The Hidden Childhood Trauma in Step Brothers

So Dale's mother died, and Brennan's father left his mother when he was young. If you look at the characters you can see how much of an impact this had on their emotional development. That part is somewhat obvious, but if you look at the differences between Dale and Brennan it becomes more interesting. Dale's mother died some time in his childhood, so he was raised by his dad. This lack of a mother figure is apparent in the way he acts...pretending to be hyper-masculine, with his beef jerky talk among other things. Brennan on the other hand, while also a man-child, is a lot more feminine since he was raised only by his mother. Before they meet, both man-children express apprehension with their respective parents about the other parent figure. Brennan is worried about Mr. Doback's masculinity, saying, "He better not get in my face, I'll drop that motherfucker." Why worry about something so ridiculous unless because it's the exact thing you have been lacking your whole life. The same goes for Dale, who at the dinner table expresses a similar sentiment to his dad about Nancy, thinking she's going to want to fuck the young calf after she's done with the old bull, again, another gross misrepresentation of femininity because he lacks the exposure, just like Dale with masculinity.

The two step brothers grow in this movie because each of them has what the other lacks - Dale shows Brennan the masculinity he's been lacking, and in turn demystifies whatever has scared him into emotional stunting, and Brennan does the same for Dale with femininity.

Anyways, just a thought. Let me know what you think.

Submitted July 04, 2017 at 04:38AM by vbar44 http://ift.tt/2tajM1C