Abstract

Desperate Housewives is a hot TV series in America featuring the daily life of four housewives which seems glamorous and perfect but actually not. This drama is a mirror of the American family life. This show provides us with a window onto the lives of the middle class in America. The Desperate Housewives not only shows us the life condition of women and their social value, but also reflects the view of marriage of American middle-class.

After the general analyses about the American marriage patterns and the marital values of United States, we can find that it is hard to describe them simply as good or bad. As the Chinese saying goes, every coin has two sides. Americans’ view of marriage is also the case. With the development of society, the marital values of Americans have also changed. These typical changes have a big influence on America society. At the same time, the Chinese traditional view of marriage has also changed considerably. But the Chinese view of marriage is still greatly different from that of Americans].

The focus of this paper is on the marital values of Americans by taking Desperate Housewives as an example. This paper will try to analyze the changes about the American’s marital values, and then summarize the differences between China and the United States. Along with the thriving of international communication, cross-culture interchange is becoming more and more frequent. Through the research we can boost understanding between the two nations, moving from unfamiliarity to acceptance, and finally achieving a fusion of ideas. It can help us better understand America and even the whole world.]

Key words：Desperate Housewives, American marital value, marriage pattern, change, Chinese marital value