Moving To The ‘Big‘ House: Power And Accommodation In Inter-Generational Farming Families

Abstract

Relationship management is an on-going concern for members of farming families. This paper examines the dynamics of one of the most important, but under-researched, relationships on a farm; between mother and daughter-in-law. I argue that this relationship operates as a conduit for tensions, enabling conflict to be channelled away from the farm itself into a relationship governed by the designated ‘kinkeepers’ and relationship managers of the farm. This relationship uses discourse surrounding the ‘big house’ – accommodation arrangements on the farm – as a mechanism for preventing overt hostility between family members and maintaining the integrity of the family unit.