Films on demand sociology collection social institutions

Films on demand sociology collection social institutions

In sociology, three major institutions come at stake, family, religion and education. The family forms the basic unit in a society and plays such an important role in maintaining the social functioning in the society. Within the family structure, values, social norms, beliefs, and culture were taught and encouraged. Religion as an institution has been incorporated in the global society and inbuilt within the community. The religion has been used to set the pace for what is acceptable moral behavior within a community. Religion plays a vital role in bringing people together and thereby offers them and platform to strengthen their ties and support for one another in times of crisis. Education on the other hand provides a chance for modeling the children and making them ready to face the adult life. The school system offers tools and knowledge for a career path and provides a gateway for social mobility. The children learn social skills and learn the respect for authority at a tender age. This paper will provide an analysis of the movie Madea’s Big Happy Family and investigate how the family politics plays and help shape the society.

The movie “Madea’s Big Happy Family is a movie that has been set in a set-up of nuclear family of Shirley and her three grown children. It indicates the relations within this family that has been torn and shaken by many unresolved issues. The women in this family portray a characteristic of people with no sympathy. The movie starts with Shirley being together with Aunt Bam makes a visit to Doctor Wallace who discloses that had a recurrence of six weeks. One main factor affecting the family is the health issue. The cancer problem facing Shirley creates a need for the family to support each other during these times.

The Madea’s family has been trust issues affecting the social relationships of this family. With Shirley’s health condition becoming worse, the whole family is summoned to discuss the situation. During this meeting, we get to learn to learn that Madea had given Tammy and her husband Harold resources to repair her car which had never been done. Other family members Bryon and his fiancée Rose always had talks on how to finance the extravagant life that Rose lived. Rose’s appetite for materialistic life has left her in debts and owes Aunt Bam $20 that is yet to be settled. It is evident the family is facing trust issues when Uncle Monroe arrival is announced and everybody rushes to hid their staff as he is considered a petty thief seeking to get money to acquire his drugs.

From the movie, it is evident that the family is facing jealousy issues. Karen who is a Bryron former girlfriend and with whom they have a kid together brings in demands to see Byron which makes Rose, his current fiancée, very jealous. In this case, Karen and Aunt Bang joined a team to push Byron to stop paying up for child support. The situation worsens when Madea, reacts out of jealous and desire to be in charge declares that Karen is not a family member and orders her to leave. 

Another issue surrounding the relations in this family is evasiveness. Byron is making attempts to evade supporting Karen with upbringing their kid. Shirley’s daughter, Kimberley is over-curios in wanting to be told the agenda of the day to enable her leave her family as soon as possible. Harold on his part acts as an intimidated wimp who is not ready to take up his roles as a man in the presence of his wife. The case of Donnie portrays incidences of the family evading the real truth and revealing it to those who are concerned. Donnie discovers that Shirley whom he has always believed is his mother is not nit his mother but rather Kimberly who conceived him after a rape ordeal as a twelve year old girl. The whole families who have known this have always escaped the situation of telling him the truth.

Madea tries to be the family hero after the death of Shirley by trying to resolve all the family issues. She takes it upon herself to avail solid advice to everyone. The counseling session begin with Karen then Bryon as it trickles down to other family members. Harold and Tammy seem to not be ready to take this new move of Madea to give advice. Madea tells Harold it’s time to act as the real man in the relationship. Madea’s words to Tammy are that she ought to accord respect to her husband Harold. Kimberly closes the chapter of individualized advice sessions and it prompted to end the bitterness that she has always held connected with her past and seek reconciliation with her husband, to whom the acts of bitterness have been focused to. The family’s strenuous social relations are amended with the involvement and interception of Madea.

Conclusion

As the movie Madea’s Happy Big Family brings to light, every family faces its own issues that threaten to destroy the unity and the kinship ties. It requires a family to have a leader offering guidance just like Madea took over the leadership role and managed to help everyone deal with their issues facing hem creating a happy family. It is essential that one review an individual within the perspective of their family. This is true as trying to understand the members of the Madea’s family out of the context of the big family would have provided misleading views. 

ReferencesMojta, C., Falconier, M., & Huebner, A. (2014). Fostering Self-Awareness in Novice Therapists Using Internal Family Systems Therapy. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 67-68.