SNL Feminist Critique

The work of contemporary American culture I chose to write my feminist critique on was the SNL skit “Totino’s Super Bowl Commercial”. This parody commercial came out right after the super bowl this year and attracted the attention of its viewers. In this skit, a housewife explains to the audience how she passes the time during the superbowl- if she isn’t eagerly preparing pizza rolls and beer for her husband and his friends watching the game, she’s in the kitchen playing with the “Totino’s activity pack for Women”, which is just an assortment of cheap, children’s toys. The fake and sarcastic tone of this feminist skit satirizes today’s female stereotypes that women should be housewives that belong exclusively in the kitchen and only are there to cater to men’s needs.

In this fake commercial, the wife says, “When it comes to the big game, I love feeding my hungry guys. But… now what? I normally just sit in the kitchen, waiting for them to ask for more delicious Totino’s Pizza Rolls, but, that can be so boring. But not anymore… Introducing new Totino’s New Superbowl Activity Pack: for Women! It’s full of fun little puzzles and games, to keep my mind active and learning while I wait back here.” The wife in this commercial is speaking to the camera, while her husband and his friends are preoccupied watching football. Her tone while she says this is a forced happy voice, with sarcasm to indicate to the audience that she’s definitely kidding when she says these things. This is an example of how this stereotype of wives is a real issue, and is very common. The activity pack she talks about is full of little toys that you would give to a toddler. This is comparing women to having the mental capacity and drive of a child, dehumanizing them and making the wife feel inferior to her husband. The “For Women” part of the activity pack’s title is a key point in this satire. There’s no activity pack for men, because they are expected to be the ones interacting with other men, watching sports, eating and drinking beer.

Another stereotype this skit satirizes is the idea that women can’t eat whatever they want, and they have to always be skinny. “Plus, if I get hungry from all the puzzles and games, my activity pack comes with one little totino, just for me!” This shows how women are expected to make all the food and constantly work in the kitchen, but yet they aren’t allowed to eat it. Women need to constantly worry about their figure and can’t be seen eating more than a bite because it’s seen as sloppy and not ladylike, and this is satirizing that.

During the end of this “commercial,” one of the husbands friends says, “Hey does your wife wanna watch the game with us?” to which the husband responds, “Nah she’s good, she has her activity pack.” This is a very important part of the satire because it’s saying how there’s no reason why women have to stay in the kitchen, they can enjoy the same things be doing the exact same things as men, but our patriarchal and misogynistic society full of gender stereotypes doesn’t allow it. This parody uses exaggeration to get the point across to the audience that gender roles are very prominent in our society still and how ridiculous they are. It also criticizes other works of culture like tv shows, commercials and movies that have housewife roles in them, using irony with a commercial that makes fun of other commercials.