FULL HOUSE

S A R A H M E A R S

C M S 3 3 2

F A M I LY C O L L A G E

MEET THE TANNERS….

Danny is the father of 3 daughters who’s wife, Pam, dies in a car accident from a drunk driver. He is a morning TV show host.

Uncle Jesse was Pam’s brother. After his sister’s death, he comes to help Danny take care of the girls for a while. He is a rock musician.

Joey is Danny’s best friend. After Pam’s death, he comes to help with the girls until Danny gets back on his feet. He is a comedian.

MEET THE TANNERS…

DJ is the oldest daughter.

Michelle is the youngest daughter.

Stephanie is the middle daughter.

OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS…

Rebecca starts as Danny’s co-host on the morning show but ends up marrying Uncle Jesse and having twin boys.

Kimmy is DJ’s best friend. She lives next door and comes over when she wants. She doesn’t pick up on social cues well.

Steve is DJ’s boyfriend for the last half of the series.

THE SYSTEM PERSECTIVE

“WHEN INDIVIDUALS COME TOGETHER TO FORM RELATIONSHIPS, WHAT IS CREATED IS LARGER AND MORE COMPLEX THAN THE SUM OF THE INDIVIDUALS; THEY CREATE A SYSTEM.” PAGE 57

While, Danny is the biological father of DJ, Stephanie and Michelle, he isn’t blood related to Jesse and Joey is just his best friend. After his wife is killed, Danny depends on Jesse and Joey to help get him back on his feet. Jesse and Joey end up being permanent members of the family. Even after Jesse meets Rebecca and the two get married, they convert the attic into an apartment so they don’t have to leave.

INTERDEPENDENCE

“IN A SYSTEM, THE PARTS AND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEM FORM A WHOLE;

CHANGES IN ONE PART WILL RESULT IN CHANGES IN THE OTHERS…THE FAMILY SYSTEM IS A

MOBILE.” PAGE 59

After their mother died, DJ, Stephanie and Michelle didn’t have a female figure in their lives. This isn’t an issue until the girls start growing up. Even while Jesse was dating Rebecca, the threewent to her for advice. Rebecca

was the first person to show DJ how to wear make-up.

WHOLENESS

“A FAMILY SYSTEMS APPROACH ASSUMES THAT THE WHOLE IS GREATER THAN THE SUM OF ITS

PARTS. AN INTEGRATION OF PARTS CHARACTERIZES THE SYSTEMS MODEL.” PAGE 59

Each member of the Tanner family has different characteristics. Danny is obsessed with cleaning. Jesse is obsessed with Rock & Roll, Elvis and his hair. Joey is a comedian. Each one of these characteristics is separate from each other family member. Just because Danny is obsessed with cleaning, doesn’t mean the whole family has OCD.

PATTERNS/SELF-REGULATION

“THE FUNCTION OF MAINTAINING STABILITY IN A SYSTEM IS CALLED CALIBRATION…IN THE FAMILY

SYSTEM, IT IMPLIES CHECKING AND, IF NECESSARY, CORRECTING THE RANGE OF

ACCEPTABLE BEHAVIORS.” PAGE 61

DJ’s sweater gets cut up so DJ, Kimmy and Stephanie go to the mall to try and replace it. Stephanie sees a sign that says, “BUY NOW. PAY LATER.” Since the sweater cost $80, Stephanie takesthe sweater and puts it in her

bag. When DJ finds out what Stephanie did, the girls try and fix the problem but Danny finds out before they can. Danny helped correct their behavior so they understood that stealing is wrong.

COMPLEX RELATIONSHIPS

“THE COMPLEXITY OF THE FAMILY SYSTEM MAY BE SEEN THROUGH THE MULTIPLE SUBSYSTEMS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE WHOLE FAMILY’S

FUNCTIONING.” PAGE 65

When Jesse and Joey first moved into the house, it was just supposed to be temporary. As time goes on, no one in the family can see the living situation any different. Jesse marries Rebecca and has twins. They live upstairs in the converted atticapartment. Joey stills lives in the basement. While each of the groups have their different life, they all still work together to help each other get through life.

EQUIFIALITY

Everyone has their own idea on the best way to raise a family. Jesse and Rebecca think that they need to get the twins into the best preschool because that’s where another little boy named Cooper is going. Cooper’s

family decided that the fancy school was the best path for success while, Jesse and Rebecca decided the fancy preschool wasn’t the best path for them.

AN OPEN, ADAPTIVE FAMILY SYSTEM DEMONSTRATES EQUIFINALITY, WHICH MEANS

THAT PARTICULAR FINAL STATE MAY BE ACCOMPLISHED IN DIFFERENT WAYS FROM AND

FROM DIFFERENT STARTING POINTS.” PAGE 66

The Tanner Family would regularly check in with each other. When report cards came home and there is a comment from Stephanie’s teacher about how she talks too much in class, Danny suggeststhat Stephanie tries to not talk so much. After DJ brings in her report card and Danny sees that she had a D in Spanish, he sets up a Parent/Teacher conference to try and figure out a plan.

COMMUNICATION AND THE SYSTEM PERSPECTIVE

“COMMUNICATION IS A KEY ATTRIBUTE OF HUMAN SYSTEMS. FAMILY SYSTEMS ARE CONSTITUTED BY

THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS--IT IS COMMUNICATION THAT CREATES, MAINTAINS, AND

CHANGES THE SYSTEM’S REALITY.” PAGE 66

WORKS CITED

"Full House." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012.

"Full House Reviewed." Full House Reviewed. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. <http://www.fullhousereviewed.com/>. Galvin, Kathleen, Carma Bylund, and Bernard Brommel. Family Communication Cohesion and Change. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2012. Print.