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Thus far the paper had examined various methods to prepare people for life in a family setting. Since the family was the place where children learned to interact with others, the final section of this paper will discuss how the writers viewed the concepts of problem resolution and finding consensus in married relationships. This can be accomplished by examining the relations between mal and female characters on a comparative basis. Comparatively, there are three stages of relationships presented in the program. Beaver, a youngster who sees girls as the enemy; Wally, an adolescent who vacillates between seeing girls as friend and foe; and Ward and June, a married couple who live together in peaceful co-existence. Wally and Beaver's interaction with members of the opposite sex have already been discussed in terms of preparing them for the eventuality of marriage (see pages 17-19). Therefore, the last stage, how Ward and June manage their marriage, because of its importance to the family aspect of the program, will be examined from the perspective of the problems encountered raising children. (See Appendix "H" for a summary of Ward and June's relationship.) The majority of material that has been written about Leave It To Beaver criticizes the program for portraying an idealized version of the family which bears little or no resemblance to real life. The major accusation of Ward's character related to the fact he was too wise and understanding. June, on the other hand, was seen as a deferent housewife who was shown preparing dinner, cleaning the house, or otherwise serving her family. While the preceding statements may have some validity, in actually viewing the program from the perspective of a pedagogical device, it can be seen instead as a vehicle to promote consensus in relationships through problem resolution. Therefore, the major criticisms, that Ward was too wise, and June to deferent, do not hold up under these conditions. If June suggested adopting a particular course of action, which was logical and in the best interests of the child, and Ward had no alternate solution, then June's suggestion was followed. This is because Ward and June were portrayed as having mutual respect for each other. To analyze the 145 programs viewed, each episode was examined to determine who identified the problem, who offered an opinion to resolve the situation, who delivered the necessary advice or discipline, and which of the partners had their solution adopted when there was a difference of opinion. This analysis revealed June identified the problem and offered a solution in 70.3% of the episodes. Ward delivered the lecture or discipline in 96% of the programs. The majority of problems (75.2%) were resolved without a difference of opinion. However, when there was a difference of opinion, (20% of the episodes), June's solution was adopted 79.3% of the time. Specific examples from the Leave It To Beaver television program will follow to put these statistics into context. In terms of identifying the situation, June was the parent who saw the problem in the vast majority of the episodes. This can be attributed to the fact she was home, and thus far more likely to be made aware of a problem situation that Ward who was at the office. Ward once asked June "…how do you know everything that goes on around here?" June responded "you'd be surprised at how much information you collect transferring goldfish from one room to another." However, this was not June's only method of obtaining information. Often she found clues about the boy's activities when she was going through jacket or pant's pockets prior to cleaning clothes. In addition to collecting information in this direct manner, June was also portrayed as more perceptive. She recognized intuitively when something wasn't right with her boys and always prompted Ward to take action. Ward, on the other hand, only realized something was wrong when he was directly confronted by the issue. In addition to identifying the problems, and providing solutions, June was also very persuasive when she and Ward had a difference of opinion. Of the 29 episodes where Ward and June had opposing ideas to resolve a situation, June's solution was adopted on 23 occasions (please refer to the summary in Appendix "H"). In the normal course of events, Ward and June resolved their differences in a calm and rational manner through discussion. However, there was one particular episode where June and Ward had a major disagreement, and June was proven right. In "Beaver Runs Away" (041), Ward was fully prepared to let Beaver live up to his threat to leave home. Ward adopted this approach in order to teach Beaver a lesson, and to ensure parental authority was not undermined. When Beaver came downstairs with his bag, Ward shook hands and wished him best of luck. June was devastated when she learned what he had done. She refused to talk to Ward, stormed around the kitchen and slammed the refrigerator door. Against Ward's wishes, she took the car and drove all through the neighbourhood looking for Beaver. Unable to find Beaver, she came home and berated Ward for his callous attitude and prevailed upon him to do something. Ward adamantly refused to alter his stance. It was only after Beaver was located at Larry's house, that Ward realized his hard-line attitude had left Beaver with no option but to leave home. In the end, Ward admitted to both Beaver and June he had made a mistake, to which June responded, "I kinda knew this is what you would do." While not gloating about the fact she was right, June effectively conveyed the message that in the final analysis, husband and wife will reach consensus. Disagreement over a child-rearing issue was not a question of one parent dominating the other; rather it was to ensure the child received the best possible upbringing. While the foregoing example was an exception to the normal relations between Ward and June, it does provide some evidence that the writers acknowledged that husband and wife could have a heated discussion. However, as noted previously, Ward and June usually settled their differences amicably. As evidence of their ability to reach consensus, it is important to note that 75.2% of the time there was no disagreement between Ward and June over the issue of child rearing. However, this high degree of consensus must be tempered with the fact that June provided 70.3% of the solutions. This is not to say that June prevailed in all instances, but rather her solution seldom resulted in Ward offering an alternative. Ward rarely disagreed with June, and when he did, he was usually proven wrong. Even when Ward was confronted with a problem, and attempted to formulate a solution, June often intervened and suggested an alternate approach. Ward's main purpose in the relationship was to provide discipline. This took the form of either fatherly advice, a lecture, or the imposition of punishment. June never interfered in the type of punishment meted out, but she certainly had enormous input in determining what situations required discipline, and how it was to be handled. The primary purpose behind conducting this section of the analysis was to show how Ward and June reached agreement when faced with a child-rearing problem. On a secondary level, it was also intended to reveal that June did not automatically defer to Ward as is commonly assumed. June and Ward saw their roles, as parents, as a joint effort to teach their children proper moral values, how to be good citizens, and to prepare them for raising a family of their own. The problems they encountered in the course of achieving this objective were handled in the best interests of the child. There was no need for one parent to dominate the other; problem situations required a solution and corrective action. It made no difference if June was the parent who formulated the vast majority of the solutions, and Ward was the main disciplinarian. The message Connelly and Mosher attempted to relay to the viewer, through the program, was the necessity of maintaining harmony in inter-personal relationships. By extension, if the child learned to live harmoniously in the family, this would be reflected in their dealings with others when they became and adult, participating member of society.
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