Question

I grew up in an ___ family as my grandparents and a couple of aunts and an uncle, who was a ___ bachelor,

lived with us. We saw a lot of our ___ relatives as well as our close ones. I think that families tended to be much more
___ then - we talked to each other more and did things together more. I'm sure there are far more ___ families
now than there used to be - you know, where parents hardly spend any time with their children, or with each other - and a lot of parents
who are divorced. My ___ wife, who died two years ago, used to say that it is not fair on children to let them grow up in
___ homes.

Answer 1

The student is discussing the extended family structure, which includes additional relatives living with the nuclear family. Society has seen shifts in traditional family structures, leading to various household compositions, including an increase in multigenerational living arrangements.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student is referring to an extended family, which traditionally includes not just parents and their children but also other relatives like grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. This contrasts with the nuclear family, consisting traditionally of a married husband and wife and their children.

The societal shift from predominantly married parents with their unmarried children living in the same household has led to an increase in non-conventional family structures, such as single-parent families, unmarried couples, and multigenerational households. These changes reflect wider societal transitions and the evolving nature of family units in modern Western societies.

Recent data suggest a resurgence in the number of extended families living together, a trend observed since the post-World War II decline in multigenerational homes. Factors contributing to this change include economic hardships, the pursuit of higher education, job changes, and widespread societal acceptance of diverse family arrangements.