What sitcoms and their evolution can teach us about generational trauma
When I think of my family and all those that came before me, I see a messy watercolor painting: a hodge-podge of bright spots, conflict, dedication, turmoil, and love. Family histories are beautiful, yet fraught with old hurts. When different generations have opposite ways of dealing with these histories, it can be hard to find common ground. This incompatibility within a family structure often breeds division, leaving younger generations feeling abandoned while older ones feel disrespected. The current situation seems to benefit no one, but there is a common way forward.
An easy way to see the change in attitudes toward generational trauma over time is the sitcom. Sitcoms are built on the foundation of a family or social group structure. All the plot points and relationship dynamics grow from this central framework. Because of this, the jokes and relationships found within a sitcom can tell us a lot about how people during that time felt and thought.
The pilot episode of a 1975 sitcom, The Jeffersons, is a great example. The premise of this show follows a Black married couple, Louise and George Jefferson, who have worked hard for a long time and are finally able to rent an apartment in a nice part of town. In the first episode, George wants to hire a maid to help with upkeep on the apartment, but Louise is completely averse to this. George struggles to understand Louise’s resistance, as his intention is only to make her life easier.
After a lot of awkward conversations and arguments, Louise is finally honest with George about why she does not want to hire a maid. She feels uncomfortable employing someone to do the work that she once did. It says a lot about their marital dynamic that it takes Louise so long to be honest about her misgivings, especially considering that she and George have both experienced poverty and financial hardship.
One of the subplots of this episode is the impending visit of George’s mother. It is made abundantly clear that George’s mother dislikes Louise and takes any opportunity she can to demean her and her household. This is a dynamic that is joked about frequently throughout the episode, but never addressed. George never feels the need to step in and defend his wife and furthermore, he never makes much of an effort to understand where his wife is coming from throughout the episode. These troubles become clearer when this episode is viewed in comparison to a similar, modern sitcom.
Black-ish is a generally light-hearted watch about a family full of goofy characters. Season 4, Episode 2 of Black-ish, however, attempts to tackle the signs and effects of postpartum depression. Like The Jeffersons, this show is able to find comedic moments within the family dynamic. However, the way that it approaches generational trauma is incredibly different. Rainbow, the wife and mother of the family, has just had a baby and is experiencing a lot of the symptoms of postpartum depression. Instead of being confused or frustrated by her, her husband Andre begins to look for ways to help. He even convinces her to see a doctor and she is put on medication to treat the depression.
Already, there’s a difference here in the marital dynamics seen in Black-ish and The Jeffersons through the relationship between Rainbow and her mother-in-law. In the pilot episode of The Jeffersons, George’s mother teases and belittles Louise, and she faces no real repercussions from either Louise or George. In Black-ish, Andre’s mother decides to give the new baby formula instead of breast milk. This upsets Rainbow because her mother-in-law never asked if this was okay. Rainbow and her mother-in-law get into a heated argument where Rainbow very plainly tells her that what she did was over the line. Instead of remaining silent or even siding with his mother, Andre backs Rainbow up and asks his mother to leave.
Andre’s mother tries to justify her decision by saying that Rainbow is just ‘weak’ for not being able to handle motherhood. She tries to belittle Rainbow’s feelings by arguing that it just is not that big of a deal. It is incredibly refreshing to watch Rainbow stand up for herself against these hurtful accusations and to see her husband backing her up. Instead of allowing Andre’s mother to perpetuate harmful ideas about motherhood and mental health, both Rainbow and Andre make it clear how they feel and even go so far as to ask Andre’s mother to leave the house.
These two episodes do a wonderful job of illustrating how conversations around generational trauma and family roots have changed over time. The very fact that the same issues come up in both episodes shows how the initial ways of dealing with generational trauma were not effective because the problem is still there. Respecting the elders within our family is important, but someone does not deserve respect if they cannot give it. We have the power to break generational curses by calling out family members for their harmful behavior.
An increase in accountability and acknowledgement of past hurts has put many in the older generations on edge. Some are scared to be held responsible for the hurt they have committed. In most cases, these are things that were done to them by their parents and grandparents. Being someone who lived with both my parents and grandparents, I saw how the dynamic between my father and his mother affected my relationship with him. However, if no one is called out or held responsible for their actions, then the cycle continues unchecked.
When you realize that so many of the hurts and flaws within yourself were placed there by your family, there is a certain anger and resentment that comes with that realization. There must be a balance between holding people accountable and having compassion for them. We also must acknowledge, as the younger generation, that we have our own flaws and hurts that we are perpetuating. If everyone can come to the table with a certain level of accountability and compassion, then families will have an easier time moving forward. More importantly, new spaces will be created where future generations can grow up without so much hurt and resentment.
Gabe Hendershot is a first year film, photography and visual arts major who refuses to let past trauma define the future. He can be reached at [email protected].