How to generate disrespect for women.

[dreadedcandiru2]

In case we start to think that Elly is the only Patterparent who corrupted her children by exposing them to the inane, obsolete and destructive preconceptions that protect them from doing something undesirable and having to learn how the world really works, we should remind ourselves that John was only too glad to promote his "My-mother-stayed-home-baked-cookies-and-picked-up-socks-so-Elly-should-too" agenda; about the only time I ever noticed him bonding with Mike was when he was either chortling about how he was messing with Elly's head because she was thinking too highly of herself or how she wanted to get a job because she hated him and Lizzie and wanted to stick them in a day-care center (presumably presented as a mix between the orphanage in Oliver Twist and a Nazi death camp); also, about the only time he deigned to notice Lizzie was when she was all dolled up. He sure wasn't going to waste his time praising her for non-essential skills like doing well in school. Why is it that Rod's avatar was made into such a churlish, mindlessly sexist dolt? It would seem to me that Lynn might actually have picked up on how conflicted he was that he was thought of not as "Rod Johnston, DDS" but as "Mr Lynn Johnston"; his confusion and consternation was regarded as treason to be punished by character defamation.

Comments

[howtheduck.livejournal.com]

about the only time he deigned to notice Lizzie was when she was all dolled up. He sure wasn't going to waste his time praising her for non-essential skills like doing well in school.

Neither of the Patterson parents was good about this. I remember with great delight how neither Elly nor John ever complimented Michael Patterson on getting published or the quality of his writing. All those compliments from his friends and never one from his parents, who left his congratulatory party early.

I remember when April performed a song she composed on television, neither Elly nor John were there to watch her perform or compliment her on the song. The last performance of April’s they saw was April’s disastrous string break at the band contest, where Grandpa Jim was the one to comfort April.

As for Elizabeth, when Elly went to visit and see her teach in Mtigwaki, there were no compliments to Elizabeth’s teaching. Instead, Elly focused on how messy Elizabeth’s room was and learning about the Ojibway. John never made the trip. Elly didn’t talk to Elizabeth during her wedding day preparation, and spent her time running around with Connie Poirier instead. At least John talked to her, but that probably because she was dolled up.

Speaking from my perspective as a parent, a good parent wants to see their child show off. The child should be able to count on their parents as the people from whom they are guaranteed to get praise. When it comes to this, both Elly and John are ridiculously bad parents.

[dreadedcandiru2.livejournal.com]

Speaking from my perspective as a parent, a good parent wants to see their child show off. The child should be able to count on their parents as the people from whom they are guaranteed to get praise. When it comes to this, both Elly and John are ridiculously bad parents.

This raises the important question of why the two of them are only ever around to condemn their children for minor slights or to lecture them about how entitled they are. The important answer is that they aren't decent enough people to be entrusted with children.

[howtheduck.livejournal.com]

To be honest, I think that Elly and John both reflect Lynn’s own opinion on the matter. We have seen in countless interviews that Lynn’s work ethic and her expectation that everyone can be rich if they work hard and show up on time, come from the fact she was handed her career on a silver platter. Since she got her career while her kids were young, I can only imagine what effect this belief had on Lynn’s ability to praise her own children’s accomplishments.

[dreadedcandiru2.livejournal.com]

We have seen in countless interviews that Lynn’s work ethic and her expectation that everyone can be rich if they work hard and show up on time, come from the fact she was handed her career on a silver platter. Since she got her career while her kids were young, I can only imagine what effect this belief had on Lynn’s ability to praise her own children’s accomplishments.

When I look back on the strip and remember that nobody else was praised for working towards a goal, it becomes clear I shouldn't have expected the kids to avoid being subjected to the philosophy of being derided for not sitting back and letting the magic happen.

[clio-1.livejournal.com]

"The child should be able to count on their parents as the people from whom they are guaranteed to get praise."

Yeah, they should. Plenty never can. Immature parents see their child as an extension of themselves, and if those parents don't like themselves, they're going to by hyper-critical of the kid. And if those parents also have high expectations, bringing home report cards filled with all "A"s for your whole life will not elicit anything from them. One "B" sure will though.

There are plenty of Patterparents in the world. I find Liz's relationship with her parents sadly realistic, because of how generally passive she was portrayed. However, Mike's relationship with them as a grownup is complete fantasy. Mike didn't have a passive temperament, and Mike was angry. For some reason, I have a feeling he'd see things more clearly than his sister as they got older. I can pretty much guarantee that in his 30s his parents would be lucky if they got the occasional Christmas card from him.

[dreadedcandiru2.livejournal.com]

However, Mike's relationship with them as a grownup is complete fantasy. Mike didn't have a passive temperament, and Mike was angry. For some reason, I have a feeling he'd see things more clearly than his sister as they got older. I can pretty much guarantee that in his 30s his parents would be lucky if they got the occasional Christmas card from him.

It would make more sense if he were more like Aaron at that; that's why in the little fixfic on the Foobiverse, he's pretty much spat out all the Kool-Aid.