For the purposes of this paper, I have chosen to write about the social structure of a fictional character – Bree Van de Kamp from Desperate Housewives. Sociologically speaking, Bree is part of the social structure of “housewife” and is part of the larger group of her friends and family. There are two major forms of sociological status – ascribed and achieved – which form the basis for structure. Ascribed status is an involuntary status which you are born into (Conley, 125), which in Bree’s case is “white”, “Protestant”, “female” and “middle-aged”. The achieved statuses – one which has been entered and is voluntary (Conley, 125) – are housewife, mother, business owner and arguably middle class”.
The term “role” refers to several different sociological concepts in conjunction. These include behavior, beliefs, norms and may lead to a certain social status (Giddens & Griffiths, 187). The role that Bree plays is a combination of housewife, mother and business woman, which can lead to “role conflict”, whereupon there are incompatible demands placed on one individual (Giddens & Griffiths, 187). Bree also encounters “role strain”, where the different actions the individual is required to perform as part of their role are too much for one individual (Giddens & Griffiths, 98). There are several reasons why Bree might have entered into her main roles. Firstly, there may be a genetic predisposition for her to be a homemaker as she is shown to excel at this role. Additionally, there may be a combination of societal and cultural influences at play, as her roles are traditionally female and do fit the stereotype of the white, middle-class female (Giddens & Griffiths, 98).
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Although Bree does have many traditionally female roles as prescribed by society, there are some elements of status inconsistency. For example, she is a business-owner. Although the business itself is typically female and can be said to be part of her general mothering homemaker role (it is a catering business), women typically own less businesses than men and this is a topic covered by the show. She is also incredibly head-strong, which could be evidence of a “role conflict” or a “status inconsistency” with the typically demure and retiring ways of the traditional housewife. Overall, however, Bree does fit into many sociological stereotypes of her role and therefore exhibits very low levels of role conflict and status inconsistency.
Bree also has a very obvious reference group throughout the show – her friends. The term reference group is used to refer to the group within which the individual falls and to whom they are most often compared (Giddens & Griffiths, 126). In this case, the show’s protagonists are all female housewives, all of whom are unique and have different capabilities. In this sense, Bree is perhaps the “best” housewife on the surface, as she is very feminine, well presented and dedicated to her family. This reference group is also her primary group – the small social group with whom she spends most time (Giddens & Griffiths, 127). The secondary group of the show is the setting of other people that live on Wisteria Lane and those that provide services to Bree. She interacts on a less intense level with these individuals than she does with the other housewives.
- Conley, Dalton. You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking Like a Sociologist (Third Edition). W. W. Norton, 2013. Print.
- Giddens, Anthony, and Simon Griffiths. Sociology. Polity, 2006. Print.
