Running head: EVOLUTION OF ‘THE MOTHER’ 1 The Evolution of ‘The Mother’ on Television: From the Kitchen to the Boardroom Matthew Searfoss Email:
[email protected] Ramapo College of New Jersey School of Contemporary Arts 505 Ramapo Valley Road Mahwah, NJ 07430 Paper submitted to Ramapo College Honors Program as Senior Project Spring 2017 EVOLUTION OF ‘THE MOTHER’ 2 Abstract This project will look at the evolution of “the mother” and motherhood on TV from the 1950s- Present Day. The research began by casting a wide net in order to find a wide variety of sources highlighting concepts relating to how the views of motherhood has shifted over time and how the shift has been seen on television. Through the entirety of this project, I was able to yield two primary data sets data sets: first off being focus group sessions with mothers to gain their view on the subject and which TV mothers they identify/ied with, and secondly my own rhetorical/narrative analysis of the characters and shows they highlight. Ultimately, the research discovered that despite the amount of progress that has been made in improving the way mothers are represented on popular television series, many of the modern day portrayals continue to cling to a gender binary and restrictive gender norms which place the mother at the beck and call of her husband and children. Keywords: Motherhood, Female representation, Television, Gender EVOLUTION OF ‘THE MOTHER’ 3 Rationale/Introduction In this research project, I explored the way that mothers are represented in media, specifically on television as well as how they are viewed in society.