Singlehood

I was thinking about the different TV shows I've watched in my lifetime and decided to look at them and how single men and women were portrayed. I found that there were both good and bad examples of them. Really throughout history it seems as woman were defined by their husbands/boyfriends, that they were in a kind of control by their partners. Women were the caretakers and housekeepers never pursuing their own ambitions, completely unselfish. Men took care of the family financially and didn't participate much in house keeping, in order to focus on their goals. Also growing up woman had a lot of pressure from family and even society to get married young, settle down and have a family, pursing their career wasn't really heard of for many women. Opposite for men, they could get married much older even after they've settled into their career.

As time has gone on things have changed to an extent, woman's rights, showing sexual liminality, Independence but in the media they are still highly portrayed as being dependent on men. Examples would be a show called Sex and the City, about 4 woman, one a columnist writing about sex and relationships. The show revolves around these career driven women in search for sex and the 'perfect relationship.' This show shows good and bad; the woman are going after their career hopes but there never seems to be a time when there not looking for Mr. Right. It puts off a portrayal that yes! women can have careers but where is their GUY, what do they have to do to satisfy them? One of my favorite shows, Grey's Anatomy, a show about a group of interns, one mainly Meredith Grey a very smart doctor trying to shay sharp in her career while juggling a crazy past history. I was very impressed by the women in the show who showed a great drive to get ahead in their career giving up other things and focusing on themselves. Even when a opportunity rose to go off with a man, majority of the time they were so excited about their career to think of something else. It was also one of the first few shows to have a lesbian couple out in the open following their hearts.

So there are pros and cons still in how women are portrayed but that separation is slowly opening. I only wonder if their will ever be a time where woman don't have the pressure from family and society,which is usually stimulated from the medias showing of women in need of men. Will it ever change or even switch roles? and if it does will it be accepted? Because we are almost conditioned to think that's the normal thing to do, so will there be a negative response?..