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The School for Good Mothers
- 248 statements
- 48 feature instances
- 25 referencing feature instances
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The School for Good Mothers | |
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TheSchoolForGoodMothers | |
| The School for Good Mothers | comment |
The School for Good Mothers is a 2022 novel by Jessamine Chan.When Frida Liu has to make a quick trip to the office, she leaves her daughter at home, figuring she'll get back soon enough. But once she arrives she loses track of time until she gets a call from a police officer saying they got a call from a neighbor who heard her daughter cry. Child Protective Services intervenes, removing Harriet from her custody. After several weeks, the court gives Frida the option of completing a special year-long program. If she passes, she might be able to regain her custody. But if she fails, the consequences will be dire. | |
| The School for Good Mothers | fetched |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_141a6acb | type |
Madness Mantra | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_141a6acb | comment |
"I am a bad mother, but I am learning to be good." The mothers at the school are instructed to chant this, along with "I am a narcissist. I am a danger to my child", regardless of the severity of the abuse or neglect committed (ranging from a slap in the face to being mistaken for an alcoholic). It becomes a Madness Mantra as Frida's mental health deteriorates. | |
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Does This Remind You of Anything? | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_14ed6ab7 | comment |
Does This Remind You of Anything?: If mothers quit the school, get expelled, or reveal any information about it, they'll be added to a Negligent Parent Registry. The registry will post their names and photos online, alert communities when they move into neighbourhoods, and reveal their "crimes" when they do anything that requires a social security number. In other words, they'll be treated like pedophiles. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_211eedd | type |
All Crimes Are Equal | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_211eedd | comment |
All Crimes Are Equal: Frida, who left her daughter unattended at home, a mother who spanked her kid, and another mother who left her baby with a 12-year-old babysitter are in the same boat as Linda, who left her six kids in a hole. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_2484396e | type |
Know-Nothing Know-It-All | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_2484396e | comment |
Know-Nothing Know-It-All: The instructors have no kids themselves, and don't know how difficult parenting is, or what children actually need (for example, they expect mothers to cure illnesses, injuries and mental trauma with nothing but their love). They think they know about mothering just because they have dogs and nephews. Susanna puts Harriet on a low-carb diet without consulting a pediatrician first, making her dangerously thin. Eventually, though, she gets professional advice, and Harriet's weight returns to normal. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_2aab702b | type |
Ching Chong | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_2aab702b | comment |
Ching Chong: Frida tries to discourage the other mothers from gossiping about her ex-roommate, who just quit. In response, she gets harassed and called "an uptight Chinese bitch". One of the white mothers makes ching-chong noises in her ear. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_30d2ae29 | type |
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_30d2ae29 | comment |
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: The standards are so impossibly high that mothers are doomed to fail, both inside and outside of the school. The reason Frida's "very bad day" happened in the first place was because she was so utterly burned out from the expectations heaped upon her. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_310d40de | type |
Thoughtcrime | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_310d40de | comment |
Thoughtcrime: Prior to completing the program, Frida's counselor chastises her for the results of her brain scan, which show feelings of shame, guilt and desire whenever she looked at footage of her interactions with Tucker. Despite her protests that they never even kissed, the counselor berates her because she wanted to kiss him. For good measure, she blames Frida for inviting Tucker's attention. This is one of the factors used by the judge to terminate her parental rights. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_407d3e6d | type |
Morton's Fork | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_407d3e6d | comment |
Morton's Fork: Frida notes that the school is teaching women to be stay-at-home mothers, and that they need partners to earn the money. But since they're also taught they mustn't want partners, there's no way they can win. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_479d4e5a | type |
Would Hurt a Child | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_479d4e5a | comment |
Would Hurt a Child: While this is only true of some of the mothers, it's glaringly true of the instructors. Despite claiming to have children's best interests in mind, they tear families apart by restricting phone contact, and routinely abuse the dolls. | |
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Taking the Kids | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_4b50895 | comment |
