The Portrayal of women in Friends.
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Have you ever imagined how the world would be without women? I believe it would be a dull world with nothing to fascinate us. Women play various roles in the society. Some of the roles they play just show how strong they are. Despite the existence of roles that may be performed by both men and women, there are roles played solely by women (Butler, 2002). A good example of a feminine role is giving birth to young ones and taking care of them during their young and delicate age. This paper focuses on the manner in which some set of women are portrayed in a popular TV show, Friends.
First, in Friends, women are portrayed as hospitable people. Hospitality is founded on a basic virtue of generosity. The illustration of hospitality is when a character named Monica, a chef by profession, hosted her friends for meals on numerous occasions, including the Thanksgiving Day. By hosting her friends over for dinner and many other meals brings out Monica’s generosity in not only sharing meals with her friends, but also making them enjoy her exquisite talent in cooking. It is thus evident that the show, Friends, portrays women as generous people. In connection to Christianity which basically follows Jesus’ teachings, it is clear that women are emulating Jesus’ act and teachings on sharing.
Moreover, in Friends, women are portrayed as mothers. By mothers, we mean that they have the responsibility of bearing children. Child-bearing is a gift from God and various women in the TV show conceive and give birth to children. Some of these women include Janice, Racheal, and Phoebe. One interesting scene is when Phoebe accepted to be a surrogate mother to her brother’s children. The level of sacrifice women she goes through for the sake of her brother’s triplets shows just how strong and selfless women are. In Christianity, God commanded man to go out and fill the earth. Women, therefore, play a crucial role in fulfilling their purpose; filling the earth (Fiorenza, 1977).
Nonetheless, in Friends, women are portrayed as organized people. The overall outcome of good organization is cleanliness. One character in Friends whose organization is striking is Monica. As a person, she likes certain things to be put in an orderly fashion. Therefore, any alteration of the way she has arranged either her shelves or living room makes her uncomfortable. Despite overdoing too much into cleanliness making her friends feel uneasy, I believe Monica’s organization actually makes her house a beautiful place to be. In Christianity, therefore, we may compare Monica’s organization to God’s in the creation story (Trible, 1983). God created the world in six days and decided to rest on the seventh day. Such an example portrays God’s organization, which also translates to how beautiful His creation looks.
Nonetheless, in Friends, women are portrayed as talented people. The talent the women in the TV show possess are of a varied nature. Phoebe is a good singer and guitarist; Monica is a good cook, and Racheal has a good sense of fashion. Talents are God-given abilities that people have. One may be born with it and perfect the same over time. It is a Christian teaching that we need to develop our talents for both our benefit and that of the society at large. (Johnson, 2017) Therefore, the female characters in Friends do a good job in nurturing and developing their talents; a thing that would please God.
In conclusion, there are various ways in which women are portrayed in the society. However, based on the important roles they play in the society, women are praise-worthy. The TV show, Friends, effectively brings out women and their abilities in fulfilling their God-given purpose on earth. These abilities range from their parenting skills to their level of organization. With all these in mind, it is clear that women are key role players in making the society a better place for everybody.
References.
Butler, S. (2002). Embodiment: women and men, equal and complementary. The Church women want, 35-44.
Fiorenza, E. S. The Apostleship of Women in Early Christianity. Women Priests 135-40, S Schneiders,” The Apostleship of Women in John’s Gospel,” Catholic Charismatic 1 (1977) 16, 20.
Johnson, E. A. (2017). She who is: The mystery of God in feminist theological discourse. Crossroad Publishing Company.
Trible, P. (1983). Eve and Adam: Genesis 2-3 Reread. Women’s Ordination Conference.