsewhere in the system as a whole. Privatized family collectivism tends to sap the strength of wider social collectivism. So the stronger and more supportive families are expected to be the weaker the other supportive institutions outside of them become.” (171)
Many critiques of this book consider it to be a “dated” topic, but although certain understandings of gender and sexuality have changed (and the writers acknowledge this in the post-scrip (written 10 years later), I think this is still a relevant text on capitalism and its strain of familial and social relationships. I don’t think a book written by two white British socialist feminists has the reach to to cover topics of sexuality and/or race and I don’t need it to.. Both of these authors make very clear mention that they are not attempting to generalize experiences, and understand the variety of family dynamics across various cultures.
While being written about socio-political happenings in the 70s-80s, McIntosh and Barrett do an incredible job reaching to historical influences that have built what we know as capitalism, the nuclear-family, class, patriarchy and sexualiity. They provide a good chapter of the book, they break down “contemporary social arguments” made by male critics that disagree with their work, it was incredible and exciting! And I know nothing about British politics and culture!
Many critiques of this book consider it to be a “dated” topic, but although certain understandings of gender and sexuality have changed (and the writers acknowledge this in the post-scrip (written 10 years later), I think this is still a relevant text on capitalism and its strain of familial and social relationships. I don’t think a book written by two white British socialist feminists has the reach to to cover topics of sexuality and/or race and I don’t need it to.. Both of these authors make very clear mention that they are not attempting to generalize experiences, and understand the variety of family dynamics across various cultures.
While being written about socio-political happenings in the 70s-80s, McIntosh and Barrett do an incredible job reaching to historical influences that have built what we know as capitalism, the nuclear-family, class, patriarchy and sexualiity. They provide a good chapter of the book, they break down “contemporary social arguments” made by male critics that disagree with their work, it was incredible and exciting! And I know nothing about British politics and culture!