down the negative image given to fathers, and to show that they too have a responsibility in the upbringing of their children, and also being their moral anchor. In the 00’s, the father figure was adapted to become a more versatile character. Gone were the days when the man of the house was said to be both the wisest of the household and the breadwinner. In shows like modern family we see fathers like Phil Dunphy who manage to break the mold set in place for fathers in television since the 1950s. Phil is made to be a complex character who wins the viewer’s affections with his quirky ways. He is not the head of his family despite being the father, but rather the second in command to his wife Claire. He is portrayed as rather the heart of his …show more content…
The nineties were notorious for the heartfelt one-on-one conversations/lesson that followed a child’s mistake, all whilst seldom and sad music played in the background. Full House seemed to be a repeated offender of the confession sessions in every episode. A specific example comes from the episode where the eldest daughter DJ befriends an elderly man with Alzheimer’s, after the man exhibits symptoms of his disease Danny is left to explain to DJ that there’s nothing she can do to help him and that bad things happen to good people. The parental relationships present in Full House, fostered the importance of communication between a child and the adults in their lives. It is not necessarily that today’s shows neglect this attribute, but the tone of these types of conversations has changed. The discussions about serious problems the nineties sitcoms kept the level of seriousness, with the goal of teaching the viewers a valuable lesson while in more recent sitcoms, they still carry out the intent of delivering an emotional message, but the dialogue incorporates comedy in attempt to lighten the
Full house is an American sitcom television series that’s about a widowed father named, Danny Tanner, his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis, and his best friend Joey Gladstone, who help Danny raise his three children, D.J, Stephanie, and Michelle. Full House came out around the late 1980s, unfortunately, due to the the increasing costs of producing the show the series was cancelled on May 23, 1995. As a young child, Full House may have seemed as your ordinary American sitcom that is about love, friendship, and family. But that is not the case in this show, as young adults and re-watching the show again, you may stumble upon the deeper meaning and messages behind the show that is significant to society today. Such as, Full house breaks gender stereotypes and it has strong, real, and important life lessons for children.
American television today has drastically changed from the first appearance of the television in the 1920s. Currently, television is nothing but sitcoms poking jokes at the disabled, the LGBT community adapting to the American family standard, and even late night television poking fun at our 2016 Presidential candidates.1950s television depicted America’s heterosexual, patriarchal society in which an “ideal and acceptable” family consisted of a generous working class father, an accommodating and good-natured mother, and a few respectful children. Whereas 1950s American television required the audience to accept television families without question, American networks today understand that times are changing and just like mass communication, adapting to the millennial generation of technology is a must for television families to appeal to the growing masses. But when did television families first start to step away from the cultural ideals of its time? From the 1920s through the 1960s television upheld the Father Knows Best standard of television with shows such as ‘Father Knows Best” and “I Love Lucy.” Well, fast forward 30 years, and in came the Bundy’s. The Bundy’s were television’s first dysfunctional, on screen family to undermine the idea that an ideal family must function perfectly all the time. Married with Children reminded us that it was ok to not conform to society’s cultural norms. “…people want to watch a family that
Masculinity Throughout time, men and women have had specific assigned roles that they play in society. Though these gender roles are very specific they have changed some over the period of time. Masculinity has changed throughout the Renaissance, Restoration and the Eighteenth Century period. The most altering time for Masculinity is from the Restoration period to the Eighteenth Century period, when the Scientific Revolution really became prosperous.
Men in the nineteenth and early twentieth were in a bit of crisis, both on the public end and the private end. In a sense, men much like women were caged in from emotional expression and forced into extreme social standards and the definition of being masculine. Much like women were compared to singing caged birds. Men of this era however were given an image of that of a werewolf. A figure of masculine power and instinct that was not allowed to keep in touch with an emotional side and hide those feeling from the public sphere.
Society’s current structure of masculinity is unforgiving in form. It cuts out other forms of masculinity, it physically and mentally demanding, and its ill effects extend far beyond the men it infuses itself in. Yet what would we do if we were given other options for masculinity, ones that allowed for unique blends of attitudes and perceptions? Looking in to the lives of homeless men we can see the forced strategies which create new masculine codes created for the adaption against patriarchal pressures. They are made out of survival need to circumnavigate the painful mental and physical reality that is only made worse by harsh masculine standards. Yet these new masculinities hold out a form of hopefulness for society. They offer up new discussion to what it means to be a man, the potential for change, and what we can expect from changes in male identity over time. Using what we learn from the disadvantaged, we can hope to improve the lives of people, although the process will take time, effort, and careful mediation.
