Family Guy is a television sitcom that satirizes today's American society. The ideas of Lull and Johnson define our society as one of patriarchal and hegemonic beliefs. Family Guy animates our society through different characters and their interactions with each other on the show. The episode "Don't Make Me Over" consists of a few examples that portray hegemonic and patriarchal ideals.
One example of a hegemonic belief of the American society from this episode occurs right at the beginning. Meg and three of her friends are sitting at a lunch table while Craig Hoffman walks by. All four of the girls watch him walk by in awe; they are amazed by his gorgeous looks. All the girls have the same opinion of him; they are all assumed to be heterosexual. Heterosexuality is viewed as the dominant and "normal" sexuality in our society. It is looked down upon by the majority of America's society for anyone to be homosexual or even bisexual. The fact that all four girls agree that Craig is gorgeous is an example of inferential heterosexism. This idea of heterosexuality is instilled in everyone unnoticeably through television all the time.
Gender roles in our society are typical hegemonic and patriarchal beliefs of America. Family Guy portrays these gender ideals through Craig and Meg. Craig is the tough, rebellious guy wearing a leather jacket. This idea of a guy is stated by all the girls in the show to be "hot". He stays true to his gender by showing how masculine he is when Meg asks him out and he says "I don't date dudes". This statement takes the idea of gender roles further. Meg is a brunette with glasses and a simple fashion sense; she just wears jeans and a t-shirt, so, of course, Craig does not find her attractive. Later, Meg gets a makeover and is transformed into a blonde, "hot, white, jail bait ass". Then, Craig pursues her and even the popular hot girls at school ask her to join their crowd. Guys have to be masculine and rebellious to be attractive and girls have to be blonde and half-naked to be sexy.
An overt patriarchy example occurs through Peter Griffin. Meg is easily seduced by Jimmy Fallon at the Saturday Night Live show, and she is unknowingly being filmed. The footage of Jimmy and Meg together is aired on television. When Peter sees Meg being ridiculed on television, he proclaims, "It's time for me to fulfill my fatherly duty". This statement exemplifies the idea that fathers should protect and take care of their families. They are the dominant of the two parents. It is the responsibility of the father to lead his family to success, happiness and safety.
Race is another issue raised in this episode of Family Guy. Throughout the whole episode there are only a handful of black people. The vast majority of the people are white. White people are seen to be the dominant race in our society. The one black guy amongst Peter's friends is even depicted to be slow. The way he talks implies that he is uneducated. Furthermore, Brian, who represents a "typical" white male, starts to bark viciously whenever Dr. Diddy, the family's music producer, walks in the room. Brian's actions seem to be racist because Dr. Diddy is depicted as a black man who wears baggy clothing and plenty of bling. The episode ends with Brian turning off the tv when Showtime at the Apollo comes on, a black show. Brian then tells the audience that he is not racist just because he turned the tv off when that particular show came on.
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Family Guy. “Don’t Make Me Over.”
Season 4, Volume Three, Disc One, DVD. 6/5/05
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation: Beverly Hills, CA. 2005.
One example of a hegemonic belief of the American society from this episode occurs right at the beginning. Meg and three of her friends are sitting at a lunch table while Craig Hoffman walks by. All four of the girls watch him walk by in awe; they are amazed by his gorgeous looks. All the girls have the same opinion of him; they are all assumed to be heterosexual. Heterosexuality is viewed as the dominant and "normal" sexuality in our society. It is looked down upon by the majority of America's society for anyone to be homosexual or even bisexual. The fact that all four girls agree that Craig is gorgeous is an example of inferential heterosexism. This idea of heterosexuality is instilled in everyone unnoticeably through television all the time.
Gender roles in our society are typical hegemonic and patriarchal beliefs of America. Family Guy portrays these gender ideals through Craig and Meg. Craig is the tough, rebellious guy wearing a leather jacket. This idea of a guy is stated by all the girls in the show to be "hot". He stays true to his gender by showing how masculine he is when Meg asks him out and he says "I don't date dudes". This statement takes the idea of gender roles further. Meg is a brunette with glasses and a simple fashion sense; she just wears jeans and a t-shirt, so, of course, Craig does not find her attractive. Later, Meg gets a makeover and is transformed into a blonde, "hot, white, jail bait ass". Then, Craig pursues her and even the popular hot girls at school ask her to join their crowd. Guys have to be masculine and rebellious to be attractive and girls have to be blonde and half-naked to be sexy.
An overt patriarchy example occurs through Peter Griffin. Meg is easily seduced by Jimmy Fallon at the Saturday Night Live show, and she is unknowingly being filmed. The footage of Jimmy and Meg together is aired on television. When Peter sees Meg being ridiculed on television, he proclaims, "It's time for me to fulfill my fatherly duty". This statement exemplifies the idea that fathers should protect and take care of their families. They are the dominant of the two parents. It is the responsibility of the father to lead his family to success, happiness and safety.
Race is another issue raised in this episode of Family Guy. Throughout the whole episode there are only a handful of black people. The vast majority of the people are white. White people are seen to be the dominant race in our society. The one black guy amongst Peter's friends is even depicted to be slow. The way he talks implies that he is uneducated. Furthermore, Brian, who represents a "typical" white male, starts to bark viciously whenever Dr. Diddy, the family's music producer, walks in the room. Brian's actions seem to be racist because Dr. Diddy is depicted as a black man who wears baggy clothing and plenty of bling. The episode ends with Brian turning off the tv when Showtime at the Apollo comes on, a black show. Brian then tells the audience that he is not racist just because he turned the tv off when that particular show came on.
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Family Guy. “Don’t Make Me Over.”
Season 4, Volume Three, Disc One, DVD. 6/5/05
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation: Beverly Hills, CA. 2005.
