Sibling Rivalry

Sibling Rivalry

Thesis Statement

Sibling rivalry is not new, and takes place in every family who has more than one child. The emergence of another child in the family is always a difficult experience for the older, which are considered a younger intruder, willing to take him his private kingdom.

Discussion

According to psychologists, a strong sibling rivalry can involve negative emotions, and ultimately lead to the escalation of conflicts or complete loosening of emotional ties and indifference, but it is not always so bad. Sibling rivalry is completely normal. The first of its symptoms may occur before birth, the twins in the womb are fighting for a better place, and more food. Frequently, however, the rivalry begins when the house appears to have younger siblings. Older baby feels jealous and strives for greater attention to parents. Since then, the rivalry has continued uninterrupted, sometimes it continues even for a life time and the only change comes in intensity.

It is assumed that it is the strongest rivalry between siblings who are close in age and between siblings of the same sex. More often it manifests itself in violent rivalry between the boys, but to this rule there are many exceptions.

Literature Piece 1:

Relationships between siblings are accompanied by strong emotions, which are not always positive. It often leads to quarrels and conflicts. They are inevitable, but parents can try to reduce the effects of tension and teach children to seek compromise. Parents, who want their children to live in harmony, try to treat them equally and fairly.

I observed a sibling rivalry in my distant relatives, where Sasha 12 years old and her sister Nina 9 years old shared a sweet bond of sibling love, which was also accompanied by usual quarrel over little things. I went to visit my aunt in my holidays and stayed with them for 2 months. However, Sasha got in to minor accident and was diagnosed to have a fracture in her arm. After the incident when sash got back home from hospital, her parents and Nina gave her special attention and extra care, but after 2-3 days Nina started to feel neglected, since all her parent's attention was going towards Sasha's care. Whatever Sasha desired, her parents used to fulfill in no time. Mother used to cook Sasha's favorite dishes in every meal and she used to be the one to set the menu for each day. This deeply affected Nina and she felt a strong sense of competition with Sasha. Although she liked her elder sister, but she did not like that Sasha was getting all the attention. It was not just their parents, but all the relatives used to visit the place to see how Sasha is recovering and bring her flowers, chocolates and gifts.

It has been 2 years since that incident occurred, but I believe that Nina does not feel the same way for Sasha, and she easily gets jealous of her elder sister. Sasha is 14 years old and she has ...