ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the institution of marriage as a subsystem in a larger series of interconnected systems. Aspects of the relationship of marriage to other institutions which form a regular and repeated part of the pattern of the lives of a couple will also be considered. In an analysis of women's relationships to their husband's world of work, J. Finch has shown how women often reduce tension by submitting themselves to the organizing principles of their husband's work setting and the role requirements of his job. The family organizes and sends out messages across the generations which create and confirm gender identity, and outline acceptable sets of role behaviours for its adult members. Women who choose to have children and continue to work rarely become disconnected in the same way although their struggle not to do so may be powerful in cases where they are submitted to the same pulls of loyalty as men.
