TV FAMILIES.   Term Paper ID:30595 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Compares and contrasts two sitcoms.... More...

6 Pages / 1350 Words 4 sources, 4 Citations, APA Format $24.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: Compares and contrasts two sitcoms. Examines the TV families of "The Jeffersons" and "The Hughleys." Compares similar episodes to analyze what has changed and what has stayed the same over the past 25 years. Basic premise and characters of both shows. Differing life styles portrayed on each. Topics based on societal changes. Paper Introduction: Introduction “The more things change, the more they stay the same,” is how the old saying goes. It has also been said that stereotypes start somewhere. This could not be more true than when applied to the concept of the family as perceived by the pop culture on television. Ever since the days of radio, families all over the United States have spent evenings listening or watching as a make-believe families either laughed or cried themselves through another episode. Through the years the “face” of these families have remained the same, yet many other basic assumptions have changed along the way. This paper will compare and contrast two of those TV families, “The Jeffersons” and “The Hughleys”, by comparing similar episodes to examine what has changed and what has stayed the same over the last 25 years. Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Weezy,while not the exact picture of the tame "Mammy" character seen in so manyshows in the past, is still old enough and heavy enough so that hersexuality is rarely an issue. His wife,Yvonne (Elise Neal), stays at home to care for the children and they haveno maid. He has already taken to spending money lavishly onhis college social life and his classes at school are suffering as aresult. This is something that hasn't changed in society.It has been shown how many people who achieve success often feel as if theywere "frauds" and fear that their success will be taken away from them atany moment. This paper will compare and contrast two of those TV families,"The Jeffersons" and "The Hughleys", by comparing similar episodes toexamine what has changed and what has stayed the same over the last 25years.The Jeffersons The "Jeffersons" premiered in 1975 on CBS as a spin-off of the series"All in the Family." The basic premise was that George Jefferson (ShermanHemsley), who had been one of Archie Bunker's neighbors in "All in theFamily", had become successful enough in his dry cleaning business to movehis family from Queens, New York, to a "deluxe apartment in the sky"(quoted in Internet Movie Database, 2 1) in Manhattan. It appears as if success is achieved at younger ages and morequickly, as opposed to slowly and later in life. His wife, Louise 'Weezy' MillsJefferson (Isabel Sanford) was depicted as levelheaded and open-minded.She often had to bail George out of the trouble that his words got himinto. The differences here demonstrate not only achange on how marriage is depicted on television, but also how black womenare depicted on television. Weezy finds a part-time job that George can't standand Yvonne ends up being offered a full-time position as a hospital fund-raiser. Ever since the days of radio,families all over the United States have spent evenings listening orwatching as a make-believe families either laughed or cried themselvesthrough another episode. D.L. When Weezy isn't working, she isn'tshown as doing much of anything else. There is one episode where George's bestfriend makes passes at her and another where they renew their wedding vows. Affectionbetween Yvonne and Darryl is shown in every episode and there are alsoseveral episodes that deal with the sexuality between Darryl and Yvonne.These include one two-parter where they renew their wedding vows (Yvonne'sfather is played by Sherman Hemsley), and another where they keep trying tofind time to get away for romantic evenings, but can't now that they havekids (TV GuideOnline, 2 1). Other things have not changed, however, such as theconcern with interracial relationships or the tendency for children ofnewly successful families to not understand how to spend money responsibly.The one thing that appears to remain strong is need for families to takecare of each other. LikeGeorge Jefferson, Darryl Hughley is an entrepreneur. They are Sydney (Ashley Monique Clark) and Michael (Dee JayDaniels). George's son, Lionel(Mike Evans), was an engineering major at a local college who dated, andeventually married, Jenny (Berlinda Tolbert), daughter of the Willis's.Tom (Franklin Cover) and Helen (Roxie Roker) Willis were neighbors of theJeffersons and also happened to be a biracial couple (Tom was white).George especially disliked them and there is an episode demonstrating thiswhere they all get locked in the bathroom together.The Hughleys "The Hughleys" premiered in 1998 on ABC (later moving to UPN) and thestory line is based on the stand up comedy of D.L. Also like George Jefferson, he happens tohave a tendency to be loud-mouthed, arrogant, stingy, and opinionated andoften has to get bailed out of trouble by his wife or friends. It should also be noted that where Weezy takes a part-timejob, Yvonne is offered a full-time career position, which also showcaseshow different the perceptions of women were then versus now. Darryl, because hischildren are younger, is able to actively participate in trying to teachthem the value of money. Weezy and Yvonne also both start out as "stay-at-home-moms", buteventually as children leave the show, or the characters grow up, they findother jobs to have. They do, however, have two children who are very young at adventof the show. She is young and ambitious in her own way, just asDarryl is in his. Both shows also deal with the problems that these families have inaccepting their new-found prosperity. Darryl appears to have made it earlier than Georgesince his children are still pre-school and grade-school age.Comparison Both the Jeffersons and the Hughleys are families of their era,however, "The Jeffersons" not only brought up issues relevant to its day,but some of those issues are still fresh today. George often treats Weezy as nothing more than a glorifiedhousekeeper, although he is upset when she decides to go out and get a jobbecause he thinks it looks bad on him. TV GuideOnline. Through the years the "face" of these familieshave remained the same, yet many other basic assumptions have changed alongthe way. These differences in the activities of the two womenunderscores how the perception of the stay-at-home mom has changed over thelast two years. "The Hughleys" are alsoseen as slightly edgy and forward looking in their own right. This is especially true when success has been reached quicklyor when it is achieved by a traditionally suppressed minority group.Conclusion As seen in the sitcoms "The Jeffersons" and "The Hughleys", the last25 years has seen a lot of change in society in general and in families inparticular. He has a friend, Milsap (John Henton) who gets him into and outof trouble. Yvonne on the other hand is young, pretty, and voluptuous. He owns a vendingcompany that has done well and he has recently moved his family from theinner city to the white suburbs. However, on the whole, their every day banter is depicted as the cynicalrepartee that exists between two people who have been married for too long. Available online at: http://www.imdb.com "The Jeffersons." (1975). (2 1). (2 1). Available online at: http://www.tvguide.com Hughley was once quoted assaying that the show is about 'somebody achieving the American Dream andnot being comfortable in it' (quoted in TV Guide Online, 2 1). On "The Hughleys", Darryl is afraidthat his kids will start taking money for granted and he wants his kids toappreciate their lifestyle, so he starts a temporary austerity program."The Jeffersons" has a similar episode, however Lionel is older than theHughley's children are. Sexuality is a topic thatis more openly discussed and affection is shown publicly more often than itwas in the past. He is also depicted asbeing stingy, but he usually meant well. Thiscould not be more true than when applied to the concept of the family asperceived by the pop culture on television. Internet Movie Database. It has also been said that stereotypes start somewhere. More women have career jobsthat they are committed to; they aren't just working until they getmarried. However,where George deals with his discomfort by being belligerent, cynical, andhostile towards the Willis', Darryl decides to do an ethnic pride campaignat home. Another comparison may be made in the roles that wives play. George was a typeof counterpart to Archie Bunker, in that he was arrogant, opinionated andthe things he said often got him into trouble. Because ofthis, there are several similar episodes between the two shows that may beused for comparison between the two life-styles. Introduction "The more things change, the more they stay the same," is how the oldsaying goes. Fewer women stay at home to take care of the children andfamilies usually have both parents working. Available onlineat: http://www.imdb.com "The Hughleys": Show synopsis and schedule guide. His neighbors are a white couple, Dave (Eric Allan Kramer) andSally (Marietta DePrima) Rogers that he gets along with most of the time ona conditional basis. Darryl is also upset when Yvonne considers her job, but it's morebecause he doesn't want change in his life, he wants to be able to comehome every day to dinner on the table because that is what he is used to.Yvonne, in contrast to Weezy, is depicted as a very busy soccer mom who isinvolved in the community, takes part in the car pools, and appears beforethe city council. References "The Hughleys." (1998). She stayed at home and didn't work, but was not always comfortablewith this new lifestyle as was shown in the first episode where Georgeinsists that she hire a maid, Florence (Marla Gibbs). Internet Movie Database. Whereas George was never really allowed to confront the Willis'with his problem, Darryl was allowed to actively take part in dealing withhis feelings. TV GuideOnline. Available online at: http://www.tvguide.com "The Jeffersons": Show synopsis and schedule guide. Both of these entrepreneurs show a tendency to be stingy and theyhave the age-old fear that what they have worked so hard to achieve theycould lose over night. Here the emphasis is less on what George can do, after all, hisson is a grown man, and more on how George reacts. For example, George has a problem interacting with the biracialneighbor couple, Tom and Helen, which is not unlike the problem that Darrylhas when his daughter, Sydney, has a crush on a white schoolmate. Hughley who plays thefather, Darryl Hughley, on the show. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

