Line #1 Main/AppealToFamilialWisdom


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6	[-[[caption-width-right:211:"Well, my dad always says 'you catch more fists from backseating than from keeping your mouth shut'."]]-]
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11	->''"My momma always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."''
12	-->-- '''Film/ForrestGump''' in an example of his catchphrase
13
14	Most societies place a certain moral value on respecting and listening to one's elders, especially one's parents. Mother knows best, after all! So, very often, when characters find themselves in difficult situations, they will think back to the advice their mother or father (or grandparent, or aunt/uncle) once gave them, and pass it along to their companions.
15
16	This can be accomplished with the StockPhrase "Mama said ..." or "Like my daddy always told me ...", or through a MeaningfulEcho of something we've heard the relative say, now adopted by the child. Another common variation is for a character to share a [[HealingPotion cure]] or [[GrandmasRecipe food]] recipe or secret technique they say has been passed down from their family.
17
18	This is a milder sub-trope of AppealToAuthority, as there is something about saying a bit of advice came from your parent that lends it more weight than if it were just something you'd heard--regardless of whether it's actually good advice.
19
20	Often the advice is a piece of ProverbialWisdom. May devolve into HurricaneOfAphorisms or QuoteToQuoteCombat.
21
22	In fiction, this stock phrase has long been a DeadHorseTrope, lending itself more to parody than to straight examples, but it is still quite common as a lyric trope, especially in {{pop}} and {{blues}}.
23
24	SisterTrope to YouKnowWhoSaidThat. The original giver of the advice may have been a {{Good Parent\|s}} who earned their child's respect or a KnightTemplarParent who drilled some maxim into the child's head; as such it may be an application of the commandment to HonorThyParent. Taking the forbears' wisdom to the level of religion is AncestorVeneration. May overlap with DeceasedParentsAreTheBest, but the adviser is not necessarily dead, just off-screen or status unknown. Sometimes part of LetMeTellYouAStory. Compare QuotingMyself.
25
26	----
27	!!Examples:
28	[[foldercontrol]]
29
30	[[folder:Comic Books]]
31	* ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'': In issue #5, Cassie Cage is locked in a death match against Frost, who dominates her. After Frost's EvilGloating, Cassie begins her HeroicSecondWind by saying, ''"Hate to disappoint you, [[WesternAnimation/{{Frozen\|2013}} Elsa]], but like my 'rich daddy' says, 'You can't fake a comeback'!"''
32	[[/folder]]
33
34	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
35	* Several characters in ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' quote their [[TheGhost Aunt Marian]] from time to time.
36	[[/folder]]
37
38	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
39	* ''WesternAnimation/LadyAndTheTramp'' has a RunningGag where Trusty will go, "As my grandpappy Ol' Reliable used to say . . . Don't recollect if I ever mentioned Ol' Reliable before ... " The answer is always yes, and Trusty drops the subject. By the end, he finally gets a chance to say what Ol' Reliable used to say, [[spoiler:only to forget what exactly he used to say.]]
40	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'': Mother Gothel appeals to this trope in her VillainSong, "Mother Knows Best," trying to convince Rapunzel of her own naivety and Gothel's superior experience.
41	-->Don't forget it; you'll regret it . . .\
42	Mother knows best!
43	[[/folder]]
44
45	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
46	* ''Film/ForrestGump'': This is something of his catchphrase, helping to establish his characterization as a {{Manchild}}.
47	-->'''Forrest:''' Mama always said there's an awful lot you can tell about a person by their shoes. Where they're going, where they've been. I've worn lots of shoes. I bet if I think about it real hard, I could remember my first pair of shoes. Mama said they'd take me anywhere. She said they was my magic shoes.
48	* ''[[Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019 Godzilla: King of the Monsters]]'' (2019): When another character expresses dismay that his research has turned up bupkis, [[Characters/MonsterVerseMonarch Ilene Chen]] tries to lift his spirits by saying "myth is our compass". She explains it's a saying which her mother taught her because she believed that understanding the ancient myths of dragons and monsters -- [[AllMythsAreTrue which were influenced by ancient civilizations' encounters with the Kaiju]] -- are key to finding coexistence with the monsters and restoring mankind's connection to nature.
