The Role of Fathers as Television Characters Brings Significant Life Lessons

Categories: Life Lessons Philosophy Psychology

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As people mature, they need examples, guidance, and experience in order to learn about life. Usually the most common ways someone learns something is from what they hear or see. In this case most people learn from what they see on television. Some people may think that television will just rot your brain out, but others seem to think that television can be an answer to some of their daily problems. Television has all kinds of shows and movies, but the most traditional are family shows.

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For example, sitcom fathers are a big part in these family shows and are being criticized for being "incompetent" to their viewers. But what people do not realize is that in reality, everybody can really learn from what they see on television. Critics think that these father figures may not have a positive influence sometimes, but people can also learn from their mistakes. It does not always have to show what a father should be; it could also demonstrate what a father should not be.

Sitcom father figures set good examples for their viewers, whether it is good or bad. For example, Homer, in "The Simpsons" may not be the perfect father figure but he still has to deal with some of the same problems we deal with today. Now it may not be the same, considering he is only a cartoon, but when you really watch the show, it does have morals. Like the critics, some people think that these types of shows are useless and do not provide much sense to our viewers, but they did not stop to think that this could be one of the problems that our families face today.

Our families should be able to see an example, they need to see what is right and what is wrong, and they also need to recognize that not all problems can be predicted or are so simple. Our television shows can answer some of these unpredictable situations and can also help build up families to have some of their own traditions.

Many great ideas and traditions can be made up of these sitcoms, and that does not mean that their viewers absolutely have to follow what they do or say. Like I said earlier, some people just need guidance or examples. It is a really common case to see families compare themselves to a sitcom family, just to see what the rest of the world has to deal with. By watching these shows one can get an idea of how some of our typical families may actually be like. It can be an eye opener to some families, but to others it is nothing new. It really is not that bad, it also serves somewhat as a training school for building up families. Everyone knows that children soak up information like a sponge. Kids everywhere watch these shows and learn from it every day. It is preparing the younger generations and training them on how to be positive father and to know how to handle various situations. For example, sometimes my father would see a show that has the same situation or conflict we have in our home.

He would always make me sit there and watch it just to see how they solved their problems. Of course the shows reasoning was a lot better and less aggressive than my dad's and mine, but it was still a slap in the face when we realized that we were going at it all wrong. It helped us in actually talking things out instead of ignoring it or trying to get on each others nerves. I think that sitcom father figures are great and should not be underestimated. There could be a lot of ways that these so called "incompetent" shows could help some ones family problems. To most people these shows are a reminder to how we could really handle things. Everyone is not always right in the decisions we make for our families, and the shows we watch on television are exactly what that is saying. It is not some senseless show it is an example or guide that we can pick and choose from to help benefit our lives and experience as a family.