Familial dynamics in a Romanian worker village

Abstract

My purpose in this essay is to analyze the relationship between domestic social process in Mindra, a Romanian village in southern Transylvania, as well as the transformation of the Romanian economy at large. I shall deal with the developmental cycle of the family, the processes which establish, maintain, or alter relations among families, and the relationship between these domestic processes and the economic changes that have taken place in the area over the past generation. The most im? portant of the economic changes has been the incorporation of all village lands, except for house plots and gardens, into a cooperative farm and a concurrent rapid increase in the demand for workers in nearby towns and cities. Prior to World War II most villagers were peasants who owned and worked their own land; today some income is still derived from small private plots, but the economic life of the community is dominated by the co? operative farm and the city factories. In spite of this transformation in what people do for a living, the lineally extended family and an elaborate web of social relations among village households remain remarkably strong. It is true that there are presently more households made up of nuclear families than in the past. It is also true that all of the offspring in some households have deserted the village for the city and that some households choose to minimize their participation in social net? works. The present economic situation in particular, the availability of salaried city jobs ? make these alternatives possible. Such trends are often seen as being concomitant with the process of modernization, or as an indication that modernization is taking place. Since Mindra lies in the heart of one of the most industrialized areas in Romania, and since so many villagers do earn their livings in the city, the trend might be expected to continue until the extended family, and the network of social relations between households, become mere relics of the past. However, this does not seem to be the case. Instead, economic strategies that give a prominent'place to the extended family and to strong ties among village house? holds are flourishing. This is so because such strategies make good sense, not because they are survivals from a traditional past. In order to understand this seeming paradox it is neces? sary to turn to the concrete setting, the history, and the socioeconomic dynamic of the com? munity in question.