49	* ''Film/TheGreatWhiteHype'':
50	** Mitchell Kane interviews Marvin Shaabazz and Hassan El Ruk'n, and this confused exchange of parental advice emerges:
51	--->'''Shaabazz:''' Like my Daddy say, you out there, James, the poodle, pussy whatever your name is, Roper, if you a man be a man! Step up. Fight me. You ain't fought nobody.\
52	'''Mitchell:''' Your Daddy said . . . what?\
53	'''Hassan:''' Just like my father have told me, when the green grass starts growing, you know, on the other side, somebody gotta cut the lawn.\
54	'''Mitchell:''' You know, my father said once that when you laugh the whole world laughs with you, cry and I'll give you something to cry about, you little bastard! That's what he said.
55	** After Sultan, with a little help from his phalanx of armed bodyguards with laser sights on their guns, defuses a hostile situation:
56	--->'''Bambi:''' My Daddy always says don't whip your shit out if you ain't ready to use it.\
57	'''Sol:''' Shut up!\
58	'''Julio:''' Bitch!
59	* ''Film/LucyInTheSky'': Lucy is very close with her Nana and respects her judgement perhaps more than anyone else's. During her interview in the second scene of the film, she refers twice to advice her Nana would have given her as a means of deflecting personal questions.
60	* ''Film/{{Maverick}}'': Bret Maverick repeatedly quotes things that "my old pappy always used to say". Played for laughs in the final scene when his old pappy visits and complains that he never said most of the things that Bret claims he said.
61	-->'''Bret's Father:''' I never said that once. You've misquoted me all your life. I'm sick of it.\
62	'''Bret:''' The things you said were always so dumb I had to improve on them.
63	* ''Film/{{Moonraker}}''. A BondGirl tells James Bond that her mother gave her a list of things not to do on her first date. When the [[TheCasanova inevitable seduction takes place shortly after]], Bond asks about the list and she jokes that she never learned to read.
64	* ''Film/PitchPerfect'': Aubry quotes her father a few times, implying he's a strict taskmaster. "Like my dad says, 'If you're not here to win, get the hell out of Kuwait.'"
65	* ''Film/RacingStripes'': An old farm dog lifts his head from napping to see the protagonist, a zebra, training to become a racehorse, and remarks:
66	-->It's like my momma always said: "You can put yer boots in the oven, but that don't make 'em biscuits."
67	* ''Film/RimOfTheWorld'': Alex invokes some advice from his [[DarkAndTroubledPast tragically dead father]] to excuse his actions to the group:
68	-->'''Alex:''' Sometimes you do the right thing and it doesn't work out. Doesn't mean it wasn't worth doing.\
69	'''Dariush:''' Who the hell told you that?\
70	'''Alex:''' My dad. ''[beat]'' Never knew what it meant until right now.
71	* ''Film/{{Rudy}}'':
72	-->'''Pete:''' Well, you know what my dad always said, "Having dreams is what makes life tolerable."
73	* ''Film/{{Soldier}}'':
74	-->'''Church:''' My daddy always said, "When you want to insert a nail into a piece of wood, don't do anything fancy or glamorous. Just take the damn hammer and hit the son of a bitch until it's in."\
75	'''Colonel Mekum:''' And what the hell does that crap mean in English, Captain?
76	* In ''Film/TheWaterboy'', Bobby's mother gives him lots of advice, but it's all intended to keep him [[MyBelovedSmother under her thumb]]. Mostly by saying everything she doesn't like is "the debbil!"
77	-->'''Bobby''': (''discussing emotions in a college class'') Mama says alligators are ornery because they got all them teeth and no toothbrush.
78	[[/folder]]
79
80	[[folder:Literature]]
81	* {{Subverted}} for laughs in ''Literature/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'':
82	-->'''Arthur:''' You know, it's at times like this, when I'm trapped in a Vogon airlock with a man from Betelgeuse, and about to die of asphyxiation in deep space that I really wish I'd listened to what my mother told me when I was young.\
83	'''Ford:''' Why, what did she tell you?\
84	'''Arthur:''' I don't know, I didn't listen!
85	* Subverted in ''Hooligans'' by Creator/WilliamDiehl. The protagonist reflects how his mother would always say what "Your father used to say". It was only as a teenager he realised that his father would have had to have talked constantly, 24 hours a day, for the entire two years they were married, before he was killed in action during World War 2. He admits this makes little difference as by then his long-dead father had become the font of all wisdom.
