English World Documentary: Family life in Egypt

[Music] hello from the studios at pascual bravo university the family is the basic unit of any society and culture in the arabic country of egypt it is no different as egypt is a largely collectivist society the needs of one's family or community typically take precedence over one's personal needs or desires kinship plays an important role in social relations and the general perception is that the individual is subordinate to the family it is the norm for egyptians to live with their extended fa

mily and often one will find three generations living together moreover grown-up unmarried children often the eldest son or daughter tend to stay with their parents until they marry in an egyptian family the father is the head of the household and is responsible for providing for the family the mother is primarily responsible for managing the household and is the primary caregiver of the children children are highly valued in egyptian society every egyptian is expected to get married and produce

children in order to continue the family lineage while all children are considered a blessing male offspring are considered more valuable at a young age children are given responsibilities and taught to respect their elders girls tend to help their mothers with housework while boys especially those of poor families learn a trade children of wealthy families have the luxury of focusing primarily on their education dating is not widespread although the attitudes among some egyptians particularly

in urban areas are becoming more westernized the idea of purity especially for women is an important value in marriage arrangements traditionally arranged marriages between the heads of families were common often with little input from the couple involved in contemporary egyptian society individuals have more decision-making power over whom they marry however marriage still entails negotiation among family members and may include the use of a matchmaker there is a tendency to marry those within

the same age group level of education social class and religion i am gary vernier and this has been a pascuel bravo english documentary until next time good luck with english