'Family comes in all forms, blood or not': disrupting dominant narratives around the patriarchal nuclear family

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Date

2016

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Abstract

After nearly 25 years of democracy, lives of young South Africans are still profoundly shaped by the legacies of apartheid. This paper considers how these differences are produced, maintained and disrupted through an exploration of changing narratives developed by a small group of South African pre-service teachers, with a particular focus on the narratives developed around discourses of fatherhood generally and absent fathers in particular. We draw on interviews conducted with three students in which we discussed their digital stories and literature reviews. In this paper, we draw attention to the limitations of digital storytelling and the risks such autobiographical storytelling presents of perpetuating dominant narratives that maintain and reproduce historical inequalities. At the same time, in highlighting ways in which this risk might be confronted, the paper also aims to show the possibilities in which these dominant narratives may be challenged.

Description

Keywords

Nuclear family, Patriarchy, Disrupting, Family values, Changing narratives

Citation

Gachago, D., Clowes, L. & Condy, J. (2016): 'Family comes in all forms, blood or not': disrupting dominant narratives around the patriarchal nuclear family. Gender and Education.