86	-->I figured at twenty-two my father was wiser than Homer, Socrates, Newton and Ben Franklin rolled up into one. Funny thing is, I still do.
87	* In ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'', d'Artagnan tells an innkeeper about a family balm healing any wound in 24 hours.
88	* In ''[[Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia The Voyage of the Dawn Treader]]'', the group of heroes is questioning old sailors on what lies beyond the edges of their maps. One, [[spoiler:who turns out to have been correct,]] insists that one must only sail far enough to reach [[{{Heaven}} Aslan's country]], "but when questioned ... could only say that he had heard it from his father."
89	* In the first ''Literature/WarriorCats'' book, when entering [=ShadowClan=]'s territory, Graypaw is nervous and comments that his mother warned him about [=ShadowClan=]'s scent many times. Firepaw, who was raised as a house cat, replies that ''his'' mother taught him no such thing.
90	[[/folder]]
91
92	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
93	* ''Series/{{Angel}}'': Gunn says his uncle Theo told him "Never buy a dull plow and never get in the middle of a religious war." Cordelia asked if he really has an uncle Theo, and Gunn admits he doesn't.
94	* ''Series/BarneyMiller'': Yemana will often quote his father, who gave a great philosophical quote. Unfortunately, they tend to get mangled in the translation from the original Japanese. From episode "[[Recap/BarneyMillerS5E03 Dog Days]]", when the detectives find out Barney and his wife have separated:
95	-->'''Yemana''': Hey Barney, my grandfather had something to say about marriage.\
96	'''Barney''': I don't doubt that.\
97	'''Yemana''': Marriage is like a horse with a broken leg. You can shoot it, but that don't fix the leg.
98	* ''Series/TheDickVanDykeShow'': Sally will come up with old sayings "like my Aunt Gladys always says..." which are seldom helpful. Usually Lampshaded.
99	-->'''Sally:''' My Aunt Agnes used to have a saying that went, uh, "If your heart is where the sky is bluest, then the sound of winter's twilight will be your friend."
100	-->'''Buddy:''' Your aunt said that?\
101	'''Sally:''' Yeah . . . and every time I think of it, I want to cry.\
102	'''Buddy:''' Why?\
103	'''Sally:''' Because I think my Aunt Agnes is a nut.
104	* ''Series/{{Farscape}}''
105	** Subverted in "Green Eyed Monster" when they're carrying out another of their CrazyEnoughToWork plans to deal with the eponymous MonsterOfTheWeek.
106	--->'''Rygel:''' Mother always said I'd die from incompetence! [[SurroundedByIdiots I finally know what she meant!]]
107	** A meta version is in the DVD commentary when a scriptwriter admits that a lot of John Crichton's pearls of wisdom were actually this trope.
108	* ''Series/FridayNightLights'':
109	** Buddy delivers some to Coach Taylor during their conversation in the laundromat in Season 2:
110	--->'''Buddy:''' Just don't sweat the small stuff. That's what my dad used to say.
111	** Coach Taylor offers some himself when Jason Street is agonizing over a mistake:
112	--->'''Coach Taylor:''' My dad used to say, "It always gets bad before it gets better."
113	* ''Series/KamenRiderKabuto'': Tendou frequently quotes sayings from his grandmother, after stating "Grandmother said this...". Many of them have to do with food or cooking. Eventually, it's subverted when Tendou says something wise and Kagami asks him if those were his grandmother's words. Tendou answers no- they're ''his'' words.
114	* Bret Maverick and his brothers in ''Series/{{Maverick}}'' are always quoting things their pappy said. Their cousin Beau Maverick quotes his Uncle Beau.
115	* ''Series/MimpiMetropolitan'': Whenever he gives out a moral argument, Bambang always precedes it by claiming that it was his father's saying.
116	* ''Series/TheNewsroom:'' When Will comes to apologize to Shelly Wexler:
117	-->'''Shelly:''' Well, you know what my mother would say?\
118	'''Will:''' I absolutely do not.\
119	'''Shelly:''' She'd say, "Who're you really mad at?"
