EXPLORING

INTERSECTIONALITY AND
GENDER DYNAMICS
IN SHAMELESS
A Study of Working-Class Feminism
 SHAMELESS CAST

• image of the cast obtained from Marc Snetiker (2024)

INTRODUCTION TO WORKING-
CLASS FEMINISM
Definition of Working-Class Feminism: This are challenges faced by women from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. We look
into the importance of understanding how economic disparities intersect with gender issues. A study by Courtney (2019) looks into
the struggle of the Gallagher family, more so Fiona, as the family lives paycheck-to-paycheck in south side of Chicago and the
opening line are Frank describing his children, and he starts with Fiona, saying, “Fiona, my rock, huge help. Has all the best
qualities of her mother, except she’s not a raging psycho b****.”
Intersectionality: Gender, Class, and Race: This looks into how various social identities such as gender, class, and race come
together to create overlapping systems of discrimination. According to Moody (2020), Fiona (Frank’s daughter) blindly leads her
siblings through elementary school up into high school. Lip, Ian and Debbie raise hell just to get cash for the electric bill, or cheat
their way through finals as Carl get into trouble in their backyard. Debbie gets a job and is paid less than her male counterparts
even though she works extrashifts, she opts to resign to take better care of her child, and Fiona is tasked with being a role model for
her black brother Liam who is not surrounded by many black role models, especially when he grows to be a young man. When
Liam was young, Monica returns to take Liam and she tells her ”You were not here when we needed you, you can’t take Liam ,he
doesn’t even know who you are! ” as from the video by amversion (2024).
Shameless as a Lens for Analysis: The series provides a narrative for exploring working-class feminism. It looks into the lives of
the Gallagher family facing socioeconomic struggles in a working-class environment. Analyzing characters of the female
protagonists like Fiona and Debbie Gallagher, viewers can observe how the issues of class, gender, and race intersect in their
everyday lives
 CHARACTER ANALYSIS IN SHAMELESS
Fiona Gallagher: Struggle for Independence: As the eldest sibling, she is thrust into being a caregiver and provider for her family
and is seen sacrificing her own dreams and aspirations, Fiona has had instances where she chooses her family over her dreams such
as in Ep3 sn5 when she flaked on jimmy as they were to go to the Carribean, even though Lip and Ian assured her of taking care of
Debbie and Carl when she was away. According to Quora (2019), Jimmy's carefree attitude and risk-taking clashes with her desire
for a more secure future and this difference makes them break up in Sn 5.
Debbie Gallagher: Balancing Adolescence and Responsibility: As she matures, Debbie has expectations placed upon her, both as
a daughter and as a young woman in a struggling household, while conceiving in Sn5, and the family of her child, Derek, take him to
Florida, forcing her to raise the child alone. Debbie has challenges taking care of the child and going to school. Debbie says “It was
not a mistake, I knew what I was doing by not taking birth control pills, “as from the video by luvv4kevv (2024).
Frank Gallagher: Impact on Women’s Roles and Responsibilities: His irresponsible behavior and substance abuse force the
women in his life particularly Fiona to assume roles that traditionally belong to men, such as economic providers and decision-
makers and his wife, Monica grapples with Bipolar disorders, doesn’t get proper care and Debbie struggles to raise her child while
being underage (NY Life, 2023). As stated by EpiphanyNews (2024), The Gallagher children learn to navigate the world and take on
adult responsibilities at a young age due to their father's negligence. According to a video by Shameless (2024), Fiona is looking
after Frank at the hospital and tells him”You have people at home who love you Frank, stop drinking, if you don’t what I have
always feared is true you don’t care about us, I don’t care how you do it but just stop.”
Image of Fiona and Jimmy by Colin McCormick (2024)
CLIP OF FIONA DEMANDING FRANK STOP
DRINKING FROM SHAMELESS (2024),
Image of Fiona and Jimmy by Colin McCormick (2024)
 COMMUNITY, SUPPORT SYSTEMS, AND
CONCLUSION
Importance of Female Friendships in the Series: Fiona and veronica give each other emotional and practical support such as when V
supported Fiona by helping promote her night club, and Fiona also helped V when she found out her boyfriend, Kev was already married
as by to(2024) According to a video byryssfavss (2024), We see how the pair celebrate when V says,”I am getting married” as she shows
her engagement ring. Jasmine Hollander gives Fiona economic and emotional support as she helped Fiona get a night club (RG, 2019).
Critique of Traditional Gender Norms Fiona is the main reason why the Gallaghers survive their financial problems and at first I
thought she is a housewife or female who is only there to take care of the kids. However, she is also there to push them all to do good
and to hold up their end for finances, When Debbie has Franny, as she becomes a female welder, she however resigns in sn8 on finding
out that she earns less than her male counterparts as shown by shamelessrepresentation (2020).Before resigning she says, “ I’m calling
on all women to end patriarchy, we will not be silenced.” Then went home with Franny,a worksite female employee comes to the
gallaghger home and say ”I was previously an electrician and I used to make 1/3 of what the men made even though I was the best.”
These comments show the stigma females go through while working in male dominated careers as shown by a video from ryssfavss
(2024).
Conclusion: Representation and the Call for Social Change: As the series critiques traditional gender norms and highlights the
importance of community support, it serves as a call for social change. By bringing these issues to the forefront, Shameless not only
entertains but also inspires critical discourse around the systemic challenges that working-class women encounter, emphasizing the need
for continued advocacy and reform.
An image of Veronica and Fiona from Tumblr (2019)
fiona and V celebrating together after she is
engaged to kevin
debbie gallagher being a welder
 REFERENCES

• amversion (2024). TikTok - Make Your Day. [Link].

[Link]

• Colin McCormick (2024). Redirect Notice. [Link]. [Link]

relationship-plot-holes/
• Courtney, B. (2019). FIONA GALLAGHER: YOUR AVERAGE, EVERYDAY SISTER-PARENT. Medium.
[Link]
• EpiphanyNews (2024). Understanding The Chaotic Life Of Frank Gallagher. Echoing Prism.
[Link]
• luvv4kevv (2024). Reddit - Dive into anything. [Link].
[Link]
• Marc Snetiker (2024). Redirect Notice. [Link]. [Link]
end/
 REFERENCES CONT…
• Moody, T. (2020). Time To Get Critical About Representation in ‘Shameless’. Medium. [Link]
critical-about-representation-in-shameless-4fa2f6faac98.
• NY Life (2023). Frank Gallagher: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly. New Yorker Life. [Link]
the-good-the-bad-the-ugly/.
• Quora (2019). What were some of the challenges faced by Fiona and Steve/Jimmy as a couple in ‘Shameless’? Quora.
[Link]
• RG (2019). Write reflection about chapter 4 | Psychology homework help. [Link].
[Link]
• ryssfavss (2024). TikTok - Make Your Day. [Link]. [Link]
• Shameless (2024). Fiona Demands Frank Stop Drinking | Shameless. YouTube. [Link]
tM
• shamelessrepresentation (2020). Shameless: The Females are in Charge This Time. Tumblr.
[Link]
• to, C. (2024). Veronica Fisher (US). Shameless Wiki. [Link]
• Tumblr (2019). Fiona & Veronica: My One True Pairing. Tumblr. [Link]
veronica-my-one-true-pairing