Ideology in Desperate Housewives

Ideology In Desperate Housewives Every day, the public is unknowingly exposed to countless ideological messages. They come from all around, but the media remains ideology’s primary agent. In places such as magazines, commercials, billboards, movies and television shows, one can find evidence of ideological messages. According to theologist Louis Althusser, ideology places individuals into a certain position in society by a process called interpellation, where a specific subject (or group of people) is called out, or hailed.Althusser claims that ideology does this in order to â€Å"help people to live their own conditions of existence, to perform their assigned tasks, but also to ‘bear’ their conditions. † An example of this can be found in television dramas aimed at American middle-aged women, as found on ABC or Lifetime. One potent example comes from the drama Desperate Housewives. This show may seem like a glorified soap opera, as it primarily depicts the lives of four dynamic homemakers living in the same cal-de-sac in suburbia.However, the show’s purpose is not solely to entertain, but also to hail its audience of middle-aged women by telling them what kind of behavior is acceptable for their role in society. In the episode â€Å"You Must Meet My Wife,† each housewife struggles with a personal conflict as their natural desires and tendencies conflict with the type of behavior expected of them as spouses and mothers. We see these discrepancies unfold as the characters are confronted by sexual temptation, marital infidelity, discontent with their husbands and gender roles regarding family finances.In the end, we will see ideological norms reinstated by these women resisting their true feelings in order to act â€Å"appropriately. † On the surface, Bree Van de Kamp looks like the ideal housewife. Her house is always spotless and she cooks gourmet delicacies for her family’s dinner every night. However, as the series progresses, we learn that there is a lot more to Bree (as there is to any person). In this episode, Bree is seduced by her much younger and very attractive contractor. Bree is single, so this is not a matter of infidelity, but of general sexual urges.The narrator explains that Bree was brought up traditionally, learning to hide and suppress her desires in order to be a â€Å"lady. † Therefore, Bree denies her urges because she recognizes that as a woman, society does not approve of her being sexually outgoing. This point is hit home when she fires her contractor so that she is not tempted by his company. She lies and tells him she is letting him go because he is doing a sloppy job, unable to admit to him (or anyone) that she is having fantasies about him.Bree’s display of â€Å"weakness† makes the plot relatable and entertaining to the audience, since it is made up primarily of middle-aged women who feel the same pressure to be almost inhuman sexually . Ironically, that pressure is being reinforced by the ideological lesson that this episode teaches. Gabrielle Solis profiles a different kind of housewife. Her conflict arises when a nurse informs her that her daughter’s blood type indicates that she could not possibly be the child of Gabby and her husband, Carlos.Gauging Gabby’s reaction, the nurse assumes that the child must not belong to Carlos, and judgmentally implies that Gabby was unfaithful. The nurses actions are direct proof of the ideological message: if a housewife cheats on her husband, she loses worth. Panicking, Gabby concludes that she must have cheated on Carlos during a weekend away with her girlfriends when she was blackout drunk. Several ideological violations arise here. First, her role as a housewife does not permit weekends away with her friends where she gets wildly intoxicated. Second, cheating on your husband is of the utmost offense.Although women now have equal rights to match their equal c apabilities, our society is still predominantly patriarchal. Gabby pays for her indiscretions in this episode. Scared and deeply ashamed, she must deal with her overwhelming guilt. Her struggle reinforces ideological norms, teaching her (and consequently, the audience) that she should have been home with her family rather than out for a fun weekend with her friends. It turns out to have been all a mistake, and Gabby was not unfaithful, however her ideological lesson was learned the hard way.Yet another ideological message is presented through the life of Lynette Scavo. Strong, smart and opinionated, Lynette is the feminist who equates to (if not exceeds) her husband in most areas. However, she is not immune to the ideological restraints of being a housewife either. In this episode, her husband Tom is diagnosed with Post Part-um Depression due to the recent birth of their daughter. There is a comical quality to this, as Post Part-um Depression is mostly known as a disease for women. This works to make Tom look weak, while Lynette is exhausted taking care of the house and the kids.She laughs at Tom’s diagnosis, and he becomes offended, stating that she is always too critical. Lynette’s friend Renee becomes involved, telling Lynette that she needs to â€Å"demonstrate her abilities as a wife† and make it up to Tom. Renee’s character provides insight to the ideological belief that wives should be supportive and nurturing towards their husbands, even if it means sacrificing their own comfort or opinions. In the end, Lynette apologizes and listens to Tom complain for hours, just as a proper housewife is expected to do.The domestic role of women is reinstated again through Susan Delfino’s storyline. Unlike Bree and Gabby, Susan lives more of a working class lifestyle, and recently work has been slow for her husband Mike. Tight on money, Susan decides to pick up another job to supplement her income as a teacher. She does this by agre eing to do housekeeping in lingerie for a live-feed stream on the internet. Although this side-job is harmless and proving to be quite profitable, ideology tells her (and consequently, the audience) that this job is something she should be ashamed of.She lies to Mike and tells him she’s been selling homemade jewelry (more of a â€Å"lady-like† hobby) for extra money. It might make sense if Susan felt ashamed because the job might be degrading the sanctity of her body, but that is not the reason. She lies to Mike because if he knew she was using her body to make extra money for them, he might be embarrassed, upset, or even angry. As the ideology of a housewife maintains, a husband should be the main source of finances and his wife should keep him comfortable and happy. Susan breaks these rules, and it burdens her with guilt throughout the episode.She should not be ashamed to be making money in a time where finances are low, but since society does not deem it appropriate , Susan sacrifices her good conscience to be a good housewife. In conclusion, Desperate Housewives reinforces ideological norms of middle-aged women through every main character in the show. The audience might think they are only being entertained for an hour, but what they take away from it is so much deeper. They are impressed with the ideology that women of a certain aged should act, talk, and feel this way. The audience learns lessons through the characters.This particular episode taught us that fulfilling your role as a housewife is of the utmost importance, even if it means sacrificing your natural desires, freedoms, opinions, or capabilities. Desperate Housewives is not the first television show to promote this ideology. Throughout history, the ideal housewife has been depicted as static, obedient, asexual, and sometimes seemingly inhuman. However, a show centered on such a character would be dull. So Desperate Housewives takes some liberties, letting the characters run rampa nt and make mistakes, only to recoil back into their rightful places inside of their homes on Wisteria Lane.

