S.'s status as a nation of immigrants is not something that should be consigned to its past. However, everyone will be able to appreciate the experience of being in a family, the tensions of family roles, and the discrepancy between the real and the ideal in familes.
The sitcom, although it is very family-focused, will also feature two single mothers as the main protagonists. The financial and emotional struggles of the women will not be shied away from, although there will be an ultimately positive and affirming message about the nature of familial love to sustain people through difficult times. Even when families are not 'conventional' they can still be supportive and loving. This can also be seen in shows such as Modern Family, which feature a blended cast of people of different ethnicities and sexualities.
Even the Simpsons can be seen as an example of how the traditional family can be used to tackle contemporary issues in a bracing, unusual, yet ultimately affirmative fashion. The Simpsons are a conventional family of a mother, father, brother, and two sisters, but even though they often exhibit conventional gender and age dynamics (the father tries to control the mother, the children vie for parental attention), the surreal universe of the story highlights unconventional aspects of what it means to be in an American family.
However, unlike Modern Family and the Simpsons, the focus in Running Water is on the Latino experience and is told from the perspective of Latinos. There is also a very strong female, feminist focus in the sitcom upon the specific struggles of women trying to make their way in the world alone. Martha and Ivette come from a very patriarchal culture, and the difficulties of negotiating their own independence, raising sons, and pursuing relationships with men will also feature prominently.
The focus upon the clash of the personalities of the two women and its relationship-directed focus also make it uniquely...
Nontraditional families in America have seen a remarkable increase in numbers over the past twenty years. The traditional family unit depicted in sitcoms on television and spoken about in the literature still dominates the social scene but in actual numbers it exists in only about twenty-five percent of the nation's households. Strangely, discussions regarding this magical unit still occupy the thoughts and arguments of politicians, preachers and conservative activists as
One study revealed Berry (2003) found that young children's retention of emotional information was greater in children viewing family sitcom than those who just watch an animated films or moppet program. This result justifies the fact that children are more likely to learn more due to the presence of human characters in family sitcoms as they find these characters more close to the reality than either cartoon or Muppet
Television's depiction of families is crucial, as it is a means to understanding family; it displays families' appearance, the ideal family, the way spouses must behave, the manner of resolution of problems within, and by, a family, and the manner in which parents must behave towards their children. A majority of studies on the matter have concentrated on depicting vivid family structure descriptions, the existence of diverse representations of family,
TV in the modern world forms a crucial part in affecting societal perception on a number of issues. One of these issues is the family. The traditional family in the American context is closely knit and held around Christian norms. This means two parents and kids born within the marriage. This is commonly referred to as the societal norm format (sitcom), and it is common in the majority of shows.
What kind of neighborhood is it in? Lower middle class apartment complex What is its structure? Constantly bustling, full of many cultures and ethnicities, although Cuban-Americans predominate. What does it look like? Clean, functional, but very impersonal-looking apartment blocks. What does it contain? Mainly recent Cuban immigrants What is its aesthetic? The aesthetic is very functional, since the area is mainly dominated by recent immigrants coming from underdeveloped countries to the United States. What does it say about the characters
Parenting styles vary, and include authoritarian, authoritative, permissive, and harmonious styles. All of these styles are relatively common, varying depending on culture and individual differences. Television shows reveal different parenting styles. For example, on the sitcom Modern Family, different parenting styles are evident. Gloria is occasionally authoritarian in her approach, but otherwise the parenting style evident in all the three different family units is harmonious. Harmonious parenting styles are superior
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