Modern Family is a popular primetime television show that airs Wednesday nights on ABC. This hit comedy presents the daily lifestyles of three separate but related families who reside in the suburbs of Los Angeles, California. The Dunphys are shown as the traditional white American family while the Pritchett-Tucker family are a homosexual couple with an adopted daughter named Lily. The Pritchetts are the last family who are an interracial couple with a large age gap. On the surface, this show seems to be one of the most diverse on television. However even with the different races and family structures portrayed, there is still evidence of unequal representation in casting, stereotypes, and gender roles.
There are a total of eleven main characters
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For example, in the traditional white american Dunphy family, there is Phil, his wife Claire, and their three children Alex, Haley and Luke. Phil is shown as the breadwinner of the household while Claire stays at home and cares for her house and children. This portrayal enhances the gender role that society and television has deemed upon women for centuries. This fabricated role is that women are inferior to men. However, there are instances when this gender role is reversed and Phil has to conform to Claire's wishes. In the episode that I watched, Phil must ask Claire for permission before he can decide whether their daughter’s boyfriend can move in with them. This is an example of how Modern Family steers away from the traditional role of women and focuses more towards a contemporary view. Also among this family there is a stereotype attributed to the daughter Haley. She is perceived as the stereotypical “white girl” because she is bubbly, loves shopping, and is obsessed with social …show more content…
At the beginning, there are stereotypical masculine and feminine homosexual traits attributed to Cam and Mitchell. Cam could be labeled as the more feminine one, as he is very sensitive, outgoing and colorful. Mitchell on the other hand is the source of income, and has a more rugged look to him. However, the show rises above these stereotypes by making Cam’s character the more athletic handyman and Mitchell a worrier and highly dependent on his husband. Another stereotype that is surpassed in this family is that men are incapable of serving as maternal figures. This couple has shown that men can be nurturing through the adoption of their daughter