Something I've noticed in this country is people's fascination with genealogy. You don't get that, or not to such an extent, in Europe. Here, they have their own clubs, associations, on-line forums, libraries, even proprietary software.Could it have to do with the fact that the U.S. is a nation of uprooted people?
My mother-in-law is totally fascinated by genealogy. She spends most of her retirement age chasing her family's ancestors -- and gets a real kick out of it. I even found out that my S.O., whom I thought was a pure California surfer dude, is in fact a Euro-pudding -- like me.
3 comments:
I think it has everything to do with the fact that the US is a nation of uprooted people. Most people in the US came here from somewhere else. In Europe, you have some families who stay on the same plot of land for 800 years. So then you have people who are really interested in finding their roots. I think perhaps it gives them a kind of feeling of belonging, when they know where it is they come from
Americans are cut off from their roots by the ocean and many moves, and often lack family traditions, so they go to genealogy not only to find out what country their ancestors came from, which they often don't even know, but also just to feel reconnected with world history. This is something Europeans have without trying.
The French know where they're from. And because they live in a more class-conscious culture, my theory is that they don't want to find out more about their ancestors-- probably peasants, like everyone else's!
Thanks for the comments...and the feedback! It's true that the Europeans are spoiled root-wise, and somewhat laden by their family history. The notion of "class" is indeed very different here and there. The upside in America is that you're free from it and can more or less reinvent yourself. If you were born with a bad ticket in Europe, it's much more challenging.
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