Desperate Housewives: Representations of gender

The first scene of the title sequence is an animated painting of Adam and Eve. It implies that men are crushed by women's actions. It is reinforcing the stereotype that women are devious and manipulative.

In the second scene an Egyptian Goddess is seen surrounded by her children. However, she is then drowned by her children. This portrays that women are supposed to look after the children but the scene implies that she is not doing a good job as she is being 'drowned' by them.

The third scene within the sequence shows a man whom had eats a banana and then throws it carelessly in the direction of his pregnant wife who sweeps it up. This reinforces the stereotype that women are very domesticated and shows that the man is superior in the marriage.

The fourth scene shows an old couple who look bored of their relationship and then a younger more attractive women appears and tempts him away from the wife. The wife is then sealed up in a sardine can which says "age" on the tin. This portrays that men are very impatient and once they are bored of women they move on. This scene also implies that women are seen as an object for example a sardine can.

The fifth scene shows a woman who is struggling to hold all three groceries. She then drops all of the objects she is carrying. This implies that women struggle under pressure of being a household wife and that she is incapable of doing simple jobs.

The sixth scene shows a woman facing her lover and she is crying. However, she stops crying and unexpectedly punches him across the face and gives him a black eye. The is a counter stereotype as it portrays women to be violent. The tear running down her face also reinforces the stereotype that women are emotional.