Changing American Family

Changing of the American Family Throughout the years we have seen families change from time to time. Not just in the actual household, but also in the media. From the nineteen fifties to present time, we can relate to the families in the media. In the nineteen fifties everything seemed to be more relaxed but strict at the same time. However, through the changes in time families have become a bit more chaotic at times and less strict. The families within the media have changed in many ways in whether it being as simple as becoming less strict or whether or not the father being in total control of the household.

In the television sitcom Father Knows Best, everything seemed like a perfect family. The mother would stay at home and take care of the house and clean, while father would be at work and while the kids would be at school. The house would always be very clean and organized when the father and children would come home. The kids would never curse or back talk their parents due to respect. Every morning the family would sit together and eat a healthy breakfast and every evening the father and kids would come home to a dinner prepared for the family to eat together.

The ideal of the American family in the nineteen fifties was more conservative. The family actually did stuff together and bonded. A few decades later, the media is still changing in time. In the television sitcom The Cosby Show, everything still seems like the perfect family to live in just a little more laid back and less strict. The family would still do stuff together, just not as often. The children would go to school during the day while both parents had to be at their jobs to provide for their family. When the kids would get home from school they would do their homework and then do what they wanted to do.

Unlike in the sitcom Father Knows Best, the family did not always have breakfast together; it was more of a find what you want to eat and eat it ordeal. Each night the family would not necessarily have dinner together. In an episode we watched during class, a few of the children ruined a book of the fathers and so they made him dinner to try to make up for their wrong doing. The family had then eaten dinner without the mother and their brother. While comparing both shows and watching them both, you can see how the relationship between two American families have changed over a period of time even though it is in the media.

In present time, we can still see much growth in the media. The American family is not so conservative. In the television sitcom George Lopez, many things have changed in the media from Father Knows Best and The Cosby Show. The family in George Lopez was a more chaotic family. The children misbehaved often and the mother and father would tend to get into arguments at times. George would always try to catch his children getting in trouble when they misbehave, whether it is by confronting them straight on, or trying to be sneaky by investigating the situation and then punishing them later.

Usually at the end of every episode, it is always shown that George loves and cares deeply for his family. The article I am using to support with this essay is The American Family on Television: From Molly Goldberg to Bill Cosby written by Muriel G. Cantor. I felt most connected with this article because it relates to Bill Cosby and I am using The Cosby Show in my essay. This article is about the families within the media in comedy which all three television sitcoms I am using in this essay conduct with comedy. Comedy is one of the most popular choices to watch on television.

The first section of the article concentrates on the background for the family life as portrayed in televisions comedies. The second section concentrates more on Molly Goldberg from the television series in the nineteen forties and then relates to Bill Cosby. The primary focus is on how gender, race, and class have been portrayed over time and whether the messages, issues, and themes about love and sex have changed and in what ways. After analyzing television from the nineteen fifties to present time period, the article concludes by noting that the family is not always presented as the perfect family. Family members often make fun of each other; sometimes they deceive each other to get their way; and often interact by putting each other down” (Canter, 1991). Like in the sitcom George Lopez, the family is basically the place where one goes for support and when you need someone to be there for you. Your family will always be there to support and help solve your problems and care for you. Throughout the media we have seen in most television shows how much families can be supporting. We have also seen how the American families have changed over the decades.

In the nineteen fifties, the “father role” was being head of the household and the mother was to back him up with his every choice. If we were now to watch a television sitcom that was in the comedy genre, we would see how the mother does not sit back and let the father be head of the household. Most of the time the parenting role is equal between the mother and father now days. Sometimes the mother may be in charge of the household more than the father would be. I think if you were to watch television sitcoms throughout the decades then you will be able to identify how the American family has changed in time within the media. References

James, E. (Producer). (1954, October 3). Father Knows Best. [Television broadcast]. Burbank, CA: Warner Brothers Burbank Studios. Cosby, B. (Producer). (1984, September 20). The Cosby Show. [Television broadcast]. New York City, NY: Carsey – Warner Company. Lopez, G. (Producer). (2002, March 27). George Lopez. [Television broadcast]. Los Angeles, CA: Warner Bros. Television. Cantor, Muriel G. (1991). The american family on television: from molly goldberg to bill cosby. 22(2), Retrieved from http://proxy. library. iue. edu:2359/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=a6b2c5f6-1784-4b50-a2da-9bfef4ad923f%40sessionmgr104&vid=6&hid=107