The Cosby Show

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture, Jan 29, 2002 by Robin Markowitz

What we saw on The Cosby Show is what happens in that part of a fairy tale after it ends. The Huxtables were an upwardly-mobile black American family living happily ever after. It was a life devoid of crisis and conflict, a fantasy of upward mobility with no costs: a real American dream. What viewers wanted from the show was a chance to sink into this vision of utopia, this perfect world in which to spend their half-hour. Viewers responded to a utopian vision rooted in real aspects of the lives they actually lived, not Cosby's own ideological utopia of restored traditional family values. Cosby said he wanted his show to serve as both a teaching tool and a means to counter the prevailing trend of "weak parents" in both television and popular culture in general; he made the perhaps incorrect assumption that this message was what viewers most appreciated.

Near the end of the show's run, Cosby's own overt ideological intentions came to overcome the structure of the show. Cliff's funny faces that repress all tension were now backed up by overtly intimidating displays of parental might and even instances of outright emotional cruelty directed toward even the youngest Huxtable. At that point, ratings began to dip and other shows with characteristics similar to the earlier episodes of The Cosby Show soon appeared.

There was a time when Cosby himself saw the response to his show perhaps clearer than most observers. "I hardly ever watch my work, but with this show it's different," he says. "I watch every week. And at the end of every segment, I find myself with a smile on my face, because I really like that family and the feeling they give me."