Are their parents actually this chill?
Upon my boyfriend's request, we started watching Twin Peaks. We're currently in the second season and admittedly, Twin Peaks piqued my interest (see what I did there?).
One thing I noticed that honestly bothered me, is how chill and calm all the parents are. I want to articulate how concerning this is for me as an Asian.
The story revolves around the mysterious death of a teenager, Laura Palmer. Spoiler: We finished season 1 not knowing who the killer is but they did gather a list of potential suspects, at least the case is ongoing.
From the episodes I've seen, it confuses how controlled and gentle the parents and adults are with everything that's happening. Here are some scenarios to give you a clear picture of what I'm talking about.
Laura's missing? Nah, she's just with her friends
When her mother, Sarah, woke up this morning, she was confident that Laura is just in her room. When she went up to check and noticed she wasn't there, she understandably called parents of her friends and classmates.
Not having any concrete answers about Laura's whereabouts, Sarah called her husband Leland, and his response was "Maybe she's just out with the boyfriend or with friends. Don't worry." Really?
When my dad doesn't see me at home by 6 PM when I was 17 or 18, he's already livid. He'll start calling all of my friends, and will drive down to my school if I hadn't call him yet. I know that they didn't have cellphones back then, but their entire neighbourhood had telephone lines! You mean to tell me it's that hard to contact your parents to not let them know you'll be out?
Also, Laura might have stayed out the entire night. Did it not occur to the father that she's a female teenager and is a possible target of serial killer and perverts?
Leland's reaction is crazy to me. We've just started season 2, and it looks like Laura's death is driving him crazy - well, I guess any parent would grieve heavily upon the death of their kid.
Donna escaped, let me calmly tell Mike and the police
This one may be very cultural but I am so perplexed at how calmly Donna's father reacted when she escaped at night, knowing there might be a serial killer going around. No fuss, no fear, just very gently informing her boyfriend that she can't come with them because she's not home.
This may be for the reason I wish to believe, that Donna's dad does not really like Mike and he'd rather have her daughter somewhere else than her asshole of a boyfriend, but if I really think about it... Is that really what I really want to happen to my daughter? Girls are being reported to be dead left and right, and my daughter sneaking out is just the perfect start to a true crime about to happen. It's obnoxious how calm her dad was!
We can give it to him that he called the police right after, but still, that was such a calm phone call. If that would have been me, my dad already brought a gun and would pull me out wherever I was drag me from that place back at home. I just know slaps both from my mom and my dad are imminent, and I can't even be mad at it. What the fuck was I doing sneaking around at bedtime? If I wanted to go out, I need to ask for permission.
Audrey and whatever the hell she does
It is evident that Audrey lives in her own world. She is a daughter of a powerful and rich family, which makes it even more confusing to me that the fact they lost the Norwegians for business was taken lighter than I would have thought.
It is evident that Audrey lives in her own world. She is a daughter of a powerful and rich family, which makes it even more confusing to me that the fact they lost the Norwegians for business was taken lighter than I would have imagined.
Her father was obviously distressed, but there was no reprimand whatsoever. I'm not saying he should write her out of the will, but I would have thought the dad would ground her, or ask her to write an apology letter... To be honest, I don't know what rich people do to punish their kids. I don't think belts and slippers are an option. Whatever it is, kids must be disciplined at one point or another.
To get things straight
Not because I grew up with a tiger family means that I advertise being a tiger to all the kids. No, ma'amsir. I grew up terrified of my mom and my dad, and I still hold the same emotion I did when I was a kid. Granted I'm an adult now, and I know I'm not going to get hit by a belt, but I know at one point or another, my parents' words and actions towards me still have a heavy toll on me. That would never change.
But if I actually take the time to think about it, my parents disciplined me the way they only knew how. They weren't violent, they're just Asians, I guess. They were raised by the culture we're in, and in this culture, if a possible serial killer is on the loose, you best believe a belt will be waiting for you when you get home after sneaking out.
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