A Discourse Analysis of Family Patterns in the Today›s Society with an Emphasis on the Relationships of Mate-Selection (Representation of Post-Modern, Modern, Traditional, in Transition, and Islamic Patterns)

This research with the aim of representation and interpretation of family patterns regarding mate-selection has re-read and classified the texts obtained from the deep interviews with young girls in the city of Qom about their lived experiences. Five family patterns of post-modern family, modern family, in transition family, traditional family, and Islamic family, which are all the result of their corresponding discourses in the today›s society, were represented as family patterns in the current society with the help of discourse analysis and theoretical framework of interpretive sociology, including discourse theory and the David Cheel›s theory of social constructionism. According to the results, it seems that each family pattern is affected by various origins and obvious discourses (consistent with political power) and hidden discourses (inconsistent with political power) and it is in accordance with the emerged social and cultural changes of society and unlike some its positive features, it is also faced with some damages. But the Islamic family pattern has some potential advantages and features which can be introduced as an appropriate pattern.