Did television empower women? The introduction of television and the changing status of women in the 1950s (original) (raw)
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This article considers the responses of women, many of whom describe themselves as housewives, in the 1949 Mass Observation Television Directive, in order to interrogate some of the broader assumptions around television’s relationship with ‘the housewife’ as key to its success. Against the backcloth of social histories revising ideas about gender, modernity and suburbia in the post-war period, this article considers some of the ways in which initial reluctance towards television was recorded and negotiated. It presents three themes around tensions between home and leisure, the domestication of entertainment and ‘going out’, and the appreciation of particular genre, which suggest that the adoption of television as mass entertainment by women might not have been as smooth a process as we have come to understand.
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Course Description: The purpose of this course is to examine the representation of women on American television through the application of feminist and media theories. The readings are complex and thought-provoking with each week focusing on a particular theme relating to women's identity as it is constructed by the media. A foundational understanding of feminism will help you, though it is not required. Television Analysis is, however, a prerequisite as a fundamental knowledge of television studies is a necessary basis for any form of television criticism. Course Objectives: • Understand and examine the following concepts/themes: feminism, post-feminism, narrative, representation of women, ideology, hegemony, consumerism, cultural studies • Become familiar with common analytic frames for the study of women's representation in the media. • Examine the relationship between television and culture while investigating gender dynamics, the family structure, heteronormativity and the role it plays in the construction of cultural identity. • Speculate on the impact of and source for popular portrayals of women on television and what they might be telling us about women's roles in society. • Contextualize images of women on television throughout American history. • It is my hope that each of you will further develop your critical thinking and critical writing skills through the various assignments and discussions throughout the course.
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