Long and short essay on myself in english

ESSAY ON IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY IN SOCIETY – ESSAY 4 (500 WORDS)
Introduction
If one looks at the old definition of a family, what a family was a hundred years ago, it is 
pretty clear cut. A family was a unit consisting of a father who took care of it financially, a 
mother who looked after hearth and home and one or more children. Depending upon which 
part of the world you were in, this could also expand to include extended family members 
such as grandparents and uncles and aunts and their families. This system was called a joint 
family.
Family in Modern Times
We have come a long way since then. With the emergence of feminism, nuclear families and 
many other societal changes the traditional version of a family is no longer completely true. 
This has led many to believe that the concept of a family is dying out. However, nothing 
could be further from the truth. It is not that the family is dying out; instead, the fact is that 
our concept of what constitutes a family has changed. A family can consist of single parents, 
samesex partners and even friends. In other words, as society has changed, so has the idea of 
what a family is.
Importance of Family in the Society
The prevalence of divorce has led many people to believe that the family construct is no 
longer valid and is crumbling. This, however, is just not true. The fact of the matter is that 
the concept of what a family is has evolved to keep up with the changes in modern society. 
This then means that family still is at the foundation of society. The only thing that has 
changed is the type of family that holds society up.
A family is needed to take care of the vulnerable, those members of society who aren’t able 
to take care of themselves such as children, the elderly and the ill. The basic needs of such 
members can only be met when they have value to a society and that value comes through 
family.
A family is essential to our need for love and belonging. As per Abram Maslow’s diagram 
called the Hierarchy of Needs, once the needs at the bottom of the pyramid such as food, 
water and shelter have been fulfilled, we have emotional needs. We need to feel love and we 
need somewhere to belong to. A family provides that foundation.
A family is the first social environment that we interact with. It is through family that we 
learn the basics of social interactions and socialize ourselves, i.e. learn to interact 
productively with society. It is through family that we learn how to survive and thrive.

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Conclusion
Times have changed. Our attitudes towards marriage, relationships and what constitutes a 
family have also changed. Relationships that were taboo once are now considered normal. 
Those resistant to these changes have predicted the breakdown of society and said that 
families are under attack. However, all that has really happened is that our concept of what a 
family is has evolved along with the social changes of the last 100 years. Families are still 
the foundation of society and they always will be.