Lola’s Distance from Her Mother

L'Amour et les Forêts

This flow traces the widening divide between Bénédicte and Lola as maternal expectations, marital conflict, and adolescence collide.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Warning in the Dark A Warning in the Dark from "L'Amour et les Forêts". A Warning in the Dark A Child’s Alarm Lola notices the tension between her parents and challenges her mother’s account of an unexplained day away.

A Warning in the Dark from "L'Amour et les Forêts". A Warning in the Dark A Child’s Alarm Lola notices the tension between her parents and challenges her mother’s account of an unexplained day away.

A Warning in the Dark A Child’s Alarm Lola notices the tension between her parents and challenges her mother’s account of an unexplained day away. She fears that Jean-François may hurt Bénédicte and wants the family to remain together. Her concern is mixed with suspicion and anger. Bénédicte tries to reassure her, but also hides the truth to protect her adult life and keep the family from facing a rupture.

A Mother’s Reproach A Mother’s Reproach from "L'Amour et les Forêts". A Mother’s Reproach Values Collide As Lola becomes more interested in popularity, appearance, and romantic life, Bénédicte insists that study and culture are…

A Mother’s Reproach from "L'Amour et les Forêts". A Mother’s Reproach Values Collide As Lola becomes more interested in popularity, appearance, and romantic life, Bénédicte insists that study and culture are…

A Mother’s Reproach Values Collide As Lola becomes more interested in popularity, appearance, and romantic life, Bénédicte insists that study and culture are necessary forms of freedom. Their arguments become increasingly personal, each hearing the other as a rejection of her values. Bénédicte’s exhaustion makes her less flexible, while Lola sees her mother’s rigid expectations as evidence that her advice cannot be trusted. The conflict reproduces the wider atmosphere of pressure inside the household.

The Hospital Divide The Hospital Divide from "L'Amour et les Forêts". The Hospital Divide Allegiances at the Bedside Lola appears aligned with her father as he reacts angrily to Bénédicte’s wish not to discuss dying.

The Hospital Divide from "L'Amour et les Forêts". The Hospital Divide Allegiances at the Bedside Lola appears aligned with her father as he reacts angrily to Bénédicte’s wish not to discuss dying.

The Hospital Divide Allegiances at the Bedside Lola appears aligned with her father as he reacts angrily to Bénédicte’s wish not to discuss dying. The family’s earlier conflicts have left mother and daughter without an easy language for tenderness. Marie-Claire sees the distance as part of a household in which Bénédicte carried discipline while Jean-François retained the children’s affection. The daughter’s grief and loyalties remain complicated after her mother’s death.

March 2006, after Bénédicte returns home late

During the months after March 2006

During Bénédicte’s final hospitalization in January 2011