Taking The Kid: Frida ends up running away with Harriet after her parental rights are terminated. She knows she will get caught and doesn't care. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_4e3d253b | type |
Downer Ending | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_4e3d253b | comment |
Downer Ending: Frida's parental rights are terminated. Weeks later, while Gust and Susanna are at the ER dealing with their son's medical emergency, they leave Harriet in family friend Will's care. Frida asks for a brief moment to be alone with Harriet. When Will heads out, Frida runs away with her, knowing full well an Amber Alert will be issued and she will get caught and put in jail. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_4e9fe57d | type |
Trauma Button | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_4e9fe57d | comment |
Trauma Button: As part of a lesson on racism and sexism prevention, the dolls are programmed to take turns acting hateful, so the parents practice comforting their "children" after they experience prejudice. Having to hear racial slurs is triggering for many of the parents of color, leading them to remember their own experiences. The same happens to Chinese-American Frida when her doll, Emmanuelle, has the other dolls calling her slurs and pulling their eyes into slits. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_524f94d3 | type |
Rape as Backstory | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_524f94d3 | comment |
Rape as Backstory: The mothers Beth and Meryl; the former was raped at twelve by her choir teacher, the latter at six. Both of them tell the others that their mothers didn't believe them when they told. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_5313c266 | type |
Bookends | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_5313c266 | comment |
Book Ends: The book begins and ends with Frida committing an act of desperation. | |
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Granola Girl | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_53c3fa83 | comment |
Granola Girl: Susanna, Gust's younger girlfriend and later wife. She suggests that Frida switch to cloth diapers, buy Harriet clothes made out of organic cotton, and get some healing crystals for the nursery, even offering to start her out with rose quartz. | |
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Big Brother Is Watching | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_5da3f522 | comment |
Big Brother Is Watching: At the school, things like eye contact, length and quality of hugs, and other aspects of interactions with the dolls are measured to determine performance. Brain scans are taken, and the dolls themselves record footage that the mothers get to see. Even the mothers' heart rate is recorded. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_69ac64a0 | type |
Too Broken to Break | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_69ac64a0 | comment |
Too Broken to Break: Despite Frida's best efforts, the judge terminates her parental rights. Additionally, she won't be allowed to have any contact with Harriet until she turns 18, and only if Harriet wants to. After crossing the Despair Event Horizon she abducts Harriet, figuring that any time with her daughter is worth going to jail when (not if) she gets caught. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_6d332aea | type |
Driven to Suicide | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_6d332aea | comment |
Driven to Suicide: First Margaret, a mother that got caught kissing with another mother, then Meryl, after she learns her daughter Ocean will be put in foster care. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_72e1bd14 | type |
Bungled Suicide | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_72e1bd14 | comment |
Bungled Suicide: The reason Beth is in the school; she checked herself into a psychiatric hospital. An ex-boyfriend reported her, and it was determined that since she had been a danger to herself, she must obviously be a danger to her child. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_7464705c | type |
Arc Words | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7464705c | comment |
Arc Words: "I am a bad mother, but I am learning to be good." The mothers at the school are instructed to chant this, along with "I am a narcissist. I am a danger to my child", regardless of the severity of the abuse or neglect committed (ranging from a slap in the face to being mistaken for an alcoholic). It becomes a Madness Mantra as Frida's mental health deteriorates. Frida's "very bad day" is how she keeps referring to the day where after several nights of little or no sleep, she left Harriet alone at home for what turned out to be two and a half hours. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_7a848962 | type |
Prison Changes People | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7a848962 | comment |
Prison Changes People: The school is a very prison-like environment. Despite its purported goal being to teach the mothers how to improve at their parenting skills, it sets up the mothers for failure by setting unrealistic standards, providing them with little support for their own issues, and constantly telling that they are bad mothers. | |
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White Guilt | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7aa228ff | comment |
White Guilt: The White parents don't appreciate their robot "children" play the part of racists. Tucker, a father enrolled at the school for fathers, gets tired of hearing his robot "son" say the N-word and says his real-life son would never say it. | |
