Social Issues In The Show 'That 70's Show'

I chose to analyze the sitcom That 70’s Show, a show that follows the lives of a group of teenage friends: Jackie, Donna, Hyde, Kelso, Eric, and Fez. The show addresses several social issues of the 1970s, including: sexism, sexual attitudes, drug use, politics, and the recession. I selected certain episodes from Season One based on their titles and descriptions; ones I thought may deal with sexism more in-depth than other episodes.

“Battle of the Sexists” begins with the boys reading a Playboy magazine and forming judgements of the women based on their bodies. They focus on the breasts in particular, and claim they can tell how annoying a woman is based on her body. Although this is a brief scene, it clearly depicts the objectification of

Donna’s father is angry when he finds out and automatically assumes it means she’s going to have sex with many men. This example is representative of the double standard held between men and women. It wouldn’t be an issue if one of the boys had multiple partners or used birth control, but as soon as one of the females does, it is frowned upon. When Jackie hears that Donna is on the pill, she exclaims “you’re going to be so popular,” which implies women can only be well-liked if they please men. Then, Eric’s parents give him “the talk” and while Kitty mentions that foreplay is important, Red disagrees. This implies a woman’s pleasure is not important, as long as men are taken care of. While Laurie is home, Eric finds out that she is failing classes, perpetuating the “dumb blonde”

This show lacks diversity. The majority of characters are heterosexual, white, and middle class. The only exception is Fez, an immigrant and the only coloured person on the show. Throughout the show, Fez is depicted as stupid, and as something to laugh at; the backing track laughs after almost everything he says. As far as I could tell, there are no queer characters, or any mention of queer issues, in these episodes.

After some research, I found out that women have a large part in writing and producing the show. I believe this is why the show does such a good job of addressing gender roles and sexism. In conclusion, this show focuses on many aspects, particularly gender roles and sexism. Although this show could have more diverse characters, it focuses on male and female stereotypes very well. I appreciate that there are several strong female characters who aren’t afraid to stand up for themselves and perform typically masculine