Hello, I don’t even know your name, but I’m hoping all the same, this is more than just a simple hello. Hello, do I simile and look away?  No, I think I’ll smile and stay, to see where this might go.” (Johnny Mathis and Jane Oliver, 1978).

“My name’s Adam Ponepeii, I got a farm up the mountain, a house on it too. There’s sheep, milk cows, 50 acres of wheat, timberland. The only thing it ain’t got? It ain’t got a woman. How ‘bout it? How ‘bout marryin’ me?”

A resume as a marriage proposal? Not the usual way to begin a love relationship in the Movie Musical, but it is the most expedient.

“I won’t be back for five months? Are you goin’ to keep me waiting that long, just for your pride?”

Welcome to the 2017 Edition ~~ Summer Wedding of Seven Brides to Seven Brothers.

Pride takes a back seat, Millie marries Adam and dreams of a life taking care of  him (“Wonderful, Wonderful Day”).

Her dream of caring for “just one man”, is quickly shattered when she meets all six of Adam’s brothers, and discovers she will be caring for all of them.  Her situation is the perfect catalyst to this month’s thought provoking question:

What lessons do these films have to teach about the strength, and resilience of these characters as they face periods of change?  

As with all strong women. Millie rises to the challenge! She makes the house livable, the brothers mannerly men, (“Goin’ Co’tin”, “you gotta call her my darlin’ my dear, my precious, my pet, steal your arm around her”), stands up to a husband who continues to treat women like possessions, (“You think because I said yes to you—I didn’t make you court me and coax me …that that’s all there is to it!”),   and in the end, wins the respect of husband, brother, and brides!

Adam and the brothers go through their share of changes as they welcome the “Sobbin’ Women” into their home and find they have been relegated to the barn.

They find kidnapping is not the way to their prospective bride’s hearts, instead they take the lessons of “co’tin” and put them into practice with a little help from a change of seasons. (”Each nest is twitterin’ they’re all baby sitterin’...from his airy the eagle with his legal eye…says suppose we set the date this week?” It’s "Spring, Spring, Spring”)

What a great way to open a discussion with all generations.

Start with older family members, and older generation clientele.   Discuss:

• The struggles, hardships, and joys of building a life together.  
  • What, or who gave you strength?
  • What periods of change did you go through?
  • How did you deal with those changes?
  • Would you marry a man you had only known an afternoon?  

As you discuss resilience with your students, consider including a discussion the time period in which these people find themselves:

• Why is there no time for a “proper” courtship? 
• Why the need for long separations?

What is the woman’s role in society?

Why would a woman consider marrying a man she’d only known an afternoon?

How are single women perceived?

How have these roles changed through generations?

What of the men in this film?  How did their attitudes toward the girls change throughout the film, (from “poor little dears”, to brides?)

How have men’s attitudes and approaches to the opposite sex changed from generation to generation?

What can be learned about social behavior through the generations? What social contexts and connections have we lost with the advent of technology?  What connections have we gained?

 What role has multi-media played in those changes?

You decide as you say, Hello to the Wedding of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers!

~~Lori

Be sure to join us  in July, when  Marian, the Librarian, says hello to the man who just may change her life~ Harold Hill ~ The Music Man.

To Our Friends and Fans Attending the NEA in Boston in July:

Although other commitments keep us away from a booth in the exhibit hall this year, we will provide you with the means to Grab your Guide, from wherever you may be!  

Look for our banner ads online throughout the convention!