The Modern Family

While sitcoms have always sought to ease our stress and provide light comic relief through awkward situations and events, they can also be a commentary on the values of the time. 1950's comedies portrayed a strong, knowledgeable father figure, a docile, selfless wife, and respectful children. These shows expressed the values of '50s and the idea of what it meant to be a family in that era. ABC's new sitcom, "Modern Family", may one day become the authority of what it meant to be a family in 2010. And the ideas of what constitutes a family now differ a lot from those in years past.

First and foremost, the idea of family portrayed in "Modern Family" is incredibly broad and diverse. In the '50s a family was strictly a heterosexual male married to a heterosexual female with their biological children. In the three families in "Modern Family" you have a "traditional family", a gay couple with an adopted, asian baby, and a old man living with his (much) younger wife and stepson. The father figures in two of the families try to portray some of the ideals of a "traditional" father. Phil likes to think of himself as a funny guy who always has a pearl of wisdom for every situation, but as thing get bad in the episode "Game Changer" he regresses back to childhood memories and actions. Jay likes to think of himself as more intelligent and skilled in chess than his wife and stepson, but they are actually only let him win to keep him from throwing a fit. These shows represent very different family dynamics and realities than their 1950's counterparts. The parents are the bumbling idiots in these cases, and often hold differing views than their partners. The children are the ones who are usually right in most situations and have to deal with their parents' mistakes.

"Modern Family" portrays families as quite different than "Leave it to Beaver" does. In some ways its better. "Modern Family" acknowledges that the meaning of family is quite broad and diverse. It doesn't have to be a mom, a dad, and a couple of kids. It also shows extended families as very close, which is something that was unusual for '50's families. But in other ways its worse. For one the plot of "Game Changer" shows a world where happiness is dependent on what you own. And as unrealistic as the "family togetherness" was of "Leave it to Beaver" at least it's a better message than materialism. Whether other episodes of "Modern Family" will follow this trend of cobranding remains to be seen. But the fact of the matter is that the ideas of family portrayed in sitcoms in 2010 are much different than those of the '50's.

Works Cited:

Leave it to Beaver

Modern Family

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