As Thanksgiving approaches, I am struck by something I see throughout the media (including print ads, television ads, movies, television shows, and more). The man is always the one who carves the turkey.

 

This is something of a reversal of the classic media rule that "women cook the food and men eat the food." (Paula Deen and Rachael Ray cook; Guy Fieri eats.) Although I suppose the question there is whether carving a turkey counts as preparing a meal or eating it. 

Mom may be responsible for doing all the grocery shopping, for cleaning the house before the guests arrived, for cooking the entire meal, for setting the table and delivering the food, and for cleaning up beforehand. But Dad is the one who carves the bird.

 

In America, women are responsible for making holidays happen. Thanksgiving is a great example. If you are a woman, Thanksgiving means an almost unbelievable amount of work. (Although less work than Christmas, which is all that plus wrangling the gifts as well.)

 

If you are a man, Thanksgiving means eating a lot and watching football. If you are a child, thanksgiving means the Macy's day parade, and staying out of everyone's way until dinner.

 

The carving of the main roast at a meal is an ancient tradition. Perhaps THE most ancient of our food traditions. In some cultures, it is the one who killed the animal who is given the honor of dividing up the spoils. In others, that honor goes to the tribal leader, or the eldest in the room. Even in our own culture, which generally lacks tradition, it is a big day when the time comes to hand the carving knife down to the son. In many families this never happens - the head of the household always carves, regardless of circumstance. 

 

And of course, in the media, the head of the household is always male.

 

It's funny, if you think about it. If the honor of carving traditionally went to the one who had killed the animal, then mom is certainly the closest equivalent. Since she is most likely the one who went to the store and purchased the bird. 

 

In many families, of course, women are the ones who carve the bird. In real life Thanksgiving is hosted by single mothers, by families who don't stand on tradition, by households run by lesbians. But in the world of the American media, no such shades of gray exist.