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Absent, Ineffectual and Intoxicated Mothers: Representing the maternal in teen television

2012; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 12; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/14680777.2011.640011

1471-5902

Rebecca Feasey,

Media Influence and Health

Teen television is an important source of information and identity for adolescents, especially concerning issues that are of interest to the “tween” and teenage audience, such as sex, sexuality, friendship, family problems and impending adulthood. Therefore, it is fruitful to examine the representation of motherhood and the maternal role in contemporary teen programming and consider the ways in which such depictions can be seen to inform teens about the roles, responsibilities and restrictions of contemporary mothering. Although parents have been routinely absent or overlooked in “must-see” teen dramas such as Beverley Hills 90210 (1990–2000), Party of Five (1994–2000) and Dawson's Creek (1998–2003), parents and guardians have taken on a more problematic role in contemporary examples of the genre. As a spin-off of the original, 90210 (2008–present) in particular tends to show parents as weak and irresponsible—be it socially, sexually or financially—and in many cases it is the mother who is the delinquent of the pair.