Exploring the Choice for Life & Single Motherhood on NBC’s “Parenthood”

The NBC TV series “Parenthood” is one of those shows that looks good, but I simply haven’t found time to watch.

However, writer Kate O’Hare has a piece up today at CatholicVote about how one character’s unplanned pregnancy played out in a choice for life.

Here’s an excerpt:

It’s one thing when the Church urges young women to choose life, but it’s quite another thing to see one woman’s decision played out in a secular context on primetime network television. In some ways, it’s even more powerful, and deeply human.

On Friday, Nov. 7, NBC threw a party on the Universal Studios lot in Los Angeles to celebrate the 100th episode of its Thursday drama “Parenthood.” The landmark installment will air as the 10th of the total 13 episodes for the show’s sixth and final season…..

…At the end of season five, oldest grown daughter Sarah’s (Lauren Graham) young-adult daughter, Amber Holt (Mae Whitman), had a tearful hospital reunion with her on-again/off-again love, Army vet Ryan (Matt Lauria). Apparently, despite Ryan’s injuries from a car accident (including a full-leg cast) and the limitations of a hospital setting, Amber became pregnant.

With Ryan out of the picture, at least for now, Amber chose to have her baby and is now facing the prospect of single motherhood — with the support of her family….

…The larger culture feeds the idea to young women that an unplanned pregnancy means the end of their hopes and dreams. But [series executive producer Jason] Katims, the father of two with wife Kathy — including a son who has Asperger syndrome, as does teen Max Braverman (Max Burkholder) on the show — doesn’t buy into that.

“It’s not necessarily true at all,” he said. “We wanted to tell that story — it’s not the end of her life, maybe just the opposite. As Drew said to her, ‘It’s not like you’re going to lose all those other things you want to do in your life, like finding a relationship and your career, you’re not going to lose that stuff.’

“It’s not like she’s not going to have that, it’s just she’s doing it in a different order. The other thing about it is, we wanted to lean into, while she was doing this on her own, she’s not doing this on her own. She has this incredible support system, in this family.’

Read the whole thing.