American Dad!: Identifying the Family Values in an Animated Sitcom Essay Example
American Dad!: Identifying the Family Values in an Animated Sitcom Essay Example

American Dad!: Identifying the Family Values in an Animated Sitcom Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (680 words)
  • Published: June 5, 2018
  • Type: Essay
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Since its 2005 debut, Seth McFarlane’s American Dad! has been among Fox Television’s popular sitcoms. This animated feature chronicles the day-to-day lives of the Smith family of fictionalized Langley Falls, Virginia. The Smith household is comprised of husband and father Stan, wife and mother Francine, college-age daughter Haley, teenage son Steve, and two non-human entities; a goldfish implanted with the consciousness of an East German named Klaus Heissler and an alien escaped from Area 51 in Nevada named Roger.

While politically satirical and sometimes dark, American Dad! still manages to highlight the Smith’s commitment to family values and a Christian Worldview. To illustrate how American Dad! showcases family values, one must identify what family values are. Dr. Susie Duffy, a Marriage and Family Therapist based out of Newport Beach, California, defines family val

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ues as “a traditional set of social standards defined by the family and a history of customs that provide the emotional and physical basis for raising a family” (Defining Your Family’s Values, n. . ). The social standards recognized by Christian Americans view the family model as one father, one mother, with an indeterminate number of children either born to the parents, adopted, or both. The history of customs in Christian households offer a loving and protective environment aimed at preparing the children to survive and raise families on their own through the teachings of Jesus Christ. Many families are made up of members with strongly varying views and interests, and the subjects of American Dad! are no different.

The Smith family is “full of radically different personalities just trying to figure out how to love and trust one another in a bi-partisan world” (Fox

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Broadcasting Company, n. d. ). As the title of the show implies, the main character is family patriarch Stan Smith, a conservative Republican member of the CIA who views himself as a patriot and model citizen. Believing in a traditional family role, Stan is the sole income earner for the family. Wife Francine, while absent-minded, also holds a very traditional family role of homemaker.

Stan’s daughter Haley, however, is an ultra-liberal Democrat, much to the chagrin of Stan. Although many of the show’s jokes and plotlines revolve around the friction caused between Stan and Haley’s contrasting political views, moral lessons revealed at the end of each of these episodes will often feature the two reconciling their differences while acknowledging their love for one another, something that the Christian family model very much advocates. Stan’s differences with another family member are not so different.

Many episodes focus on Stan’s views of his son, Steve, who is nothing like Stan was when he was his age. Socially awkward and nonathletic, Stan’s worries that his son will not turn out just like him are a reoccurring theme in the show’s storyline. For all Stan’s worries the two have a very strong father/son relationship, something that is also a key foundation in Christian family values. The married life of Francine and Stan are that of prototypical Christian Americans.

They are very much in love with one another but have their differences on occasion. They credit the success of their marriage to their love for one another and their ability to solve these differences. They usually project a unified front when confronting the children on varying issues. They also take their family to

church every Sunday as the family is identified as Episcopalian Christians in several episodes. American Dad! has been a successful show for a number of reasons. Through clever writing and character development, American Dad! as enjoyed a successful run on not only on the Fox network, but in syndication as well. In addition to its humorous situations and reflections on modern day social scenarios, it owes part of its success to its viewer’s ability to identify with the modern Christian family and their values. References Defining Your Family’s Values. (n. d. ). Retrieved January 22, 2012, from http://www. parentiq. com/news/definingyourfamilyvalues. asp About American Dad! (n. d. ). Retrieved January 22, 2012, from http://www. fox. com/americandad/about/

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