Hey,
I was just wondering what your views are on how gender is represented in Desperate Housewives; how different characters are portrayed and how some may suit a certain stereotype. For example:
Susan seems to follow the stereotype of a woman who has a failed love life, lacks maternal instinct and is generally unfortunate. Whereas Bree fits in with the stereotype of a woman who acts like a “housewife”, cleaning, cooking and supporting her family, yet this could be debatable as her actions on certain things make her subvert her own stereotype.
And of course, the representation of the male characters in the show.

I would really appreciate your opinions on this!

Thanks,
Emily

I disagree with your view on Susan.
Yes, she had a tough love life, but it certainly is not a failed one! She is married to Mike now, the man of her dreams ad the one she has wanted since the beginning!

Yes Bree is fairly stereotyped as a 'housewife' however she has somewhat changed since season 1. In season 1 she was a really stuck up, anal retentive woman with her classic hair flick that never moved. In later seasons I feel she has lost this, her hair now flows more and is much longer and we hardly ever see anymore as that obsessivly clean person she once was.

her hair now flows more and is much longer


ahahhahahah lmao

I agree with you, Emily.
Someone ask this on another thread and I put the same sort of thing.

i am also asking this sort of question for my media coursework, but i also need to find out what viewers think of the men in the programme aswell, as people only really talk about the women

i think that the women on the show are represented as normally women as u said and i think that they are stereotypical but over the top in everything they do, as Bree is a normall housewive who looks after her house and children but the way she does it and the way she looks is so perfect that its making the viewers of the show want such a perfect home and worry about being as perfect as bree.

There are times I am bothered by things said about Lynette that I consider anti feminist. She's constantly guilted into giving hubby his way when he whines and calls her emasculating when she expresses her own opinion. It seems like they can have legit 50 50 differences of opinion and if Lynette stands her ground she's a controlling shrew and other unflattering word only used against females and if Tom does he gets a that a boy for standing his ground. It is presented like Tom (as a man) has more right to be head of household than Lynette does, that he has more of a right to make the decisions (even though Lynette has been presented as more talented, smarter and more ambitious). She's painted as a control freak for making the final decisions in the household (never mind that the decisions are 90% of the time to tell Tom, "Yes, Dear-You're right. I'm sorry and we;ll do it your way."