The traditional ideologies about an American family have evolved over the years. The typical image of a nuclear family with a dog buddy, happily standing next to their family house is drastically fading away. This depiction of the American family no longer applies to most families in the US today because of the progress in culture especially towards gender equality. The television program Modern Family is one of the TV programs that have attempted to portray the contemporary family representation in the US.
According to Merritt, the 2009 show has become famous and successful over the years because of its depiction of the current families in America. It takes away the non-traditional family elements of the past and stuffs them into a single TV series (Merritt, 1). This popular sitcom communicates familial principles to the American culture. The show is comprised of three interrelated families, the Pritchett family, the Dunphy family and the Pritchett-Tucker family. A close analysis of the sitcom reveals the current American family structure. The families convey both false and true impressions of modernity with the Pritchett-Tucker family giving the most obvious representation in the current American culture, a gay married couple (Staricek 51). This depiction is not currently seen in America with gay marriages emerging in the society; however, same-sex marriage has not been fully accepted ion the society. In addition, the hyphenated last name of the Pritchett-tucker family adds the illusion of modernism. In America, many families use the husband's name as the last name, and this family is following an emerging trend where their last names are hyphenated. The couples that follow this norm hold the reputation of being liberal and progressive. This also projects the idea that the couple is rejecting the dominant ideologies of husband's last name. .
On the other hand, the Pritchetts represent the modern couple in America, made up of a re-married couple with a foreign wife and a rich husband.