Sitcom morality - Essay Example

A number of cultural trends that are taken for granted today had their genesis in the 1950s. It was a time when large suburban developments took root, education became a national priority and television was introduced to the American public. It was a very “buttoned down,” conservative era, known for its suppression of social movements, such as the ones fought for civil rights and counter-culture music. Both, however, exploded in the 1960s, becoming the calling cards of that decade. “Leave It to Beaver” portrayed an iconic family, headed by a typical suburban couple, Ward and June Cleaver.

Their two sons were Wally and his younger brother Theodore (Beaver). Presented from a child’s point of view, the show was filled with moral instruction and tips on the “proper” way to live one’s life. The value of a good education was a constant theme, reflecting the mores of the era. If anything, the family in “Married With Children” depicted the very opposite of the 1950s view, as the show consistently poked fun at conservative concepts of morality. Headed by Al and Peggy Bundy, with children Kelly and Bud, the sitcom openly mocked mainstream institutions like education, and became the very definition for the perceived immorality of the 1980s.

While the dissimilarities between the two sitcoms are legion, they were also alike in a number of ways. Although not nearly as supportive as the Cleavers, the Bundys were known for sticking together to deal with outside threats to the family, despite their incessant internal bickering. Although infidelity is certainly bandied about in “Married,” neither Al nor Peggy is ever unfaithful, something that would have been all but unthinkable in the iconic “Beaver” setting. While the concept of the nuclear family was on the upswing in the 1950s, by the ‘80s and ‘90s it was definitely under assault.

The proportion of traditional two-parent households declined significantly