Modern_Family_Analysis

Claire and Phil Dunphy’s family is a portrayal of a typical American nuclear family where Phil, the father, is a renowned housing-salesman and Claire is a housewife who takes care of their three children- Haley, Alex, and Luke. However, there is a change in traditional gender status. Unlike the traditional impression of fathers being thought of as the head of the household, executing authority and making the decisions, Claire seems to be the one wearing the pants in the family as she is stricter with the children, have a more serious demeanour in maintaining order in the family. Nevertheless, Phil still does his part as the sole breadwinner of the household (the man’s job). The three children each portrays the challenges faced by adolescents and teenagers everyday and how while they are caught up with dating (Haley), studying extremely hard like a typical Singaporean scholar (Alex) and fantasying about future aspirations (Luke), they never fail to fall back on family support and comfort. This also signifies the importance of the family as a social unit and cornerstone.  Mitchell Pritchet and Cameron Tucker is the epitome of a typical homosexual family who has adopted a Vietnamese child, lily. The adoption of foreign children is reflective of the current trend in America, probably popularised by American celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, Madonna, Katherine Heigl just to name a few. More importantly, gay couples Neil Patrick Harris and his partner David Burtka and Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish are celebrities who have children via surrogate. As several American states have legalised same sex marriage and have legal adoption/surrogate-reproduction granted to homosexual couples, Mitchell and Cameron are representation of these minorities who, regardless of their sexual orientation desire the experience of parenthood. Coming out of the closet is never easy for anyone (regardless of nationality, race or ethnicity). Even liberal America, Jay (Mitchell’s father) despised his son for being gay and gave little recognition to his achievements even though he is a lawyer. Similarly, Cameron, who appears more flamboyant, was also looked down upon by his own father and is a laughing stock to other as he takes on “feminine” task of child rearing, cooking and sewing and organising parties. The struggles of social stigmas towards gay couples were also reflected in the recent episodes when Mitchell and Cameron tried to enrol their daughter into pre-school. Moreover, in today’s society, homosexual adoptions have sparked a widespread debate about the child’s social and mental upbringing and wellbeing.  Lastly, Jay Pritchet portrays a typical wealthy old man who is married to a young and voluptuous Columbian wife, Gloria. This story may seem familiar, as it is closer to home, as we can observe the trend of many middle-aged or old-aged man having younger wives from Vietnam or China. However, unlike the many Singapore stories of older man being cheated of their money and assets by their younger wives/lovers, Jay and Gloria are happily married out of love. Jay, a divorcee, marries Gloria, a divorcee herself who brings along her son, Manny into her new marriage life. This is a typical example of a blended/ non-traditional family. Conversely, Jay and Gloria’s relationship forms another perspective of the current trend in America where having a cougar relationship and a blended family may seem common. A cougar relationship is when an older woman dates/marries a younger man. This is example is exemplified by the then couple Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher who’s age is 16years younger than his wife.