Family and Children

The film we watched in class was I Wish.  The story revolves around two young boys and their divided family.  While one boy suffers and wishes they could get back together, the other boy seems to just try to ignore the situation and make the best of it.  This familial strain is very indicative of the problems that come with divorce.  The kids always suffer most.  In the end, the boy who wanted his family back seemed to finally realize that he couldn't be selfish and wish for his family back if it was going to cause further damage.  This metaphor is found in his wish that the volcano would erupt again forcing their family back together, which he finally decides against in order to save others from pain.  He also grows up a bit in the moment as he learns to play with the hand life has dealt him and be happy with it.  The youngest brother who was more or less using a defense mechanism to keep from facing the reality of his family's problems (ex. the scene where he turns and watches TV while his parents and brother yell,) also seems to learn a lesson as he starts to believe in his father and his brother at the end.  He even makes a selfless wish for his father.  The growth that occurs in these boys occurs not because of familial relationships but because of the lack thereof, which implies that happiness can be found even in less than ideal family circumstances.  We can't all have the perfect family, but we can make our family perfect as we work at it.
Children learn their place in society through their family.  This sometimes occurs for them because of the stigmas that are associated with broken families.  Often a child will struggle due to the fact that they don't have a father or mother, and society can cause that suffering to be increased.  When a film portrays a family, ideal or broken, there are social implications and stereotypes that can often be associated with it.  But the point is often to show how those stereotypes are wrong and a child has the power to rise above the labels and make their own way in society.
One way media can relate to a child is through home videos.  My sister has 3 adorable boys who are always doing funny things, and when they do she gets out the camera and documents it.  She laughs about it and shows it to her friends, which cause the children to be interested in the home movie making process.  They even start to do funny things on purpose just so they can get filmed.  They interact with my sister in a very unique way through these films as they love to watch themselves on video and share it with those they meet.  They become more social through this use of home videos.  Home videos can also provide a means of getting to know each other, documenting processes and experiences that define the individuals involved.
In relation to the reading we did, Peter Rabbit portrayed the young rebel who chooses to defy his mother's wishes and explore the world around him, but through his experience, he learns the value of his mother's experience and is able to recognize her wisdom at last.  Often this is a necessary step in a child's learning process.  If a parent tells a child not to touch something or they will get burned, the child isn't likely to heed it fully and without question until they feel the pain of a burn for themselves.  They then become more likely to trust their parent's other warnings.