A Journal for Western Man

 

Why Families Make Sense

G. Stolyarov II

Issue CXXV - November 10, 2007

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CMFF: Fight Death

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Eden against the Colossus

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A Rational Cosmology

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Statement of Policy

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This article was originally published on GrasstopsUSA.com.

            In order for us to preserve an institution vital to our civilization, it is essential that we recognize the immense benefits of traditional, monogamous, intact families, formed by marriage between one man and one woman. When compared to alternative arrangements such as single-parent households, impermanent relationships, and government welfare, the traditional family offers a series of definite economic advantages that enable its members to lead the most productive, prosperous, and fulfilling lives.

            The advantages of the traditional family that will be discussed here do not necessarily stem from any kind of biological links among the family’s members – though such links often exist and the family makes it easier for them to be established. Rather, these advantages can be found in any relationship where a man and a woman decide to stay together permanently and are fundamentally civil and decent to each other. These advantages also reflect on the upbringing of any children in the family – irrespective of whether they are biologically related to the parents or adopted.

            This is far from an exhaustive list of the benefits that a family provides – but it does discuss some of the frequently overlooked ways in which the traditional family enables human flourishing.

            1. Division of Labor. If the family is sufficiently strong and the chances are high that the underlying marriage will last in perpetuity, it becomes possible for both the husband and the wife to reap the advantages of specialization in the activities at which they are best. With specialization, each partner is able to devote a greater portion of his or her time and effort to the activities in which he or she has an advantage over the other, and their total productivity is greater than would occur if both partners engaged in an equal share of each activity.

The form which this specialization assumes need not be the same across all families; each family ought to have the liberty and privacy to decide on which members will perform which tasks. But the very possibility of such specialization can only exist in a long-term monogamous relationship, where each partner can rely on the arrangement’s long-term continuation. After all, if there is a chance that the relationship will soon end, then it is not advantageous for each party to specialize in any set of activities. Rather, it will be in the interest of each partner to try to do everything, because he or she will have to do everything if the relationship is dissolved. Thus, even the possibility of easy divorce and easy breakup of the family diminishes the tremendous gains that could be achieved from division of labor and specialization.

A single parent raising children may be well-intentioned and earnestly seek the child’s benefit. But having to perform all the tasks required to properly maintain a household and bring up good human beings is a colossal effort – too much to ask of any one person. Thus, the single parent, despite his or her best efforts, is likely to fall short in some dimensions of his or her tasks. He or she might try to compensate for this by sending the children to day care or hiring babysitters – yet both of these are far inferior substitutes to the affection and devotion that only a long-term parent can provide.

If government provides money or services to a single parent on welfare, this presents a great disincentive for the parent to improve his or her own ability to take care of the household and children. After all, if the parent will receive handouts irrespective of what he or she does, the importance of the parent’s active role in the upbringing process diminishes. Indeed, the parent becomes a virtual child of the state, and the state comes to act as the de facto parent over both the adult and the children of the family.

The male-female partnership in a family is essential for taking optimal advantage of specialization. Certain personality traits and aptitudes that are more often found in one gender than in another – and these may form the basis for a division of labor. A growing child needs to benefit from both maternal and paternal affection; furthermore, a child of either gender needs to learn early on how to approach members of both genders with respect and understanding. Perhaps without even intending to, a mother specializes in helping her children understand and appreciate women, whereas a father performs a similar service regarding men. Although it is not inevitable, it is all too easy for children who did not have the benefits of being brought up by both a mother and a father to form mistaken notions about one of the genders and thus to mistreat its members later in life.

            2. Material Security for Children. The traditional family enables children to grow up in an environment of greater material security and comfort than any other arrangement. Each child benefits from either the income of two parents or – if one parent stays at home – from the income of one parent and the extensive work of the other in maintaining a household. A child who is raised by only one parent benefits from less than half of the material resources, in terms of income and labor, that a traditional family provides – less than half, since the advantages of the division of labor are foregone.

            Children have the greatest need of material security while they are still growing and developing their talents – and nothing facilitates this as well as two adults working within or outside the home to ensure that their children do not endure the lack of the most fundamental necessities. The permanent family makes it possible for children to make a smooth transition between dependency and autonomous living – since two parents can more readily support a child up until the point he or she starts earning a sufficient independent income. Thus, children raised in a traditional family will less often need to go into debt early in life and will have the benefit of experiencing a similar standard of living in their twenties as they had in their early years.

            3. Security for Old Age and Infirmity. Government welfare and pension programs function miserably when compared to families in terms of providing care for individuals who become weakened or incapacitated due to old age and illness. Indeed, these governmental programs have unfortunately somewhat supplanted the family’s crucial role in this respect – leading to greater suffering for the old and the sick.

            Unlike even well-meaning government bureaucrats, members of a family know their own relatives extremely well and are aware of the best way to accommodate their needs. Instead of getting one-size-fits-all treatment from the government, a retired, ill, or disabled individual can receive highly personalized care from family members. Instead of government bureaucrats deciding how much taxpayer money to give for each person’s medical care, family members – who virtually always have more information on hand about the specific case in question – can decide how to spend their own money to achieve the most beneficial possible results.

            Furthermore, a specialized focus in this area leads to a higher quality of care for everyone. Each family will specialize in caring for the dependents in it, instead of everybody trying in vain to take care of everybody else’s dependents via the government. It is impossible for any human being to grasp the unique needs and preferences of millions of people – but it is quite possible for a few people to take good care of one or two others.

Those who oppose the primacy of the traditional family often attempt to characterize this institution as simply a matter of subjective preference. They do not consider the tremendous material benefits offered by the traditional family to functional adults as well as to the young, the aged, and the sick. The debate over the merits of the family is not just a question of morality; it has prosperity and productivity on one side and unnecessary human suffering on the other.   

G. Stolyarov II is a science fiction novelist, independent philosophical essayist, poet, amateur mathematician, composer, contributor to Enter Stage Right, Le Quebecois Libre,  Rebirth of Reason, and the Ludwig von Mises Institute, Senior Writer for The Liberal Institute, weekly columnist for GrasstopsUSA.com, and Editor-in-Chief of The Rational Argumentator, a magazine championing the principles of reason, rights, and progress. Mr. Stolyarov also publishes his articles on Helium.com and Associated Content to assist the spread of rational ideas. His newest science fiction novel is Eden against the Colossus. His latest non-fiction treatise is A Rational Cosmology. His most recent play is Implied Consent. Mr. Stolyarov can be contacted at gennadystolyarovii@yahoo.com.

 

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This TRA feature has been edited in accordance with TRA’s Statement of Policy.

Click here to return to TRA's Issue CXXV Index.

Learn about Mr. Stolyarov's novel, Eden against the Colossus, here..

Read Mr. Stolyarov's new comprehensive treatise, A Rational Cosmology, explicating such terms as the universe, matter, space, time, sound, light, life, consciousness, and volition, here.

Read Mr. Stolyarov's new four-act play, Implied Consent, a futuristic intellectual drama on the sanctity of human life, here.