Jewish Mothers - Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986) Discussion

[–] StephG72 16 years ago

My dad is Jewish, my mom is Catholic and she's the biggest "Jewish Mother" ever!

I've always thought it was funny that so many different ethnic groups and nationalities seem to think that they have the corner on the market for meddling/guilt-giving/food-pushing mothers.

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[–] ellery-6 16 years ago

Is your mother Italian? Mine is Italian/Irish and she definitely has some elements of that. Not really sure about WASPy mothers, though. My father's mother was one and she definitely did not seem as meddling, nor as warm for that matter. But that's not necessarily true for everyone, who knows.

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[–] telltime 16 years ago

One of the best jokes I've ever heard about "Jewish" mothers can really be re-told by instead of inserting etnicity, just make it about "your" mother and "my" mother:

What's the difference between other (your) mothers and Jewish (my) mothers?

(Your) A WASP mom will say "If you don't finish your dinner, I'll kill you."

(MY) A Jewish mom will say "If you don't finish your dinner, I'll kill myself."

Can be applied to practically any ethnic group with a "traditional" medling mother.

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[–] shorenuff 16 years ago

I had a protestant mother, and if I didn't want to finish my dinner she would always say, "Think of the poor starving children who don't have anything to eat!"

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[–] HillieBoliday 14 years ago

That's exactly what my mother as well as my father would say when
my brothers and myself were growing up about eating all of our food!

My father had traveled the world over as a merchant marine, and witnessed
first hand in other countries, the starving, begging children that
he would encounter.

My father would share how he would give away all of his money/food
to these children, because he couldn't stand to see them so hungry.

My mother was a great cook, so it was not really that
hard to finish all of our food!

They would have never threatened to kill us about anything;
but we would get some corporal punishment for misbehaving!

"OOO...I'M GON' TELL MAMA!"

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[–] jersey-3 13 years ago

What is funny is Blythe Danner isn't Jewish (although I think her husband was in real life.)

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[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] jgroub 11 years ago

Yes, she's Jewish by injection. Ahem.

I want the doctor to take your picture so I can look at you from inside as well.

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[–] Popcorngal (4361) 2 years ago

She did a great job.

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