It may be that nothing in the world is so hard to comprehend as a terror whose time has come and gone - which may be why parents can scold their children for their fear of the boogeyman, when as children themselves they had to cope with exactly the same fears (and the same sympathetic but uncomprehending parents). That may be why one generation's nightmare becomes the next generation's sociology, and even those who have walked through the fire have trouble remembering exactly what those burning coals felt like.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Fear and trauma are hard to explain across generations because experiences differ.
- In plain terms
- It is hard to understand why parents fear certain things as we grow up.
- What can you take from it?
- Trauma is personal and hard to communicate to others.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What fears did your parents have?
- How do you share difficult feelings?
Another view
This ignores that some fears are irrational or unnecessary.
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