Generation Gap

Essay by Chinese_MJB, August 2004

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When is the last time you have a deep talk with your family? Last night? Last week? Or even last month? In the society this days, parents and children often had less time for each other or even talks to each other. Many children complain that their parents never understand their feelings and problems and thus stop talking with their parents. Some parents will also complain that their children don't behavior as the ways they wants. Lack of communication and understanding, or even the effect of traditional culture will create distance between parents and children, and thus, a family generation gap is created.

Language problem is one of the main reasons to cause generation gap between parents and children. Pat More's Poem "Elena" is a poem that talks about how language problems created the generation gap between the mother and the children. This poem described after a Mexican family immigrant to America, the children start to use English to community with each other while their mother did not speak English.

The children often laugh at their mother's mistake in English speaking. They stop to talk with their mother because they complain about her understanding in English. "Now my children go to American high schools, they speak English. At night they sit around the kitchen table, laugh with one another. I stand by the stove and feel dumb, alone." This shows how the mother feel about her children speak English during the dinner at home. She can not understand or join in the conversation because her understanding of English is limited. The English barrier is the beginning of the generation gap because it limited the communication between family members.

Lack of understanding each other is another main cause for the generation gap. In "Raising in the sun" by Lorraine Hansberry,