Text: “American Family Trends”

The traditional American family consisting of a husband, wife and children is becoming less and less frequent. More people who are not legally married are living together. More and more children are being raised in single-parent families, by both poor women and by women who are professionally employed. Others postpone marriage and childbirth and as a consequence bear fewer children than women who marry earlier. Among the educated more and more couples are deciding to have fewer and fewer children. An exception to this trend occurs among Blacks, Hispanics and among the very poor. In 1990 the size of the average American family was 3.2 individuals.

In the American family the husband and wife usually share important decision making. American parents are very permissive. The old rule that “children should be seen and not heard” is not followed, and children are often allowed to do what they wish without strict parental control. Children are encouraged to be independent at an early age. Some people believe that American parents carry this freedom too far. Young people rarely live with their parents. Usually, upon graduation from high school children move out of the family home. If young people don’t break away from their parents by their late teens it is often regarded as a kind of unhealthy dependence. To reduce expenses young people frequently rent apartments or a house. They rent apartments or a house together and share other expenses.

While young people are getting married later in life, the divorce rate is increasing. Roughly 50% of all marriages in the United States now end in divorce. In cases of divorce the financial support required from the breadwinner will vary from case to case and if agreement is not possible between the two parties the court will decide. The cheapest way of getting a divorce is through the no-fault system, that is, two parties come to an agreement between themselves about the distribution of property. If there is no agreement then each hires a lawyer and the divorce will be very costly, up to $25,000 and more for legal fees alone.

The most ominous trend in American society is the increasingly high number of children being born to unmarried young people in poverty who are being raised without fathers. Two-thirds of black children are now being born in fatherless households. Undoubtedly these children are destined to add to the number of those in poverty and to those involved in delinquency and crime.

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text.

Ex. 2. Answer the questions on the text.

1. What is traditional family in the USA? Is it frequent?

2. Why do Americans have fewer children nowadays?

3. What is the size of the average American family?

4. How do American parents bring up their children?

5. Do you find the American pattern of independence good or bad for family relations?

6. Do young people live with their parents in the USA?

7. How many marriages in the USA end in divorce now?

8. What is the cheapest way of getting a divorce?

9. How do Americans solve the case of divorce if there is no agreement about the distribution of property?

10. What is the most ominous trend in American society according to the text?