Authority Patterns

I thought the discussion about matriarchy, patriarchy, and equalitarian patterns of authority were very fascinating. I guess I’ve never really thought about which category my family would fit into until this lecture. I would definitely say that I have equalitarian authority in my family. I think this may have a lot to do with my dad’s profession. He works for the BNSF railroad, so he’s home about every other day. In this case, it’s almost as if my mom had to take authority because he was at work. Though, even when they’re both home, it seems like they almost take turns, but I’m pretty sure it usually depends on what they are being authoritative about. I feel like my mom is a lot more lenient, so my dad will take charge in a situation where he thinks she’s being too lenient, but even in those cases my mom will often get her way. Like a girl said in class, it may have something to do with my dad wanting to make my mom happy, but I also think it has to do with the fact that if he lets her get what she wants so he won’t have to hear the nagging later. I enjoy this kind of authority, and I hope to have this in my future family.