Modern Family is a television series that explores the many different stereotypes of a modern day family through the stories Cam, Mitch and Lily, a gay couple and their adopted daughter, Phil, Claire, Hayley, Alex and Luke, a straight couple and their three children, and also Jay, Gloria and Manny, a multicultural couple and their son.
The social and cultural context of society when the show made it’s debut in 2009 helps the show’s case in that it represents a modern day family. The typical family living in a single household in the present world consists of a working husband, a wife who stays home and looks after the house and children, and two children who typically stay at home until they are old and independent enough to move out and live on their own. However despite this, there are some moments within the show that portray the characters as downright stereotypical.
Phil Dunphy is the stereotypical ‘goofy family man’ and ‘cool dad’ who constantly tries to connect with his kids and their social groups despite his older age and clear difference in social status. Some examples of this include his interview during the first episode where he briefly explains his character, “I’m cool dad, that’s my thang. I’m hip, I surf the web, I text. LOL: laugh out loud, OMG: oh my god, WTF: why the face”. Another example of his ‘cool dad’ character is the moment when he meets Hayley’s boyfriend Dylan for the first time. He introduces himself and attempts to give the impression that he is a friendly peer to Dylan while at the same time he also attempts to show a sense of authority over him as evidenced by his interview during his first encounter with Dylan.
While his goofy family man character is quite a stereotypical trope, it’s something that I see very occasionally at home with my own dad. Whether it’s the embarrassing use of emojis through text or the hilarious attempt to appear cool and hip whenever I bring someone over, my dad starts acting a lot like Phil Dunphy in regards to interacting with my friends from school.
Crispy Chicken 