There are several external conflicts within the Morrison family. All of them revolve around a similar idea of the family struggling to earn money to take care of one another. Of all the siblings, Luke being the oldest has to face the challenges and is expected to solve them, though he does not learn to cope with the situation. Additionally, this causes for him to act differently and his personality changes into an unkinder one. The major conflict of Luke losing his job has led to the extra struggle of their day-to-day life. Matt states, “ We can’t live off charity all our lives! You can’t go expecting other people to look after us.” (137) The people of Crow Lake aren’t financially doing so well themselves, and Matt does not want
He did face problems which caused him to worry, but he did always try to solve each problem reasonably. Matt also did a lot for his siblings too, as he would work when he could and would watch the girls so Luke could work. Matt was very devoted and willing to help out however he could. Although Matt didn’t stay in school, due to the dilemma with Marie Pye he does make the best of his life. It was a shame for him to not go and finish university since he worked very hard to get the scholarship, but he made the best of things and built a life for himself, Marie and their child. Matt had to face many difficulties and they shaped him into the good life he has made for himself and his
When her family and close friends disappear one by one, Mattie is forced to make decisions through hardships by herself. By doing so, she matures and becomes a better person throughout the process. For example, Mattie takes care of her grandfather when there was
With their death came many situations that needed solutions -harsh solutions- that almost drifted the family apart. Losing them forced Matt to act like an adult at the tender age of seventeen. Knowing that his parents are gone, Matt made sure that he looked after his little sisters while their older brother Luke was away looking for odd jobs that could support the family. In fact, his idea of babysitting was bringing his younger sisters to the pond. He taught them about the ecosystem in the pond - how the different beings in the pond lived. In a passage, Katie recalls the effect their parents’ death made on Matt: “..everyone assumed that I was the one most affected..[but] I had Matt to turn to..[he] had nobody” (102). Everyone assumed that he would just cope with the tragedy because he was expected to. After all, he was turning into an adult. Although he was pushed to the responsibility prematurely, Matt still stepped up and did the best he can to raise his little
However, she uses these portrayals to contrast them to the strong bonds of friendship that she writes about in the middle of the book when Taylor is in a new community. Unlike many uncaring and unsupportive family members written about before, the introduction of the character Mattie immediately reveals her friendly personality. Mattie brings them a few snacks “...just [because they] needed some cheering up” (60), and she has a very maternal attitude towards Taylor and her child. Her compassion and caring toward them help her many times; for example, Mattie allows Taylor to “...leave [her] car there for the time being” (64) and even offered Taylor “...a job at Jesus Is Lord Used Tires” (104). Mattie helps her in her new community, and she therefore quickly becomes a motherly figure in the narrator’s life. Another person Taylor meets here is Lou Ann, when Taylor sees that she has space for rent. After talking for a while, they already agree that they get along very well: “‘Of course you can move in,’ she said. ‘I’d love it. I wasn’t sure you’d want to.’ ‘Why wouldn’t I want to?’” (101). These two characters form a genuine friendship. Even when Taylor, being independent, argues that “‘[she] doesn’t want’” them to act like a family, the two quickly make up. They appreciate each other, and Lou Ann quickly becomes like a second family to Taylor. While many families depicted previously
Mattie; however, is not considered able to live and support herself and is considered a burden her family members. Because of this she is moved around
Ed McCoy, and his children were referred for counseling after experiencing the death of his wife and the mother of his children (Thomlison, 2016). Ed, now has become a single parent. Although his mother-in-law Grace lives nearby and appears to have a good rapport with his children the responsibility of raising his children alone is now his responsibility. Now, Ed has a multiplicity of emotions as he is also concerned about the health of his daughter inheriting the disorder that caused his wife’s death. After the loss of his wife Ed is in mourning over her, concerned about the health of his daughter long term, and questions himself on how he will parent these children alone (Thomlison, 2016).
