Challenging Hegemonic Interpretation of Having Kids in The Big Bang Theory

     I will be applying Hegemony from Sellnow’s “Marxist Perspectives” to the TV sitcom The Big Bang Theory. This show follows Sheldon and Leonard, roommates and physicists at the California Institute of Technology. Alongside their friends, Howard and Raj, an engineer and astrophysicist, the scientists work through scientific accomplishments and social struggles, especially when it involves women.

    Later in the series, Howard has married Bernadette, a microbiologist, (right image) and Leonard has married Penny, his and Sheldon’s neighbor (left image).

    In both these relationships, the series both challenges and caves into the hegemonic statement that women want to have kids and men expect them to do so. However, when the topic was brought up initially, both Bernadette and Penny were opposed to having kids. Applying another aspect to the hegemonic statement to Bernadette and Penny’s desire to avoid getting pregnant, both Leonard and Howard don’t understand why their wives are opposed to having kids. Attached below are scenes with each conversation.

Bernadette's Conversation with Howard

Penny's Conversation with Leonard 

    In a world where women are achieving more in their careers and are becoming more independent, the desire to not have kids is becoming more common, even if fertility isn’t necessarily an issue. Despite this, it’s still a hegemonic belief that women are supposed to have kids and men hold this expectation over their heads. This can be seen later in The Big Bang Theory. Both Penny and Bernadette took initiative to express their desire to not have kids, yet later in the series, both of them became mothers.

Bernadette Reveals she's Pregnant

Penny Reveals she's Pregnant

    Though it was a bold step to contradict the preferred ideology of women having kids, it feels like the writers gave up on this challenge to the status quo. Honestly, it was somewhat disappointing that they threw this out the window and succumbed to the dominant voice. As an audience, we know that everything turned out okay for Howard and Bernadette, both happy with their two kids, but being oblivious to the aftermath of Penny’s pregnancy, we only see the hegemonic perspective. We only see that women are supposed to have kids and men expect it of their significant others. What do you think about the hegemonic view of women and kids?