Many of our Papers can be Downloaded From This Site!

PLEASE READ THIS, IT IS IMPORTANT!

Office hours are Monday through Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). You may place orders for custom research over the phone during office hours. E-mail requests can be made to our graduate and undergraduate department any time, and will be reviewed during office hours. You may also contact customer service any time through e-mail, and we will review your message during business hours. A great many papers can be downloaded right from this site, but not all of them. If you would like to know if a particular paper is downloadable, just look in the description for: "Available for Internet Download: Y" or "Available for Internet Download: N" If you wish to purchase a paper which is NOT available for immediate download, you will need to make other shipping arrangements. Also, please be aware that these orders are processed Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). If you place your order after 4:45pm on Friday, it will not be processed until the following Monday morning. We charge $8 per page for all of our pre-written reports, plus shipping (and tax for California residents). However, the highest cost of any ONE report is $136, or 17 pages. Please, take a moment. Make sure you have chosen the report you want or need BEFORE you complete your order. If you are not sure, allow us to help you. We do not offer refunds or exchanges, so it is important for you to let us answer your questions during office hours. Reports which are e-mailed or downloaded are in Microsoft Word format. We are making more reports available for e-mail delivery faster than we can update our listings. Please call to check on the status of particular reports. There are many other shipping options which are listed on the Checkout page.