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Armor-Piercing Question | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7b6e47a5 | comment |
Armor-Piercing Question: Margaret and Alicia are caught kissing, i.e. breaking rules on fraternization, and sent to "talk circle". The counselor asks them why they put their "selfish desires" before their mothering. | |
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Rejected Apology | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7c14d0f2 | comment |
Rejected Apology: At an evaluation, Frida is partnered with a father. She and her doll outperform Colin and his son. Afterwards he accuses "Miss Ivy League" of messing things up for him. When she tries to apologize, he tells her to save it. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_7df2b942 | type |
Moving the Goalposts | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_7df2b942 | comment |
Moving the Goalposts: The mothers are allowed ten minutes a week for a computer phone call with their children. Except... Frida loses her phone privileges when she fails a unit. She is told that she needs to improve her standing in the class (finish in the top two of her class of four). Then her privileges remain suspended until she scores again in the top two, so they know is not dumb luck. She ends up going months without having contact with her daughter. | |
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Department of Child Disservices | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_8afadb7e | comment |
Department of Child Disservices: After Frida's lapse of judgement, CPS intervenes to place Harriet in her father's custody. Frida is entitled to brief supervised visits that often get cut short or canceled and she is also subjected to Sinister Surveillance. Eventually, she is sent to the school. | |
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Ethnic Menial Labor | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_8b9c057e | comment |
Ethnic Menial Labor: When the mothers are assigned to "cleaning detail" Black and Latina mothers are more likely than White mothers to be assigned to clean bathrooms, the dirtier work. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_8bff32a8 | type |
Creepy Doll | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_8bff32a8 | comment |
Creepy Doll: The mothers at the school are given dolls that resemble their children and that are so realistic looking that they get mistaken for real children at first. Frida notes that the doll she is given has a rubbery, "new car" smell to her. | |
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Enigmatic Institute | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_904f86a7 | comment |
Enigmatic Institute: The mothers are required to sign a confidentiality agreement and if they violate it, they will be entered on a registry for abusive parents that will follow them forever. | |
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Never My Fault | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_973d220f | comment |
Never My Fault: Social workers stress Harriet out while monitoring Frida's interactions with her. Naturally, Frida gets the blame for Harriet's resulting tantrums. | |
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Quit Your Whining | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_9f037665 | comment |
Quit Your Whining: Frida's meager phone privileges are canceled after she gets a zero in an evaluation. They stay canceled even after the second time she scores in the top two out of her class. The third time, Frida is told that she is doing so well she will stay another month without privileges. When she brings up that she has not spoken to her daughter in four months, her counselor rebukes her with a "Don't whine." | |
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Playing the Victim Card | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_a5f5b4e0 | comment |
Playing the Victim Card: Colin blames Frida for failing the test on diversity issues and tells people that if she really cared about Black people in America, she should have let him win. | |
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The Friend Nobody Likes | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_a861560f | comment |
The Friend Nobody Likes: Linda. Being known for having six children with different fathers and neglecting them does not make her popular. Neither does being at the top of the class. Or starting a fight with another mother and getting her expelled while she escapes punishment. | |
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Madonna-Whore Complex | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_b097493c | comment |
Madonna-Whore Complex: According to the school, a good mother isn't supposed to experience sexual desire for anyone, lest it distract her from childrearing. Frida's attraction to Tucker is a factor that gets her parental rights terminated, whereas his attraction to her doesn't stop him getting his kid back. | |
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There Is No Higher Court | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_b3b1b9d2 | comment |
There Is No Higher Court: A judge rules that Frida must have her parental rights terminated. Also, Frida cannot have any contact with Harriet until she turns 18 and only if Harriet seeks Frida out. What's worse, it is an decision which cannot be appealed. | |
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My Beloved Smother | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_b58c51d8 | comment |
