Kinship Analysis

        Introducing Carla Gomez Pryor, my interviewee. But I know her as "Mom." Carla was born on September 16, 1963 in Manila, Philippines in a traditional filipino home. The filipino culture is based quite a bit on the traditional Spanish culture. It is old fashioned, conservative and there is a lot of emphasis on morals and religion. Carla's parents raised her and her 9 siblings in this environment and rarely ever strayed away from these cultural values and behaviors. She was surrounded by people, both family and friends, who truly valued bonding and spending time with each other and because of that, her relationships with these people has, and still does, remain strong and meaningful.
        The interview took place in our family's living room across from one another, a place where my mother and I have sat and talked countless times so it was a very comfortable setting. There was no awkwardness at all during our conversation. I talk to her about anything and everything so this interview was very laid back, easy and informative. This helped with the thoroughness of the interview because I was not afraid to ask additional questions or encourage my interviewee to elaborate on her answers which enabled me to have all the answers I needed. This situation would be different if I were interviewing someone unrelated to me. It would be less comfortable talking to someone unrelated to me as opposed to my interviewee because I am completely at ease talking to my mom. I feel that if I were to interview someone unrelated to me, the interview would not be as thorough because I would hold back simply out of unfamiliarity. However, there are several people who are unrelated to me that I would feel just as comfortable interviewing because I have a relationship with them that is as strong as that with my mother such as mentors and the mother of my best friend. These people have taken on maternal roles in my life and that level of comfort is present in those relationships.
        The dynamic of Carla's kinship pattern varied in each relationship. Growing up, she spent a lot of time with both sides of her family in social settings. It was tradition in her family to have "family gatherings" at least once a week so she was able to develop relationships with her grandparents, aunts and uncles. However, she was closer to certain family members than others. For the most part, she was mainly only close to her mother's side of the family including her mother's parents, sisters and brothers. She was not close to her father's parents because they were "mean" and did not develop a close relationship to any of his brothers or sister. One of the main things that is emphasized quite a bit in our family is the level of respect that one must have for their elders. We (my siblings, myself, my mother and her whole family included) were taught to respect and serve our elders because they take care of us and it is what they deserve.
        There is definitely a trend towards large families in all four generations that my interviewee and I discussed. The second generation on both sides had five members in the immediate family. The third generation in which my mother belongs in includes her nine brothers and sisters. The fourth generation includes myself and my five brothers and sisters. This does not even count the amount of cousins which in each generation, ranges in the thirties. I think that the consistency in large families in our family influences the next generation to have a large family as well. I know the I personally have enjoyed growing up in an environment that really emphasizes the importance in family values and makes me want to have a large family as well.
        There are a few ethnic differences in different areas of my family but social interactions and family relationships are not affected. Understanding the importance of family values has encouraged every member of my family to embrace, accept and adapt to all aspects of our ethnicity despite ethnic differences. Most of these ethnic differences come from members of the family who have been married into the family and for the same reason that our family is not affected by ethnic differences, members who have been married into the family are not treated any differently.
        Unlike my interviewee, I personally know and socialize with my father's a lot more than I know and socialize with my mother's side. The main reason for this is the geographical location of both sides of the family. Most of my mother's side either remains in the Philippines or lives far away in North America whereas most of my father's side lives fairly close in California like myself. Them living in California allows me to socialize with them a lot whether at a family gathering for the holidays or just for random visits which I like to do often because I am close with most of them.
        The family members that have the most influence in decisions made in my family are definitely the parents over their children. This is because of that same level of respect that I discussed in which the elder and head of the family is in the position to make decisions that best benefit the family. The parents take the responsibility of providing the best life possible for their children. As a parent, choosing the best interest for the family is instilled in them along with family values which has been emphasized in my family from the beginning.
        For my interviewee, growing up in that time of tradition meant that much of the responsibility to work, provide for and protect the family was put on the men of the family. For the most part, this is still true in my family to this day however there are some differences. It is no longer entirely up to the men of the family to provide financially. In fact, there is equal dependence on the men and women of the family to provide in that way. Besides that, my family remains the same in the belief that the men and women are to be treated as equally important.
        Through this exercise, I have learned that the dynamic of my family has basically remained the same throughout the years. While there are obvious differences such as location, the true value and meaning of family has remained the same. I really admire that about my family.
     
Interview on Carla Gomez Pryor:

Question 1: With which family members did you tend to socialize the most? Who did you spend holidays with?

         Answer: The fourth generation, her children including myself and my five siblings.

Question 2: If you needed help, who among your family members would you feel comfortable turning to?

        Answer: There are different family members for different circumstances. For example, she would turn to her mother for financial aid, her children for child care and her older sisters for emotional support. 

Question 3: Are there family members your subject will not interact with or communicate with? Why?

        Answer: She does not communicate with her sister, Victoria because she estranged herself from the family. She does not communicate with her sister Analisa because she is mentally handicapped and is incapable of talking. She never interacted with her aunts and uncles on her father's side because she never became close to them and now because of the distance between them geographically.

Question 4: Are there family members that your subject knows little about? 

        Answer:  No, she was always informed of all of her family because her mom talked about them often.

Question 5: Is the subject’s family located in a relatively central area or are they spread out geographically? Have family members migrated during his or her lifetime to another country? What were the reasons for this? How did this affect the family as a whole? OR if the family has tended to stay in the same place geographically, why have they chosen to do so?

        Answer: Carla's family is spread out geographically. Several family members have migrated from the Philippines to other areas such as Canada, Virginia, Florida, Arizona and California for a better future. She is affected because they do not have the same kind of closeness that they had growing up. This affected the family as a whole because my generation does not know those family members or have a relationship with any of them. The family in the Philippines has stayed there because they have settled, are financially stable and comfortable there.