The matriarchs of crime: a feminist content analysis of mother-son relationships in animal kingdom and sons of anarchy

Abstract

This thesis research examines the intertwining of domesticity and criminality in recent television series Animal Kingdom and Sons of Anarchy. I argue that the series’ key mothers, Smurf and Gemma, challenge familiar narratives and stereotypical gender roles while also participating in the reproduction of problematic tropes about womanhood, motherhood, mother-son dynamics, and relationships between women. Employing poststructural feminism and critical content analysis, my analytical chapters focus on three macro-concepts: "motherwork," "mother blame," and "violent glamour," with each consisting of a group of micro-concepts. I highlight the constant tension between progressive and regressive representations of mothers/motherhood in these series. The thesis is interpretative in nature, contributing to Television Studies, Motherhood Studies, and Women and Gender Studies. Ultimately, my thesis adds to feminist research by examining televisual representations of mothers entangled in both criminal and domestic spheres, shedding light on the complex gender dynamics of the families depicted in these diegetic worlds.