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In previous discussions, we examined ADHD, the impact of art, artificial intelligence, the female cycle, the new religiosity and spirituality, and the questions of water. This time, the occasion will be around the topic of family.

Everyone has an attitude towards the concept of family; its presence or absence, the family models desired or deplored, the patterns inherited, chosen or learned are all critical in every aspect of life. What a family is seems obvious, apparently requiring little explanation – but is that really the case? During this roundtable discussion, we will approach the topic from multiple angles with representatives from various fields, including art, psychology and sociology, to explore its complexity.

The concept of the family, the notions of its workings and structure, depend on the current world view and beliefs, as well as on the prevailing ideology and political system of the society. In Western societies, the medieval and early modern concept of the family was twofold: on the one hand, the ideal of the Holy Family as a fundamental notion of Christianity was a model for ordinary people the ordinary people, and on the other hand, the feudal order saw the family as an institution for the preservation of wealth, while the social hierarchy is reflected in the structure of the family which. The Enlightenment, and especially left-wing philosophers of the 19th century, were harshly critical of the institution of the family; Marx and Engels, for instance, saw it as a ‘product’ of the feudal order and then of capitalist society, and spoke of the disintegration of this power structure. In the conservative model of the family, women provide services and a cohesive force, and capitalism consciously builds on this invisible free labour. The ideal of the family in state socialism was fundamentally different: equality called for the employment of women, while the state had to compensate for the resulting loss of resources. Over the past few decades, family and gender roles have transformed, the horizons of expectation have changed, and the boundaries between what is traditionally seen as female and male work have blurred – all of which has an impact on the identity and self-definition of both sexes.

Even these random examples illustrate the diversity and complexity of the subject; in this context, there is no single standpoint that could be considered to be normative. The approach of the discussion responds to this complexity; the concept of family will be explored as a socio-cultural system, an economic unit, a legal term, a (socio-political) construct, a form of coexistence that cannot be standardized, and as an (emotion-based) social network.

This session will rely on the concept of knowledge pooling and the possibilities inherent in different approaches. Questions arising during the roundtable will be further discussed in a World Café format following the moderated talk with each member of the panel hosting a table of their own.