QUESTION: Any ideas for teaching groundbreaking sitcoms of the 70's in an American literature class?

[Lisa Carothers]

I am currently working on a mini unit for an American Literature class I taught for the first time last year, and I am looking for a few ideas.

 

First, some background on the class. It's a semester-long American lit class for juniors who typically struggle with English classes (but the class also includes strong academic performers who for whatever reason didn't choose either of the two college-bound English classes available that semester). The overriding idea of the class is to treat literature as a window to American life during different time periods in history. We read O Pioneers (turn of the 20th century), The Great Gatsby (1920s), The Crucible (1950s), and Perks of Being a Wallflower (1990s). 

Now that I've been through the curriculum once, I want to supplement with other pieces, but in particular, I would like something to represent the 1970s, something we currently don't have. BUT, I have limited time, perhaps 2-3 90 minute class periods. I would like to do a sitcom-as-literature approach with All in the Family and/or Mary Tyler Moore Show (or even other sitcoms of the time) to have students analyze the predominant themes and characters, make connections to issues of that decade, understand why these were groundbreaking shows, etc. 

Most lesson plans with sitcoms I've seen use them to teach elements of plot or other introductory fiction elements, but not really at the central subject for analysis. I'd like students to focus on the sitcom, including not only content, but also lighting, camera angles, etc. I know it's become more common to do this with movies, but I've never taught that either.

So I would love to hear any ideas you have in setting up an analysis of a 1970s sitcom for the purposes listed above. Thanks!!!

[Frank W. Baker]

Lisa, I invite you to first consider my Languages of Film website which provides a plethora of resources in which to approach media texts and camerawork, sound, editing and more.  Secondly you might wish to consider the format of such sitcoms. Each uses a well known formula and examining how each episode introduces the main plot and subplots might also be useful to your students. Third, it might be interesting to try to locate actual scripts of such shows to examine the writing. Might students be assigned to research specific writers and create projects about how each writer came to that specific genre.  It might also be worthwhile to read original TV reviews/criticism of the time--what was the commentary by those newspapers or TV GUIDE reviewers?  Lastly, students could examine the economics: who advertised on these shows and which shows garnered the highest ratings and why. It sounds like you're on your way to a very interesting approach and I look forward to hearing what you do and how your students react to it.  Frank Baker

[Lisa Carothers]

Thanks so much for your ideas!

[Mary Christel]

Lisa, I used sitcoms in a media studies class and I focused on the way the notion of family was articulated on television. I started with I Love Lucy and moved forward chronologically. If you want to focus on sitcoms of the seventies, you could base your selection and focus on the American dream or redefining gender roles. Don't forget the All in the Family spinoffs like Good Times (set in a Chicago housing project).

And, I agree with Frank Baker that students need to be aware of television comedy genres. For example not all sitcoms are "situation comedies."

Find a history of television resource that examines how sitcoms were (and are) shot: single camera versus three camera process. The way a show is shot will dictate what type of shot selection is available in the final edit. A basic vocabulary of examining shot composition would be camera placement, subject arrangement, framing, color, and lighting. You can fill those basic categories with a additional terms, but don't initially overwhelm yourself or the students.

Also, have students examine the impact of laughter from a studio audience or a laugh track to direct and heighten audience response.

[Jennifer Lloyd]

Hello --

A few years ago I used the Norman Lear sitcoms for students to investigate the relationship between American values and media.  We were trying to answer the question:  Does the American Sitcom reflect or influence our perception of families, race, class, and gender? 

We started with All in the Family and watched several episodes of the first season.  The episode when Archie learns that the Jeffersons are moving to the neighborhood is one of the best in terms of race and gender relationships.  Then I moved to the Jeffersons, Maude, and Good Times so we could discuss how society on TV is progressing or is not.  (All of these are available on Amazon and/or Netflix.)  At the end of this unit, we watched a few episodes of The Brady Brunch for contrast and discussed why both the Norman Lear series and the Brady Bunch were popular sitcoms during their time. 

I would recommend reading: 

The Sitcom Reader: America Viewed and Skewed

Make Room for TV: Television and the Family Ideal in Postwar America

and for sitcom conventions

The Eight Characters of Comedy: Guide to Sitcom Acting and Writing

[Anna J. Small Roseboro]

Sound like a terrific class.  For 1970's I recommend MONKEY BRIDGE by Lan Cao.  The sitcom I used with it was THE BIONIC WOMAN which is referenced in the book.  Some teaching resources for MB are on my website TEACHING ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS, including a set of slides to provide background information.

I particularly recommend MB because the story is told from the perspective of a high school student applying to colleges.  There are flashbacks to Vietnam before and during the American presence in that country.  Great link to American History - Vietnamese War students may be studying in their History/Social Sciences class.

[Mary Christel]

I second recommendation for teaching MONKEY BRIDGE!

[patsy everett]

If you wanted to expose students to the pop culture of the 1970s, there's Match Game.  It's a game show, and might not be appropriate, so you'd definitely want to screen the episodes carefully before picking one.  It has the music, fashion, feminist vs. chauvinism (is that the right word?  lots of kissing the girls and making references to body shape and celebrating promiscuous males), emerging race empowerment, 70s sports and entertainment icons, double entendre, euphemisms, and orange shag carpeting all rolled into one 30 minute episode.

It airs early mornings on The Game Show network and is, embarrassingly, one of my guilty pleasures.