The Luke’s family comes to therapy in hopes of helping the eldest daughter, Olivia who is 18 years old and her struggling with anorexia. Jason and Mary, the parents, have been divorced for over 3 years. Olivia’s problems started when she was 13 years old, during the time her parents separated. Olivia has two sisters Betty (7 years) and Peggy (12 years old). Mary reported that their marriage ended because Jason wanted out.
For our film focus, we chose to look at my uncle, John Greg, and his partner Michael and the relation to same-sex marriages and the “white wedding.” In our film, we ponder whether many same-sex weddings defy the traditional standards of an American wedding or if they conform to their own ideas. In my family’s case of John Greg and Michael, they conformed to many of their own concepts, while choosing to keep many of the classic wedding traditions that have been circulating for decades. John Greg and Michael present a fusion wedding, that stands out among many of the other same-sex weddings. Their wedding relates to our course material through Karen Dunak’s book, As Long As We Both Shall Love: Weddings In Postwar America, as she presents a chapter on same-sex marriages.
The Symbolic Interaction theory refers to ways in which a family or society attaches meaning to verbal communication, non-verbal communication, people, and objects. We are taught from a young age communication using verbal language and accepted ways to express our needs. The theory represents perception of objects or actions (Macionis, 2007, p.17).
Matt strongly does not put up with Jamie’s family’s thoughts of selling the lake house. He becomes irritated with Linda and tells her “Me and Jamie do not owe you anything.” Linda’s reply of “you owe us everything, if Charlton had not taken you on you would never have been able to make a down payment on that lake house”. This only strengthens Matt’s decision to follow his dreams with Jamie. It is astounding that Matt and Jamie are looked down upon because their life together is
In the film Ordinary People, a lot of poor communication leads to conflict between the Jarrett family. However, most of the conflict is started by the mother, Beth. Throughout the movie, Beth is grieving the loss of her oldest son, Buck. Bucks death occurred when Conrad lost grip on his hand and he slipped away into the raging waters of a storm and drowned. Conrad feels guilty and blames the death upon himself later leading to his attempt in taking his life. While all this is going on the father, Calvin, is doing the best he can to keep the family moving in a positive direction. Because of all the issues and anger held against one another, conflict management could have been very useful in strengthening the relationships in the family during arguments. The aim of conflict management is to enhance learning and group outcomes, including effectiveness or performance in organizational settings. Occurring repeatedly throughout the film are acts of “silence” and “violence”. The family could have used a gentle tone or even just been opened
Throughout the book, Becoming Nicole – The Transformation of an American Family by Amy Ellis Nutt, there were many topics and vocabulary that were semi new to me. With that in mind, there was a lot that I learned from the book itself, relating to what it actually meant to be transgender, and the glossary in the back helped to even further my understanding of different vocabulary.
The film, Precious, is a powerfully charged story that delves into the family dynamics of a 16-year-old girl and her struggles to survive an onslaught of treacherous experiences. Throughout the film, the viewer is enveloped in a dramatic web of extreme situations, experienced by the main character, and those to whom she is close. The themes of domestic violence, rape, incest, drug addiction, gambling, poverty, social justice, social services, housing and education are laced together throughout the story. Particularly poignant attention is paid to various systems that help shape the experiences of the characters. The social services industry, and its associated workers, educators and administrators, set the foundation for the social themes that are highlighted by this film.
When first beginning to read this novel the reader may think that all the stories that Jacob’s grandfather told were just fairy tales but in actuality they were all true stories and experiences from his childhood. Jacob and his grandfather are extremely close and Jacob was really the only one who understood his grandfather. Growing up, Jacob’s grandfather would tell him extravagant tales of his childhood and the children he grew up with. This tales included a boy who had bee’s living within him, an invisible boy, and extremely strong young girl, monsters, the enchanted island he lived on, and his headmistress who would turn into a bird. Everyone thought these stories were in fact, just stories;
By comparing the childhoods to the adulthoods of certain characters in the story, Morrison argues that