As early as 1950, television families have depicted not only the way we live today, but also the way we ought to live (Tueth, 2003). Hence, television has continued to present comedies about family life that ranges from the didactic model of domestic conventionalist and gradually to non-conventionalist ways of life. By conventionalist, I mean the depiction of the “nuclear” family that consists of clear roles, responsibilities, and gentle lines of authority that flow from the wise dad and understanding mom to the obedient children (Kutalas, 2005). Examples of these types of shows between 1947 to 1990 that constructed more than 60% of family sitcoms included: The Cleavers, The Cosby Show, Father Knows Best, Family Ties, and Growing Pains
For the matter of alcohol, more men came to believe that alcohol use was destructive to their independence, internal freedom, and self-sufficiency, and as such was a threat to their masculinity. Thus, masculinity became one of the factors which encouraged men to embrace temperance. When it came to efforts to spread temperance among working class men, their came the challenge of going up against an older standard of masculinity. Parts of the working class had came to associate heavy drinking and social drinking as elements of social masculinity, due to decades of businessmen providing workers with alcohol as a means of keeping them complacent. Female temperance activists contended that the effects of drinking negatively affected home life, thus
Americans understanding about getting involved in physical activity has been evolving since the idea of sport first entered the culture. At first a sport was nothing more than a way to prove yourself to others and to show masculinity. These changes were brought to fruition through more knowledge. When Americans first realized that physical health was of importance, it was what started to make sure that everyone was getting active in some way. These changes happened first for males. It was, for a long time, still considered inappropriate for a female to in peak physical condition. Because it took so long for anyone to believe that the same resources that men were given to stay physically active should be given to women to, women are still not given the same opportunities at any level of sport in America today.
The early 1960s were a time of change and unrest. It was a time period where the “New Americans,” aka the young generation, were making changes in society. There was this domestic ideal that women were supposed to be at home cleaning, cooking, and taking care of children while the men would work. But during the 1960s, more women were finding jobs and eventually forty percent of workers were women. Marriage rates were declining and divorces were increasing because women were choosing to not be married.
Although in contrast to Leave It to Beaver, Claire is a strong woman who is in charge of the household and Phil is a submissive husband. The third and final family structure we see in Modern Family consists of two gay men, Mitchell and Cameron, and their adopted daughter, Lily. The fact that we see a gay couple in the show it demonstrates that our society is becoming more accustomed to the idea of homosexuality. Also, because they have adopted a child the audience is shown that in order to raise a child, it does not have to be the traditional man and woman. In the episode I watch, Claire and Phil try to find a way out of their Luke’s soccer game.
There is a masculinity crisis in America that has been escalating, since society has gravitated to the auspice of anti-marriage and single parenthood. The nuclear family is the root of a successful society. In a traditional nuclear family, family structure plays a vital role in the healthy developmental stages from birth through adolescence; otherwise, the child cannot adjust due to lack of social conventions. There are numerous factors that contribute to the threat of masculinity in our society; namely, families headed by single mothers, the media metrosexualizing males, and absence of God.
Regardless of my lack of adequate educational opportunities during my childhood, as I progressed throughout my higher academic courses over the past years, I have learned that I have always been treated differently due to my sexual orientation. In other words, as a heterosexual Christiane male in the American community; I have always being treated with honor simply because I supposedly fit the acceptable identity of a male standard within the Liberian and American community. For example, as a straight man in the American and Liberian community, I have the freedom to use any restroom and I have the opportunity to walk around my community without fearing for my safety as compared to a LGBT person. Unfortunately, members of LGBT label do not get
You´ve seen it in the movies, the men withstands all the slaps a woman gives. It is considered very disrespectful to block or dodge the slap, representing toughness what a woman can do with masculinity. Although she had the power to do this, she didn't have much rights at the time, she couldn't vote, she couldn't go outside on her own, she couldn't get a job and many more. Now in the 1920’s and later, the ladies finally get the right to vote and all the rights they always wanted. Present day, women show dominance through what they can do.
“The cult of masculinity.” When it comes to the big screen, women are treated like second-class citizens. Women were portrayed as helpless creatures, waiting in the castle for their Prince Charming whereas men were dauntless, swooping the Princess of her feet and saving the day. This gender gap came to an end when The Hunger Games (2012) was released in theaters. The brave Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) did what no “real” man or Prince could ever do – stand up for someone else – even when it meant risking her own life. The Hunger Games was not only one of the top grossing movies of the year, but it was also one of the very few movies where a woman was able to display her stability and willingness to fight. The Hunger Games, Divergent, and Gravity are some of the few movies that show a women’s potential than to sit in a castle. They all show three common characteristics for the roles of women: courage, personality, and recognition.
In today’s society, masculinity has changed throughout time. Fast forward one hundred years ago, masculinity is defined as being strong and having a good paying job. But as the world is changing so is the representation of manliness. You don’t have to show your dominance over men or women today, but you should support your family nowadays and we have all been brainwashed by the thought of masculinity from our ancestors. As men our reputation is always being valued but now it isn’t so much about our reputation but about caring for one another and especially for our families. Perspective of manhood is also a significant factor in portraying what masculinity is in the eyes of other people. Masculinity has been shown through money, appearance, and providing protection for your family members but as we shift into the modern world, masculinity is not seen as displaying the most discipline but caring for one another by taking out some of your time to help one another. Throughout the paper, I will be writing about my interviews from a broad spectrum of ages from one of my younger sisters to my dad with not friends not at Seb’s in between so I can get what it really means to be a man from all ages.