Single mothers in television sitcoms

¶ … motherhood has become nowadays a common practice and statistics point out that more and more choices are made in this sense. According to 2011 data, "As of 2011, 11.7 million families in the U.S. were headed by a single parent, 85.2% of which were headed by a female" (Single Mother guide, 2012). The change in the society in this sense is even more revealed in the way in which television deals with this subject. As compared to the 1990s when single mothers were portrayed as an example of survival, nowadays, television shows such as sitcoms consider single motherhood as a subject for challenges and further development of adventure.

Unlike sitcoms in the 80s and early 90s, the sitcoms portraying single motherhood in the 21st century have changed perspective. In this sense, as Rabinovitz describes in her article on single mothers and sitcoms in the 80s, there were certain stereotypes that sitcom producers put forward when dealing with this kind of representation. More precisely, in "Kate and Allie," considered at the time as being a progressive sitcom (1989, p11), the need of companionship for single women was filled by female companionship, which most often translated into a combination of two similar in character women dealing with both challenges of normal life, such as accommodation arrangements that are inevitable for any individual, and those of single life. Most often, these translate to jokes that only single women would do to remarks made that would redirect to a single status. In today's depiction of single motherhood, in "The Gilmore Girls," the mother Lorelai Gilmore is not depicted in a similar manner. Lorelai is viewed as more independent, catering for both the inn and for a strong relationship with ther teenage daughter. However, unlike other sitcoms in the 80s and 90s, in this sitcom, there is no need for an intermediary actor for the relationship between Lorelai and her daughter Rory. This is largely due to the fact that the actual perception on single motherhood has changed and women can cope with this challenge better.

Another aspect that has changed from the depiction of 80s and 90s single motherhood as opposed to nowadays is the final outcome of the story. While in "Who's the Boss ?" one of the most important aspects of the female character in terms of establishing a personal life was the relationship with the male character with her children, in modern sitcoms, this is not the main case anymore. By comparison, in "The Gilmore Girls," the personal life of Lorelai is by no means influenced by the personal preferences of her daughter. Furthermore, in deciding to have a personal life, the character of Lorelai did not consider choosing a "father" for her child, therefore, the nature of the relationships her character established was not related to creating a family environment for her daughter. Therefore, it can be visible the fact that the perceptions on family and the need for a traditional family have changed in real life and these are reflected in sitcoms as well.