Feminism in "One Tree Hill"

Feminism in “One Tree Hill” For a solid nine seasons One Tree Hill has captured the hearts of many and created interesting gender role reversals in order for the female cast members to be more than objectified eye candy for audiences. Throughout a variety of episodes that were aired of One Tree Hill the male characters on the show were used as the fetishized objects and sometimes even played the more sensitive “feminine” personalities. I feel that this was the smartest way for producers to reach their target audience which was teenage girls to young female adults because it gave them Mr. Sensitive to latch on to and begin to link emotions with characters other than females. One Tree Hill is a drama filled soap-like television show that the CW aired in 2003. There were plenty of ups and downs, twists and turns that occurred during the duration of the show, but it found a way to play around with various ideologies and social perceptions of women on television. The reoccurring issue that surrounds this teenage drama is the blossoming relationship between two half-brothers over the course of time and the role their father plays in each of their lives. According to a previously written blog Dan Scott (father of Lucas and Nathan,) bending of hegemony is seen when Dan takes on the role as the mother of the house where he cooks, cleans, and coaches Nathan basketball. When looking at Dan’s role of attempting to portray both of the idealistic genders is it seen to be “normal” for him to be doing all of the duties but it isn’t seen as being “very ladylike” and it contradicts the gender identities. (CW Television Network) Although Dan is the primary antagonist in the show who can also be seen to other characters in the show as hyper-masculine, his “mother-like” role in Nathan’s life says a lot about his developing character over the seasons. For someone who is so evil for a majority of the show, overtime he grows to be more sensitive, caring and ultimately viewed to feminists as not normal because it is going against socially constructed ideologies of single parent roles. In addition to Dan’s “mother-like” role, something else that One Tree Hill exemplifies is role reversal. Rather than the women always illustrated on screen as “objectified sexual playthings,” (Kubicek) the male characters have the tendency to be half-naked, bid on, or making money through a strip tease performance. In other words, One Tree Hill shines as a beacon of feminism in an otherwise male-dominated society. It might seem odd, but looking back at the history of the series; it’s always been a place where it’s the male stars that are made into sexual objects.(Kubicek) Some examples that created a few good laughs for One Tree Hill viewers was the unforgettable episode in which the male basketball players of the Tree Hill Ravens were to “do their thing” down the runway, most of which consisted of James Lafferty’s and Chad Michael Murray’s along with other teammates stripping off clothes for the highest lady bidders to buy a date with one of the guys for the night. Interesting, the women are the ones throwing down the bills and in control this time, (no oppositions there.) But hey what hormonally crazed adolescent female doesn’t like a James Lafferty or Chad Michael Murray parading around barely clothed shaking their money maker? Obviously, a Haley James Scott (Nathan’s wife,) who becomes a pop sensation and later a school teacher, a Brooke Davis (Lucas’ ex girlfriend,) who successfully creates her own fashion line, and a Peyton Sawyer (Lucas’ wife,) who eventually owns her own record label. These three women are the main female dominant characters in One Tree Hill, but are portrayed as hard working, determined, self sufficient women who overcome many trials and tribulations over the course of the show. Overall, there are always going to be opposing opinions when it comes to the correct portrayal of women on television, but as far as One Tree Hill I think that it does an exceptional job at least when it comes to the women of the show not always being the central point of sexuality and completely dependent on a male for happiness and stability. Also, along with Haley, Brooke and Peyton, I would like to bring attention to Karen who is Lucas’ mother. At a young age Karen was left by Dan to be a single parent to Lucas, aside from the struggles of raising a child alone, Karen opened her own café and managed to give Lucas a stable home to grow up in. This furthers how One Tree Hill does not just reverse the roles of parenting but also portrays how the women of the show can overcome adversity and can provide themselves happiness on their own. Though many shows on television today are trying to differ themselves from others, or break socially constructed ideas of gender, One Tree Hill was able to reach their target through the use of feminism to appeal to the female target audience in a positive manner. Works Cited CW Television Network. One Tree Hill. February 6, 2012, Retrieved from:http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=lucas,+nathan+and+dan+scott&um=1&hl=en&bi Kubicek, John. "'One Tree Hill' Aftergasm: Feminism and Half-Naked Men." 'One Tree Hill' Aftergasm: Feminism and Half-Naked Men. BuddyTV, 3 Feb. 2009. Web. 26 Sept. 2013.