Following Stereotypes
Ingrid is pregnant with Frank’s kids and he is competing in the hobo loco games to win money. He has been gone for days doing this competition and she calls him and asks him to come home. He tells her that he is doing it for the kids and he is going to win so they have money. She is obviously very moody and rude to him over the phone. Women being moody in general is pretty stereotypical, but being moody while being pregnant is even more stereotypical.
Later on, in the show, Ingrid decides to test Frank’s loyalty. She goes to the competition and lies to Frank saying that she is having a miscarriage to see if he would give up the competition to help her. He did not and at the end of the show she ends up leaving him. Women trying to trick their partner into doing things for them and getting upset when their partner won’t go the extra mile for them is a pretty stereotypical thing for a woman to do.
Along those same lines, Frank goes back to the competition and does not stay with Ingrid. Frank does not really care about Ingrid or her pregnancy he was with her to get money. Usually, men who are into drugs and alcohol do not stay with the mother and are just trying to get something out of the relationship like Frank was.
Not Following Stereotypes
Carl works at a fast-food restaurant and his manager that tells all the male cooks what to do is a woman. She is very stern and has those leadership qualities that we usually associate with men. She is very respected by male employees. Women are not often seen as bosses and if they are in a position of power they are not treated as such by men.
Carl is jealous that Kelly is hanging out with Debbie. Men are not the people who are usually displayed as being jealous, that is a trait we associate with women.
Lip goes into the foster care office to try and see if he can foster Xan. He goes and buys her clothes and a bed and tries to clean the house to make sure he passes the test when they come to inspect the house. Men are not the type to work this hard to foster a child, women have the traits of being compassionate and maternal.
Lip is also part of AA and he has a sponsee named Jason. Jason calls him at night to tell him that he was drinking and he needs help. Lip immediately drops what he is doing to go and help Jason. Again Lip is displaying the caring and worried traits we would usually see portrayed by a woman.
Bechdel Test
At the beginning of the show, Debbie and Kelly are eating breakfast and Debbie is talking about how they need a new furnace and Kelly tells her that the scrap yard has a lot. Since they are two main female characters and they are having a conversation about furnaces and not men, this passes the Bechdel test.
Ingrid goes to Debbie to ask her if Frank will be supportive and help her with the babies. Debbie assures her that there is no way frank will care about her babies. Ingrid is trying to get Debbie to say what she wants to hear, but Frank just is not the best father. Since these are two main female leads and they are talking about men this fails the Bechdel test.
Shared by: Meagan Ebertz
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