The Family Situation Comedy ( Sitcom )

In this week’s application project essay, I would like to compare an older television show that projected family life as it was in the 1930’s as compared to how family is viewed from a sociological viewpoint today. “The Walton’s” may not have been an idealistic portrait of family, but the series did portray family as it really was in that era, since it was based on the autobiographical writings of Earl Hamner, Jr.

Americans’ everyday life. The Golden Age of television was a period of intense growth and expansion of

Family Guy, an animated sitcom about a New England family and their everyday dilemmas, is a way for viewers to see the comedic side of a dysfunctional family. The Griffins consist of Peter and Lois, the patriarch and matriarch, and Meg, Chris, and Stewie are the children(Family Guy). Every character is different from the next character. They are also weird in their own way. The television show itself displays feminism, structuralism, and gay and lesbian criticism. Each character in the show also displays those criticisms in a certain fashion. Family Guy can be offensive to viewers with its satire, and the way the show delivers its message can make the family and the other characters in the show seem dysfunctional.

In the 1950’s American families went through several changes, some of which were positive and beneficial. There were many new technological breakthroughs. Additionally, new forms of entertainment created a generational divide between young people and adults. Americans entered a period of postwar abundance, with expanding suburbs, growing families, and more white-collar jobs. The average income of American families roughly tripled. Thousands of families rushed to buy the inexpensive homes. New suburbs multiplied throughout the United States. Affordability was the key reason most Americans moved to the suburbs.

The ’50s boasted the archetype for the model family. As document H exemplifies, suburban families, coined the nuclear family, resided in ideal neighborhoods for raising the family, were

Suburban sitcoms coming out in the late 50’s early 60’s portrayed usually an average family with average problems it solves by the end of the episode, most sitcoms including “Leave It To Beaver” followed the same formula; two white parents, a mother, and father, and 2-3 children; every episode followed the same steps, there’s a problem, the problem is solved by the end of the episode, and a lesson is learned by the main character. This held up perfectly in the 50’s and 60’s society, but sitcoms needed to adapt to fit their society, as time progressed, more important issues showed up in the shows, and as the US became more diverse so did the sitcoms. Today suburban sitcoms couldn’t be more different. As society became more diverse, more sitcoms were made to cater to the new audience.

With the changing generation the institutions built up the next ideal family, the Brady bunch. But with this family came some confronting circumstances for the typical family of the working class dad, stay at home mother and two children in their white picket fenced home. The institutions knew that everyone would not instantly connect this family, as they were not classified as a ‘normal’ family. Instead they were made up of two broken families coming together to create a new one. By the use of powerful propaganda techniques such as ad nauseam and emotional appeal the institutions were able to manipulated the audience into loving them.

Times have changed; the nuclear family is no longer the American ideal because family needs have changed since the 1950's. This American convention of a mother and father and their two children, were a template of films and early television as a depiction of the American family life. Now seen as archaic and cliché by today’s standards, but the idea is common throughout many of the first world nations in the world. This ideal was a vast departure from the past agrarian and pre industrial families, and was modeled and structured as the ‘American dream’ father working, mother maintaining the household and children molded to be simulacra of the parents. This portrayal was not the standard; many communities throughout America had a different

In his essay “Somehow Form a Family” Tony Early uses structure and tone to convey his use of television as an escape into an alternate reality and a way to mask his problems. In the years following his family’s purchase of the Zenith television, Early is faced with many challenges such as an absentee father, a loss of religion, a mental breakdown, and the loss of his sister. During all of these challenges television is there for him, promising him that life will get better.

In the 1960’s, it was common for families to spend their evenings around the television. They would enjoy the broadcast media of the age, while also enjoying each other’s company. This ritual became a cornerstone of American family life. Television featured white families living the American dream; something every American family aspired towards. Television was a vessel for entertainment, not for challenging the status quo, but this would soon change for the better.

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

They also repeat re-runs of these shows even today just like Pleasantville 'the TV show' is in the film. These sitcoms usually featured wholesome American families consisting of a father, mother and two children, a boy and a girl. Their lives were basically the same. The two children would grow up, get married and have children whilst the husband would go to work and the wife would stay at home.

Family sitcoms have been the most popular and positively influenced television shows watched since the 1900s to today. Many of these shows have consisted of African American, Caucasian, and Hispanic families who all play a role that we as watchers look up to or perceive as the right way to run our household. Over time there has been an addition to biracial shows and family role changes throughout these sitcoms. For example, now observing single parent homes, homosexual guardians and even the changing of social interaction has both positively and negatively impacted real families who are watching.

Program Concept Summary: Trust Issues is an original drama program that explores the struggles of a young woman, Erica Kane who lacks trust for everyone that she encounters. Erica lives in the fast pace city of New York. She resides in Manhattan which is in close proximity of her two siblings, Ian and Morgan. Erica’s main goal in life is to be successful. However, her issues with trust continuously block her from reaching new heights. Due to this issue, she endures turmoil within her limited number of relationships with her siblings, her friend, co-workers, and boyfriend. All of Erica’s encounters are revealed through flashbacks at her therapy

Establishing a strong sense of community was important; particularly after the years of war that had families torn apart. Moreover, people were looking to enjoy themselves and were willing to spend extra time and money on leisure activities. “By purchasing their detached suburban homes, the young couples of the middle class participated in the construction of a new community of values; in magazines, and on the airwaves they became cultural representatives of the ‘good life’”. (Spigel, 2001, pp.32) In addition, she says that those living in the suburbs secured a position of meaning in the public sphere as private landowners. (Spigel, 2001, pp. 32) This is important culturally because there was an emphasis on creating a distinction between the home space (private space) and the outside space (public space) in America in this decade. This connects to television’s unique ability to bring the spectator’s public world into a private space—an integral part of its rise to cultural significance. “In 1950, only 9 percent of American homes had a television set, by the end of that decade that figure rose to nearly 90 percent, and the average American watched at least five hours a day”. (Spigel, 2001, pp. 33) Connecting the public world into a private space stemmed bigger hopes for television. It hoped to overcome social unrest and to connect communities all