Gender in Teievision Sitcoms in the 1950S

Images of Dissent, Persistence of an Ideal: Gender in TeIevision Sitcoms in the 1950s. by Rachel S.M. Yates A thesis submitted to the Department of Kistory in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Queen's University Kingston, Ontario October, 1997 copyright 8 Rachel S.M. Yates, 1997 National Library Bib!iothèque nationale (*Iof Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Sewices services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, nie Wellington OttawaON KIAON4 Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Canada canada YœIr &? vmRifemnce Our dle Notre rEi18mUa The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la fome de microfichelfihn, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. ABSTRACT This study se& to expand the understanding of postwar gender codes through an exploration of the domestic ideal in television sitcoms of the era. Its sigdcance lies in the intersection of history with television studies and postwar social science perspectives. Analysis dows for an exploration of tensions between contemporary conceptions of gender within the domestic family ideai and their depiction in television sitcoms of the era. The ubiquity of the domestic famiiy's sitcom image in the postwar era reflected the nation's cold war insecurity and suggested the emergence of domestic ideology as a buffer against any perceived dangerous social forces. This study reveals the way in which television culture in the 1950s wove a "golden age" myth of this Amencan family through its ideaiiiation of family Ise. Whiie extensively exploring the domestic ideai of gender in the 1950s, careful attention has been given to dissent ffom this ideal. Images of masculinity and femininity in 1950s sitcoms suggest a mutability of the conventional postwar domestic ideal. While enforcing the domestic ideal gender codes in television sitcoms of the era nonetheless revealed a more complex and diverse reading of the postwar gender map. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 1 wouid like to thank the many people who had input into this thesis writing process. It has been a lengthy and chdlenging process in which 1 had the very good fortune to have so many willing assistants and for which 1 am sincerely grateful. First 1 would like to acknowledge the intellectual and editorial guidance of rny two supervisors, Dr. Karen Dubinsky and Dr. Geoff Smith. They have, in so many ways, irnproved both my understanding of the issues and the quaiity of the finished product. I'd also like to thank Yvonne who has facilitated rny travel through the Queen's history graduate program with her efficiency and helpfulness in al1 matters- 1 would also like to thank my family and fnends for their emotional support and concrete assistance. Nancy, thanks for the continued assistance with computer graphics. Josephine, thanks for living with me through this time. Eric, thanks for your continued encouragement. Fm& Bill thanks for your generous and tireless offer of laser printing. Paul thanks for your continued interest. And finally, Mom Br Dad thanks for your unfailing support, editorial assistance and logistical coordination in pushing this through to completion. Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1 Ove~ew:The 1950s in Perspective Literature Review Chapter II Television as Society: Images of Family and the TV Cornmunity Creation of a Comrnon Culture The Sitcom Genre The EIectronic Communie Eariy Sitcom Construction The Role of the Family in 1950s Sitcoms Homogeneity in 1950s Sitcoms Consumption & Homogeneity Chapter III Conceptions of Gender Ui the 1950s Gender Roles - All &the Family Men and Women - Becoming Equal Marriage - A Mode1 of Companionship Femininity The 'Wornan Question" Masculinity Confonnity and Alienation 1s There a Father in the House Chapter IV Gender in Television: The Masculine Malaise Fatherhood in 1950s Sitcom America Centrality of Class in Imaging Fatherhood Working-Class Masculinity Middle-CIass Masculinity Contested Masculinity Movie Masculinity Chapter V Gender in Television: The Ferninine Mystique? The Good Cornpanion Smail Victories and Everyday Rebellions Contested Terrain Outrageous Acts - The Role of Humour Women as Centrai Characters Strong Women - Bumbling Men Working Women in TV Sitcoms Reality of Television Women Image and Reality Women at Work Educating the Young Reading the [mage Conclusion Appendix 1 -- Television Sitcoms of the 1950s Bibliography Introduction "Contraiy to popular belief, Lave it to Beaver was not a documenta~y."' While television sitcoms in the 1950s2 reflected the domestic ideal of "the Arnerican way of Me," they failed to reflect the diversity of the American experience. Sitcom depictions of the domestic ideal contributed to sex-role expectation and the realignment of belief systems in the postwar decade through the ubiquity of the television image. This renewed focus on the primacy of the domestic realm struck at the very core of the Arnerican national self-image. This study explores the tension between contemporary conceptions of gender within the domestic family ideal and their depiction in sitcoms of the era. The 1950s was not a du1 decade of conformity and domestic bliss. Marked changes were being wrought in the social, cultural and political fabric of the Arnencan nation. The extent to which gender roles shared in this upheaval was revealed in the sometimes paradoxical and conûicting gender-encoded messages depicted in the television sitcom images of the era. A superficial reading of the 1950s gender map would suggea ove~rhelmingconformity to the domestic ideal; however, a closer reading of the image reveals several "cracks in the picture window." Indeed, seeds of discontent emerged fiom ' Stephanie Coontz, nie lVuy Ive Nwer Were: American Families und the iVostalgia Trop. (New York: Basic Books, 1992). p.29. ' Though this study focuses on the decade ofthe f~esand we tend to examine the twentieth century in temof deades. the domestic ideal which is traditionally identified with this era really spans from the iate 1940s to the mid- 1960s. Introduction 2 the conflicting images of domesticity reflected in the 1950s sitcoms which in the turbulent decade which followed erupted into public discord. The concept of the farnily is of central importance to any reading of 1950s television sitcoms. The majority focused on nuclear famiy units or individuais seeking its secunty and happiness. The ubiquity of this domestic image on television reflected the structural importance of the family in the postwar atornic age, as a safe haven in an uncertain world.' The centrdity of the Arnencan family reflected the nation's cold war insecurity and domestic ideology emerged as a buffer against any perceived dangerous social forces. This focus was reflected in the rhetonc of the "Kitchen ~ebate"~which confïrmed the importance of the Amencan family as a symbol of American cold war supenotïty, as well as establishing the hegemony of the middle-class consumer ethos within the Arnencan national identity. This examination of 1950s television culture, exposes the way in which the idealized family image depicted in sitcoms of the era wove a "golden age" mythos of American family life. The Cleavers, the Andersons and the Nelsons constructed an ideal "Happy Days" image of 1950s life which flattened the divenity of experience and suppressed the social anxiety which lay below the surface. Television, in its construction of a nostdgic ideal, has structured our collective memory. Its power to do so is at the center of my interest in this topic. Elaine Tyler May. Homeward Bound: American FarniIies in the Cold lVar Em (New York: Basic Books, 1988). p. 3. The term. which will be e.qlored later, refers to the 1959 debate behveen Khrushchev and Nixon in which American Cold War superionty \\las framed in terms of domestic arrangements and consumer wds- Introduction 3 The first chapter includes a brief oveMew of political, social and cultural trends in 1950s Arnerican Me, as weli as a review of the fiterature mined for this study. The second chapter explores the emergence of television, providing background to the powerful medium's sitcorn image. It also explores the increasing homogeneity of the farnily image within the sitcom context. The third chapter examines the contemporary sociological literature and social commentary in order to reveal trends in thuiking on gender and family which structure the contextual framework for a later examination of mascuiinity and femininity in the sitcom image. The last two chapters form the essence of the study with an exploration of masculinity and femininity in the sitcom image and the paradoxes inherent in their depiction. The centrality of the domestic ideal to an examination of gender in 1950s sitcoms is incontrovertible; however, 1 have consistently attempted to reveal any divergence, confusion or diversity in these gender-role definitions.

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