Page 19 - Passages 3rd Edition (demo)

A Group work Do you tend to rely more on friends or family for help and advice?
Why? Discuss with your group.

Who celebrates birthdays and holidays with you? Who do you call when a crisis hits
or when good luck strikes? If your answer is "my friends," you may have a "tribe."

hen Ethan Watters took stock of his life family - offering support without expectation of
a few years ago, the San Francisco writer repayment; sheltering each other from gossip,
realized that he was more dependent on friends stress, and attack; and looking out for everyone's
than family, who lived hundreds of miles away. overall well-being in life, work, and relationships.
"My friends were the centerpiece of Modern tribes often have a regular
my social life," he says. "They had meeting place, annual parties, and
taken on all the responsibilities group trips. Shared rites and
that family members typically rituals create a tribal story. "The
tackle - connecting me to the members of the group may
city, being a matchmaker, and change," Watters says, "but the
story of that group has central
helping me find jobs and
elements that remain. It gives
places to live."
the group a history."
This circle of friends had
become a tribe, which Every tribe usually has an
individual or core group that
started when a group
of artists, writers, and tends to its growth and survival.
photographers began meeting These tribal leaders are the ones
for dinner every Tuesday night. who get everyone together on a
Before long, they had begun regular basis and make the phone
calls that get members excited about
functioning as a family of choice.
upcoming events.
Watters grew to believe that non-family
Like families, t ribes have a way of shaping their
members forming close-knit social networks was
a growing trend in the United States, and he members: Individuals feel more confident,
wrote a book about it called Urban Tribes: secure, loved, and stable. Even. if your own family
Are Friends the New Family? is close-knit, you may benefit from cultivating
a family-like circle of friends. "The love and
Modern tribes like Watters's often grow out of support we get from one," Watters says, "does
a shared interest or experience, but not every not take away from the love and support we get
group of friends becomes a tribe. from another."
The shift from "circle of friends" to tribe happens
when members begin to treat each other like Source: "My Tribe," by Erin Peterson, Experience Life

B Read the article and answer the questions. Then compare answers with a partner.
1. In what ways does Watter:-'s circle of friends function as a family?
2. According to the article, what are some differences between a tribe and a family?
3. How does a group of friends become a tribe?

C Group work Discuss these questions. Then share your answers with the class.

1. What are some advantages and disadvantages of relying on friends for
family-like support?
2. Do you consider yourself a member of a modern tribe? Why or why not?

41=M'-i•1H ;f Every family is different. 9