Roles_Of_Women_In_Television

Roles Of Women In Television Throughout the history of television, the role of the housewife and mother has changed from a subservient woman to the more controlling, powerful, and dominant female portrayed in today’s culture. In early television, the 1950’s and 1960’s, the housewife or mother was always seen as submissive towards the more assertive father or husband. In Common Culture, Harry Waters explains in his article, “Life According to TV,” that males often got a deviation of roles, and females were usually playing the part of a mother, wife, or girlfriend. (Waters 167) As time progressed, that role was changed to a more authoritative and domineering woman who controlled a somewhat of a bumbling idiot of a husband. This is apparent in such sitcoms as “Father Knows Best,” “All in the Family,” and in more recent times in the animated series, “The Simpsons.” In the 1950’s and early 1960’s, the woman was always shown as the housewife who stayed home and took care of the children, and cooked and cleaned while the husband went to work. This is noticeable in the 50’s and early 60’s sitcom, “Father Knows Best.” While the husband and father, Jim, went husband, wife, housewife, family, while, home, father, archie, sitcom, edith, work, woman, something, jim, always, television, submissive, margaret, female, even, doesn’t, changed, towards, took, time, somewhat, sitcoms, shows, shown, role, perfect, one, mother, marge, knows