My Beloved Smother: Helen, Frida's first roommate, was reported by her seventeen-year-old son's therapist for babying him, as it is considered a form of emotional abuse. She admits to cutting up his food and helping him shave, and does not get what is so weird about that. | |
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Institutional Apparel | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_b70b1e3b | comment |
Institutional Apparel: The mothers are not allowed to wear their personal clothes. Instead, they are given shapeless jumpsuits and other government-issued clothing. | |
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Circular Reasoning | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_baee5ffa | comment |
Circular Reasoning: The mothers are using the robotic dolls to practice how to talk to their children. An instructor tells Beth that her voice should be "as light and lovely as a cloud". When Beth asks how does a cloud sound, Ms. Russo says it sounds like a mother. This does not make sense to Beth, but Ms. Russo tells her that mothering is about a feeling, not about sense. | |
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| The School for Good Mothers / int_bba9ea51 | type |
Good Stepmother | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_bba9ea51 | comment |
Good Stepmother: Zig-Zagged Trope. Susanna imposes her ideas on Harriet, like feeding her a gluten-free diet without consulting a pediatrician first, to Frida's displeasure. But ultimately, she does such a good job of caring for her that Harriet eventually refers to her as "Mommy Sue-Sue", horrifying Frida. | |
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Perfection Is Impossible | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_c232dbff | comment |
Perfection Is Impossible: The perfect really is the enemy of the good here, as the mothers undergo challenges nobody can hope to pass (eg. protecting the dolls from multiple attackers, keeping a laser focus on them even while having horrific imagery shoved in their faces), the stress of which leaves them far less emotionally stable than when they started out. What's more, they're not allowed to support each other. It's no surprise that, in the end, all of the mothers fail the program. | |
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Felony Misdemeanor | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_c59cfa2e | comment |
Felony Misdemeanor: Although some mothers are abusive or have committed acts of parental neglect, others have ended up there for things like leaving an infant child with a 12-year-old sitter. | |
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Insane Troll Logic | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_c5f0119c | comment |
Insane Troll Logic: According to the counselors, "Loneliness is a form of narcissism. A mother who is in harmony with her child, who understands her place in her child's life and her role in society, is never lonely." Simply having desires of her own or unresolved emotions makes a mother unfit. | |
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Happiness Is Mandatory | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_c97c198d | comment |
Happiness Is Mandatory: On her first week, Frida's counselor tells her that the doll has collected data showing she has substantial amounts of anger and ingratitude and that "Any negative feelings will impede her progress." According to the instructors any form of unhappiness is a sign of being a bad mother. | |
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Struggling Single Mother | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_d6f544aa | comment |
Struggling Single Mother: Frida is expected to care for Harriet on her own with zero support network, a boss who wants her to prioritise work above everything else, demanding parents, and a distant ex with a girlfriend who gives preachy unsolicited advice. On top of all this, she has to deal with depression and insomnia. | |
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Screw This, I'm Outta Here | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_d9cf40fa | comment |
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Frida's first roommate, Helen quits on the second day, after telling the counselor that the curriculum is insane. It means her parental rights are terminated but her son is 17, so she is not worried. Two mothers, Meryl and Roxanne, often talk about running away. Eventually, they run off with one of the fathers who is also in the school.. | |
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Despair Event Horizon | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_dda99fa8 | comment |
Despair Event Horizon: Frida hits it after the family court judge rules that she simply is not ready for the responsibility of being a mother based on the footage and data collected by the dolls and terminates her parental rights. The only way she can see Harriet again is if Harriet looks her up after she turns eighteen. Young Meryl hits it when she learns that on top of her poor prognosis for reuniting with her child, the kid will go into foster care. | |
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Ridiculously Human Robots | |
| The School for Good Mothers / int_e4900915 | comment |
Ridiculously Human Robots: The mothers at the schools are paired to children in the same age group as theirs. They are surprised to learn that they are not real children, but rather, Creepy Dolls programmed to respond to their "parenting" and to record their interactions and collect data. | |
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The School for Good Mothers |
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