Cultural Differences And Family Bonds Collide

In Tatiana de Rosnay’s novel, Sarah’s Key, the plot revolves around two protagonists living in France in two very different time periods. Ten-year-old Sarah Starzynski lives in Nazi-occupied Vichy France in 1942 and Julia Jarmond lives in Paris in 2002. Despite them living in distant eras, their paths cross once Julia does research on the Vel’ d’Hiv roundup, where the French police rounded up Jews living in France; Sarah and her family are victims of this. As Julia’s research deepens, she discovers that Sarah’s parents were killed at Auschwitz concentration camp, and her brother died hiding, locked in a cupboard waiting for his sister to return for him. Julia’s husband’s family have lived in the apartment Sarah’s brother, Michel, died in; Julia

For five long weeks the couple longs for letters from Germany proving Inge’s character, all while remaining apart. When the letters finally arrive, and still Inge is denied citizenship, the frustration shared between the couple reaches a tipping point. Yet still, the couple remains steadfast in their decision to remain apart before marriage. This display of strength, in the face of an illogical system stands to prove the traditional nature of both Inge and Olaf.

Families, as units, are extremely complex and vary drastically from one another. A person might be under the impression that his or her own family is nothing special, especially if they are accustomed to their family’s routines. After analyzing my own family through the sociological lenses of an assortment of scholars, it is now clear that it is not as simple as it seems. Sociologically analyzing my family through the divorces that have occurred in my life makes it clear that divorce can have an impact on a variety of family dynamics, such as my parents and their jobs and domestic duties, the amount of involvement they have with their friends and family, as well as my financial dependence on my parents.

A week ago I found myself reading Patricia Hill Collins, “It’s All In the Family: Intersections of Gender, Race, and Nation” and it made me reflect on the ways in which both gender and race are socially built out of distorted interpretations of family. Collectively constructed as opposed to an innate understanding. We have grown dependent on dysfunctional projections of family, giving rise to a hierarchy which aims to serve all: “…a male headship that privileges and naturalizes masculinity as a source of authority…mothers comply with fathers, sisters defer to brothers, all with the understanding that boys submit to maternal authority until they become men.” (Collins 159) The commitment towards this flawed assemblage of characterizations, has in a way, normalized the social hierarchy. However, this expectation has become unrealistic. Many females find that they are not adequately prepared to survive in a male dominated country, although there is little rebellion against these imposed values.

-This novel takes place in France during World War II. It is about a blind girl and a German boy who meet and they both try to survive the war that was going on.

The idioms of everyday American speech in a middle-class domestic situation are used in showing the events and relationships of the Berlin family. In contrast to the conversations of Becca and Stan, usually presented as straight dialogue, the discussions among the three sisters are conventionally presented, often with “she said” and other interpolations to give explicitly the emotional level of the sister’s disagreements. Madga, the Polish student who acts as Becca’s guide to the death camp site speaks fluent English but at times awkward English “Oh, they are much in appreciation” she says when given a pair of jeans. Contrast between the formal, traditional language of the fairy tale and childish, informal chatter is shown when the children comment or question as Gemma proceeds with her Briar Rose fairy tale story telling. Her contrast revisiting of just this one fairy tale shows the reader that while her conscious memory has buries the details of her past horrors, she cannot help returning to the fairy tale allegory. Contrast is also shown between the warm, happy imagery of life in the Berlin house and the bleak, harsh details of the holocaust.

Four people who have never met before all carry around their guilt. As the end of World War Two happens, these four are trying to get to safety. Joana, the sergeant, who spent her whole life studying, wishes she put her book down and enjoyed the people she is fighting to get back too. Staying in her group, Joana is protected by her _____ status. When a boy and girl join the group, both of them hurt, Joana treated them before asking question. The girl, Emili, was polish, a race deemed unworthy of Hitler, and also pregnant. Where the baby’s father was unknown, Emili and her pink hat did not know the language, but spoke poor enough German to let Joana know the boy, whom Emili called her knight, saved her from a Russian solider. the boy, Florian

To the outside world, I appear to belong to the Traditional White Nuclear Family culture, but my family included co-cultures and subcultures that were rare in the suburban south.

Set in 1942 during World War II, Sarah was just a little girl when she and her parents got taken away by the French police. She hid her younger brother in a closet and promised him she’d come back. De Rosnay added the promise Sarah made to her brother to make the reader wonder if she will ever get back to him. The struggles Sarah starts going through at her age gives the audience a sense of sympathy for her. As soon as she gets separated from her parents, the author makes the story take an unexpected turn that the reader should not anticipate. As Sarah begins to be on her own, this makes De Rosnay’s audience want to keep up with the

In conclusion, Misha Milgrom and Liesel Memminger are two unfortunate children during WW2. They share many traits in common, but experienced many of the same issues of living in such a time in different forms, due to living in different locations or countries. Misha and Liesel were very alike throughout their

Kindertransport, a modern classic by Diane Samuels, cleverly illustrates the mechanisms of a mother/daughter relationship alongside themes of post-modernism, feminism and identity. Nine months before the outbreak of WWII, 10 000 unaccompanied Jewish children were sent to England as a precautionary measure due to the Kristallnacht. One of them was Eva, daughter of Helga, sent unwillingly because of her mother’s wishes to keep her alive. Presently, Evelyn is sending her daughter to college. Old memories resurface as Evelyn is forced to confront – her childhood as Eva.

In 1943 Annmarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen live in Copenhagen, Denmark. Nazi Germany has occupied their country. One day Annemarie, Ellen, and Annemarie’s younger sister Kristi walk home from school. Annemarie and Ellen decide to race but, German soldiers had stoped them on the corner near their apartment building. The Germans question them about a couple of thing so they answer the questions. When Annmarie, Ellen and Kristi arrive home Mrs. Johansen who is Annmaries mom and Mrs. Rosen who is Ellen’s mom are very upset to hear about their daughter’s interacting with the Germans. They warn the girls not to interact with the soldiers.

Jenny Erpenbeck’s Visitation, published in 2008, gives the reader glimpses into German history from the creation of the land itself time hopping to the 1930s all the way up to the fall of the Berlin Wall told through the perspectives of people who lived it. Erpenbeck guides you through German history not by a concrete timeline but through each character’s story, giving voice to a raw and honest portrayal of what life was like during these times. The stories primarily take place in the lake house in Brandenberg, each character sharing their own memories of the house and the land. With each new character Erpenbeck exposes the reader to so many different themes, some of which are: identity, and “the mother” and how those themes are linked to national

Before referring to the impact of culture on families, I will say that culture is known as knowledge, art, beliefs, law, morals, customs and all habits and skills acquired by man not only in the family but also to be part of a society as a member that is. It is also defined as a set of ideas, behaviors, symbols and social practices learned from generation to generation through life in society. The family is defined as a group of people linked by blood, marriage, or adoption; usually centered on a married couple, their dependents, and relatives. Although there have also been non-traditional families made up of people who are not linked by blood or marriage and are now found more frequently in many regions of the world.

Modern Family is a sitcom that first aired in 2009 that focuses on many prevalent issues including cultural differences in families. The US was a nation founded upon immigration and now embraces the term as “melting pot” (National Review). The Pew Research Center reports that currently about ten percent of children are mixed race (VOA News). Many children have the influence of two or more cultures within their families. Yet the influence of culture can extend in the environment as well. Growing up with Chinese parents but living in America I can feel the impact of both cultures and I am appreciative of both. There are moments in Modern Family where we can see both the “melting pot” of the Delgado-Pritchett marriage and the tension caused by the different cultures, and I find there are reasons why the sitcom portrays both perspectives.