I do not mean this as a joke thread and I would appreciate seeing a serious discussion on the question I am about to present to you. You see, I've never had a father. My mother took ne away from him when I was six because he wanted to put a bullet in my head because he couldn't take the fact that i was very hyperactive. So I've never really had any kind of father. So today I was visiting a friend and the Andy Griffith show came on and we got into a discussion about what makes it so popular even today. Personally, don't really know why it is popular today. consider how anti family some parts of America is, and that show is a very pro family show. Maybe not the nuclear mother and father type family, but it was very pro family expressed in the character of Andy Griffith. Andy is actually a pretty intelligent, knowledgeable, level headed and wise kind of man. He also has some slyness to him to which comes out when he is dealing with different miscreants that pop up on his show. And perhaps he is the image of what a proper father could be, or at least, presents the embodiment of what a good father could possibly be like, and I think that is part of the reason why it is a popular show today. And sometimes whenever i see that show, I sometimes wonder how different of a person I would be if I had a father like him. Of course we could go on about how the show is a complete fantasy and unrealistic, but, to me, the show does speak to how people would prefer to have things. A simple uncomplicated way of life. So now I present to you this question. How different do you think you would be if you had a father like Andy Griffith?
Basically, take all of the things you had to learn on your own about being a man over the years and imagine you had been taught them from your earliest days instead. Assuming you've figured it out by now!
First of all, I do not know anyone who is anti-family. That was an unnecessary political talking point you inserted. If you want a decent discussion, I suggest you word that some other way. BTW, where was Opie's mom? There was no nuclear family on this show.
No thanks. I had a great Dad, and he was just the right one to raise me. I needed a very bookish environment to thrive, because I sure was no athlete, and I was not very sociable. Andy was not someone who could have given me the confidence not to conform. He would have wanted me to change to be a nice Mayberry boy. I would not have done well with a father that went fishing and threw a baseball with me. It would have been a disaster.
Me and my dad did some of that stuff together. I liked archery a lot, and shooting guns was fun. Baseball didn't work too well. I liked it well enough, I just was not good at it. I started playing hockey later, and my dad thought I was insane. But really, we were probably not the best match. My dad was very religious, and I always thought religion was silly- even as a kid I didn't buy it. That made things pretty tough. It's hard to say how I would be different now if I had a different dad.
Andy is portrayed as having a pretty good font of fatherly wisdom on the show, but he wasn't raising Opie alone, he had Aunt Bee to help. But fathering isn't just a collection of wise sayings, and tousling your head, I think a lot of it is just being there, day in and day out, demonstrating in real life how a man is supposed to live, and what his responsibilities are.
Assuming that Andy portrayed a good Dad, wouldn't he have realized your need for bookishness and encouraged it? Andy realized what was right for Opi and the time.
Here's what the Wiki says about Op's mother: - - - Updated - - - Here's what the Wiki says about Op's mother:
It would be worse I think. My dad put food on the table, but he was always stubborn, inflexible and such a smart ass that even if he could help teach you something, you wouldn't want his help because all that came with it. The rub is that it forced me to figure out how to do things myself or find someone who could help me. The process of learning how to do for my own kept the pump primed for when I went into the classroom. School was a cake walk because it was a lot easier to memorize some facts than figuring out why the lawn mower wouldn't start or why the pedals on my bike were not turning right. Add to that having to figure out ways to earn money to buy for myself the things he would not buy, then the end result is that I am better for it than I would have been with an Andy Griffith type dad. Now after all that, I will point out that some of my brothers and sisters did not do as well in this regard. I believe the issue is only partially about your parent(s) or lack of one, and a lot to do with who you are as an individual--your wants, personality, work ethic, etc.
My Dad was bookish. I don't see Andy discussing Roman history, Science Fiction novels, or taking me to see King Lear, let alone a lot of the stuff we discuss here. I doubt Andy had a personal library consisting of over 50 thousand books hidden in his attic. I got most of my liberal arts education from the dinner table, and almost nothing from the public schools.
This thread is so weird.... I suppose I did grow up with the "peaches and rainbows" but not in the TV sense - I don't think any family is like the old TV families. My parents did everything they could for me, so I really can't blame them for anything - I could have made better decisions for myself but they were mine.. I grew up in a classical liberal household so ever since I was 15 or so the decisions I have made have been mine. I got advice from my parents - not dicipline. I could have been anything I wanted to be... Could life have been better? sure, but would have I changed anyrthing? no. There is no such thing as a life of "sunshine and rainbows" well, unless someone is an elitist delusional person like trust fund babies.
Yes, I agree, i can't see Andy as the sciency bookworm myself. But then again, in his town, I don't think there's a place for that type either. But don't underestimate his intelligence just because he doesn't really know science.
I could see Andy discussing Roman History, and talking about King lear...... Not sure he would talk about it as Roman History or King Lear, but rather as "a bunch of fellas back in Ancient Rome......"
I had a father like Andy Griffith. He was a quiet, intelligent man and people listened when he talked. I only heard him swear once. I faced a challenge in the service. The coward's way out was the easiest, but I chose the brave route because I feared the shame if he wasn't proud of me, and I wanted to look myself in the mirror twenty years later.
I once saw a NatGeo (I believe it was) special on elephants that I believe has some applicability to humans. Seems a naturalist came up with the bright idea that there were too many mature bulls in the herd, so they culled the herd of ALL bulls thinking the juvenile males would take over some day. Instead, the juvenile males set about killing and goring all the rhinos they could find. It was gruesome and it wasn't until bull elephants from other parts of Africa were reintroduced that order was restored and the rhinos could go about living. All of a sudden, the juvenile elephants had something they had to respect. Point is, there are not enough human bulls around to set the tone and/or smack down the juveniles as the need arises. Setting the tone seems to be all that is needed.