The Cuban Missile crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Cuban Missile crisis - Essay Example In an attempt for the Soviet Union to gain control of Cuba, they took some missiles to Cuba. This formed the basis of bargaining power. Their intention was not for the missiles to be in Cuban Island permanently. This was to create fear in the United States who thought that the Island had been taken over by the communist (Gabrielle 34). The missiles were to boost the Russian military that was overwhelmed by that of the capitalist.The use of missiles was greatly condemned at the time. This was one of the strategies for enhancing the world peace. The missiles that were taken to Cuba were a trap for the United States. The communist believed that if the capitalist would have discovered the missiles it would lead them to attack Cuba (Gabrielle 14). This would have facilitated retaliatory attacks from the Russians.Thus; the United States was justified to attack Cuba in the missile crisis so as a means of taking measures for enhancing world peace.Retaining Cuba as a trading partner was also very useful for the United States of America. They never wanted any countries to be an obstacle for them especially in having an influence over their trade partners (Gabrielle 54). Their attempts to control the Cuban Island as also being considered from the perspective of trade partners. In summary, the united states were reluctant to have attacks on the Island and get rid of the missiles because the Soviet soldiers were the ones who were in control of the missiles. This would have led to Great War in the region.

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

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Reading reflection 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reading reflection 3 - Essay Example I agree with the author of the essay â€Å"Images of Women† in the sense that there truly are a number of reasons as to why these traditional roles for women continue to be perpetuated and exist today. Our culture and traditions as a people, which are documented in various ways such as the bible, have created and promoted the weaker sex version of women for as long as time has existed. For the strong willed and independent woman of today who sometimes have to deal with old school beliefs and traditionalists in the workplace, that has become a real challenge to overcome. I believe that the images of women as we see it today, can be directly connected to the modern feminist movement. Women as a gender have had decades of female empowerment stances to refer to and be influence by in their efforts to have themselves recognized as an equal to that of the male gender. The modern feminist keeps her femininity ate the forefront of her battle while also showing men that it is possible for a woman to have it all. The family, the career, the individual identity, and self-respect, are all elements that the previous promoters of the feminist movement have success fully managed to hand down to their counterparts from generation to generation, and generations to come. The agenda of woman's rights would not have been able to flourish without the support of the media, Bailey got that right. We all admit to and recognize the influence that various media have in our lives and point of view. Since the media has helped counter the effects of decades of female misconception by promoting them as equal to men in both ability and skill, men have come to learn to accept and respect women more as their equals rather than just being a gender in existence to serve their man, family, and society as members of a submissive gender. Struggling for the rights of a woman is directly related to the image that a woman carries of herself. But that image is oftentimes dictated by how society views them and their contributions on a larger scale. These days, women are at the forefront of most things related to our culture and traditions, so the mindset has changed in a significant way thus allowing for the emergence of a new image for women in the 21st century and beyond. Reflection on Kimmel's â€Å"Masculinity as Homophobia† When one hears the term â€Å"masculinity†, images of Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Sylvester Stallone, the like come to mind. They are the images of masculinity is today's world. These are the men who are emulated and admired by their fellow men because of who they are and what they have become. With those images in mind, it becomes easier to understand why the term â€Å"homophobia† cannot be used in the same sentence as masculinity. Yet Kimmel effectively does so in his essay. Just like Kimmel, I too have a personal belief that homophobia came to exist because of the way society viewed women as the weaker sex during significant eras of our history as a people. Men are looked upon unkindly when they prove to be weak at a certain gender based undertaking, or if they fail to accomplish a task that their counterparts could have completed as well. Homophobia is not a word that should only be used to define fear of a man who is attracted to the same gender. After reading the essay of Kimmel, I have come to understand that

