MAKING TIME FOR FAMILY - THE INVENTION OF FAMILY TIME(S) AND THE REINVENTION OF FAMILY HISTORY

Families are not only subject to time constraints bur also produce the ir own sense of time. The time families live by is not the same as the y live with. Historians, who have been primarily concerned with the qu antitative dimension, have neglected the phenomenon that is commonly r eferred to as ''quality time.'' This article explores the origins of m odern family times, paying particular attention to the rituals involve d in daily, weekly, and annual family occasions. It suggests that a be havioral approach to family history is incapable of capturing the symb olic processes that have become central to modern family life, and it calls for a cultural history of family that would take into account my th, ritual, and symbol.