Family Collage

Ben  Ives  Communica/on  in  the  Family  

Maureen  Ebben  Due:  4/10/11  

Background  Informa/on  

•  For  this  assignment,  I  chose  to  look  at  the  Tanner  Family  from  the  hit  TV  show  “Full  House.”    Their  family  is  made  up  of  Danny  (the  father),  DJ  (oldest  daughter),  Stephanie  (middle  child),  and  Michelle  (youngest  daughter).    The  mother  of  this  family  was  killed  in  a  car  crash  

         by  a  drunk  driver,  which  prompted              Danny  to  ask  both  his  brother  in            law  (Uncle  Jesse),  and  best  friend          (Joey  Gladstone)  to  move  into            the  house  and  help  raise  his          three  daughters.  

Family Type •  Because  the  mother  was  never  present  during  the  show,  I  

would  consider  the  Tanner’s  both  a  “single-­‐parent  family,”  as  well  as  an  “extended  family.”    I  feel  that  this  family  falls  under  these  descriptors  because  although  Danny  was  technically  the  only  true  “parent”  that  was  relevant  during  the  shows  airing,  his  extended  family  (brother  in  law)  as  well  as  best  friend  (Joey)  were  just  as  pivotal  in  raising  the  three  girls  as  Danny  was.  

Uncle  Jesse  (leV),  Uncle  Joey  (right).  

Communica/on  PaXerns  

•  Chapter  2  of  the  text  refers  back  to  different  communica/on  paXerns  and  family  func/ons.    With  the  loss  of  their  mother,  the  Tanner  family  became  extremely  close  and  loyal.    The  text  describes  an  “enmeshed”  family  as-­‐  members  are  so  intensely  bonded  and  over  involved  that  individuals  experience  liXle  autonomy  or  fulfillment  of  personal  needs  and  goals.    Total  loyalty  is  expected.    Family  members  appear  fused  or  joined  so  /ghtly  that  personal  iden//es  do  not  develop  appropriately;  thus,  members  are  highly  interdependent  (31).”    I  personally  feel  this  enmeshed  style  describes  the  Tanner  family,  as  well  as  Uncle  Joey  and  Uncle  Jesse  very  well.  

Rituals  •  “Rituals  contain  a  variety  of  meanings  and  messages  in  paXerened  and  emo/onally  

powerful  forms;  they  serve  to  remind  members  of  who  they  are  and  they  reflect  a  family’s  rela/onal  culture  (116).”  

•  Throughout  each  season  of  Full  House,  the  Tanner  family  remains  extremely  close.    Although  I  cannot  specifically  remember  any  nightly  rituals  from  show  to  show,  the  family  made  it  a  point  to  always  do  things  together.    I  can  remember  one  specific  episode  where  they  travel  together  to  Disney  World.    There  is  an  issue  where  Michelle  wanders  off  and  becomes  lost,  and  together  as  a  family  they  work  together  to  find  her.    Although  this  seems  obvious,  in  many  instances  people  would  enter  a  state  of  panic  and  try  to  do  this  individually.    

Family  Roles-­‐  Danny  Tanner  

•  Danny  Tanner  would  be  looked  

at  as  the  All-­‐American  father  to  many.    The  way  he    handles  his  everyday  business  with  the  family  

is  the  ideal  way  you  would  want  your  family  ran.      

Although  he  can  be  strict  when  necessary,  his    

approach  to  everyday  life  would  be  seen  by  the    

viewers  as  flawless.    He  has  an  extremely  strong  set  of  morals  that  he  follows  very  closely.  

Uncle  Jesse  

•  Although  both  Uncles  are  considered  “cool”  by  many,  Uncle  Jesse  has  more  of  a  father  role  to  the  girls  than  Uncle  Joey.  

This  could  par/ally  be  because  he  has    experience  as  a  father,  especially  later    

in  the  show.    He  is  best  known  for  his  hair  

and  love  for  music,  and  always  seems  to  Be  there  when  the  girls  need  him  most.  

The  Girls  

•  The  girls  of  the  house  seem  to  share  a    

very  /ght  bond  with  each  other.      whenever  the  going  gets  tough,  they    

always  seem  to  have  ones  back.      Although  they  are  each  a  few  years    

separated  by  age,  this  doesn’t  stop  them  

from  s/cking  together  as  one  and    remaining  as  close  as  possible.    

Uncle  Joey  

•  Uncle  Joey,  Danny’s  best  friend  on  the    show,  who  also  is  a  huge  help  to  the  girls  

childhood  development,  is  beXer  known  for  

his  comedic  side.    On  the  show,  Joey  works    as  a  stand-­‐up  comedian.    Around  the  house,  

he  always  seems  to  be  the  one  making    

someone  smile  when  they  are  down.    I  believe  his  role  on  the  show  is  as  important  

as  anyone's  because  his  personality  seems  to    keep  everyone  loose  and  happy,  even  when  its  going  bad.      

Family  Typology  

•  The  Tanner  family  would  be  listed  as  a  “Pluralis/c  Family.”    This  type  of  family  is  described  by  the  text  as  “a  family  high  in  conversa/on  orienta/on  and  low  in  conformity,  have  open  communica/on  and  emo/onal  suppor/veness  for  their  families  (176).”      

Conflict  

•  “The  way  in  which  family  members  view  conflict  has  a  great  impact  on  how  they  respond  to  and  deal  with  conflict  (217).”  

•  One  thing  that  I  feel  Danny  Tanner  does  beXer  than  any  other  sitcom  father  is  handles  his  role  as  a  disciplinarian.    Although  there  is  hardly  any  conflict  on  Full  House,  whenever  there  is  an  issue,  it  seems  to  be  resolved  quickly  and  effec/vely.    

Conclusion  

•  Although  I  did  not  choose  my  own  family  to  look  at  during  the  Family  Collage  project,  I  feel  the  one  I  have  chosen  shows  great  relevance  to  this  project.    Because  the  mother  was  never  relevant  during  the  show,  it  made  it  interes/ng  to  look  at  different  ways  this  family  meshed  together,  and  how  the  roles  of  the  two  uncles  became  so  pivotal  in  the  development  of  the  girls’  childhoods.