Ink Painting - Lingnan School of Painting Essay

Ink Painting - Lingnan School of Painting - Essay Example The paper "Ink Painting - Lingnan School of Painting" analyzes how the Lingnan School of Painting contributed to the innovations of the traditional Chinese ink painting, and how it influenced the traditional Chinese ink painting; what were the dissatisfactions articulated by the emerging Lingnan School; how the Lingnan style distinguished itself, in both their underlying philosophy and the art through which they expressed it; and in what direction(s) has the Lingnan school led, in its influence on Chinese ink painting. There were a number of defining characteristics of traditional Chinese ink painting, prior to the emergence of the Lingnan School. These defining characteristic might be arranged into the categories. With respect to the audience, traditional Chinese ink paintings were not created for common people or for a mass audience, but were generally privately-commissioned and intended for an elite audience only. Because the usual form of the painting included calligraphy and poe try, as well as painting and signets, it was done by educated scholars, for whom it was their esoteric passion. As such, the traditional Chinese ink paintings were often too lofty to comprehend. For this reason, they had a limited appeal, though very beautiful. The painter was, in a mystic way, the subject of his/her own painting, whether the apparent subject was landscape, flowers, or animals. The painting expressed the sentiment of the painter, but it was more intimate than that. The painting expressed the personality.... It can be understood that all painting, by artists, should develop their skills. Traditional Chinese ink painting was understood to be more profound than this. The painter painted and developed intellectually and spiritually. It was about the deepest aspects of being and the sensitivity of consciousness 5. Landscape paintings, for example, were lovely and set a mood. More than that, they communicated the emotion that the scholar-poet-painter experienced in that environment. Beyond that, the mountain or waterfall or other landscape setting shown, revealed the personality of the painter, for those who understood how to read the clues. It was not merely a painting for an audience, but it was an opportunity for the painter to reflect and develop personality and spirit. It was this painted high being-ness that the elite audience of traditional Chinese ink painting was looking for and paying for. In appreciating a painting, then, the audience appreciated Spirit and Consciousness. It was co nceptual, rather than visual 6. The subject of traditional Chinese ink painting was always painted in an abstract manner. From the 10th century to the 20th, it was thought that realism somehow cheapened the aesthetics of a painting. So, Chinese traditional ink painting was always expressionist, and not realist, and eventually even the selected subject itself was abstract. For example, a favorite subject of traditional Chinese ink painting, by the nineteenth century, was Taoist and Buddhist teachings. It is no wonder that the subjects of the paintings, for 800 years, were considered by later painters to be aloof from worldly affairs 7. The subjects painted were human figures, landscapes, flowers and birds. These three categories, however, are more

Baseball Management Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Baseball Management Project - Essay Example Based on the result, recommendations are drawn that will help the committee to make baseball better while meeting the aspirations of the involved stakeholders. It has been argued that the money one earns has a bearing to both the players of baseball as well as business owners. The Analysis of Variance (Appendix A) clearly depicts that when the attendance is equal to greater than three million, players enjoy higher salaries when compared to a situation where the fans are less than two million. However, it is worth noting that there was no significant differences in salaries when the attendance was from two million to three million and three million and above. For the 2002 season, a player would be likely to enjoy higher pay when there are over two million fans. As players enjoy higher salaries, business owners will realize increased profits. This attributed to the fact that when there are more fans, business thrive for instance more tickets are sold, there is increase in merchandise being sold as well as food stuff. In any game usually characterized with competition, there are two main aspects; winning and losing. Ideally, winning competition is very significant in survival of any business entity. In this case, a baseball team that wins will eventually meet the aspirations of players, coaches, support staff to mention but a few. ANOVA results in appendix B indicates that teams are more likely to win if there is a big number of fans attending. This can be attributed to the moral support they receive from their fans. The findings depicts that at 0.05 level of significance, higher fans attendance of three million and above largely influences team wins. For this reason, it would be rational for business owners to encourage more fans to attend in order for them to enjoy the related profits which will be associated with wins. In baseball, it is always important to ensure that there are

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POWER,AUTHORITY, AND INFLUENCE (CASE) - Essay Example Although man is inherently strong, a woman's ability to apply her instincts in times of conflict could be an advantage when in the process of decision making. In fact, the women of this generation are more sophisticated and this is proven by their existence as top officials in organizations with different specializations. The â€Å"Woman and Men, Work and Power† article talks about women empowerment at work. It features some women and their different stories of success in their chosen careers. In spite of the many obstacles and criticisms, they have managed to stay focused and goal-oriented. They are given the privilege to exercise authority in their respected organizations that is through the legitimate power that is vested to them. A top position in a company would give one the legitimate power, the formal power to exercise authority (Heinemann, 2008, p. 35). They are determined leaders but are distinguished by their opposing belief when it comes to the method and principles that they consider in their practice of power and on how they use this power to influence those who are under them.