Desperate Housewives Analysis

After watching Work It in class and discussing the shared social meanings, impacts and effects, and reification of power relations, I applied the same ideas to another show I am familiar with. Desperate Housewives has many similar gender and class roles in its episodes.

The show is about life in suburbia. It seems like the picture-perfect lifestyle from a distance, but the plot is about the crime, secrets, and other problems the characters encounter. The theme of the show appears to be how much does one really knows about his or her neighbors.

The gender roles are obvious in the show. The women are generally housewives, while the husbands are doctors, lawyers, and businessmen. When the show starts, all the women are homemakers. Eventually Lynette goes back to her career in advertising, while Bree starts her own catering company.

The neighborhood is predominantly white. There is one family on Wisteria Lane who is Latino and happens to be the wealthiest family, the Solis family. Only one African American family moves to the lane from Chicago. I have noticed that the people who move to Wisteria Lane come from large cities, such as Chicago and New York. These characters are normally running from something and have secrets. 

I never really pay attention to details like those when I watch television. Now I will be able to notice themes and social meanings in all the shows I watch.