120	* ''Series/SASRogueHeroes''. Subverted when Paddy Mayne starts to give this trope, only to decide: [[StealthInsult "You don't deserve my father's wisdom."]]
121	* On an episode of ''Series/WildWildWest'', Arty keeps citing his Great-Aunt Maude. Once Jim replies "Speaking of your Great-Aunt Maude, how is she?", and Arty suddenly realizes [[spoiler: this 'Jim' is an imposter, because the real Jim knows she's just a figure of speech, or maybe dead.]]
122	[[/folder]]
123
124	[[folder:Music]]
125	* Music/{{Beyonce}}: Subverted in "Pretty Hurts". The first verse begins with an account of advice Beyonce's mother gave to her (as a metonym for broader cultural wisdom) which is shown by the ensuing message of the song to have been sadly misguided.
126	-->Mama said, "You're a pretty girl\
127	What's in your head, it doesn't matter\
128	Brush your hair, fix your teeth\
129	What you wear is all that matters"
130	* "Ricky" by Music/DenzelCurry shares the life advice Denzel got growing up:
131	-->My daddy said "[[ThickerThanWater Trust no man but your brothers]]\
132	And never leave your day one's in the gutter"\
133	My daddy said "Treat young girls like your mother"\
134	My momma said "[[FemaleMisogynist Trust no hoe]], use a rubber"
135	* Music/{{Eminem}}, a survivor of child abuse who had a [[EvilMatriarch very bad relationship with his mother]], occasionally parodies this in his songs:
136	-->It's like my mother always told me:\
137	"Rana rana rana rana rana rana rana rana rana and codeine and\
138	Goddamn it, you little motherfucker\
139	If you ain't got nothin' nice to say, then don't say nothin'!"\
140	[Silence]
141	* "7 Years" by Lukas Graham uses this to begin its first two verses.
142	-->Once I was seven years old, my mama told me\
143	"Go make yourself some friends or you'll be lonely"
144	* "Like Ships Need the Sea" by Emily Hearn is a double example; it starts with the singer contradicting her mother's words that she didn't need a man to be her best; she's pretty sure that the guy she's in love with is necessary. She later recalls her grandfather saying that MenDontCry, but [[ItsOkayToCry she realized it wasn't true]] when she saw her boyfriend (and eventual husband) cry.
145	* The titular quote from "If There's Alcohol, Get Drunk Now" (有酒今朝醉) by Music/SamHui was taught to the singer by his paternal grandfather when he was eight years old, and has carried him throughout his lifetime.
146	* The narrator of Music/MichaelJackson's song "Music/BillieJean" mentions the advice from his mother, that he seemingly did not heed.
147	-->''And mother always told me\
148	be careful who you love\
149	and be careful what you do\
150	'cause the lie becomes the truth.''
151	* "Mama Used To Say" by Junior, in which the parental advice is a downplayed version of GrowingUpSucks:
152	-->Mama used to say, take your time young man\
153	Mama used to say, don't you rush to get old\
154	Mama used to say, take it in your stride\
155	Mama used to say, live your life
156	* All of Music/LadyGaga's "Born This Way" is framed as the singer paraphrasing what "My mama told me when I was young".
157	-->"There's nothing wrong with loving who you are,"\
158	She said, "'Cause He made you perfect, babe\
159	So hold your head up girl and you'll go far,\
160	Listen to me when I say" ...
161	* Part of the refrain in Music/PanicAtTheDisco's "High Hopes" is him remembering how his "Mama said" to never give up on his dreams.
162	* Most of "Mama Said" by Music/TheShirelles, possibly the TropeCodifier.
163	-->Mama said there'll be days like this\
164	There'll be days like this, mama said
165	* "You Can't Hurry Love" by Music/TheSupremes (and later Music/PhilCollins) has the singer musing that his mother told him love wasn't easy and couldn't be rushed, but he's running out of patience.
166	* In Music/MeghanTrainor's "All About That Bass", she remembers:
167	-->Yeah, my mama she told me, "Don't worry about your size"\
168	She said, "Boys like a little more booty to hold at night"
169	* Music/TomWaits's [[Music/OrphansBrawlersBawlersAndBastards "Bottom of the World"]] begins with some of the singer's father's advice and his response to it:
170	-->My daddy told me, lookin' back\
171	The best friend you'll have is a railroad track\
172	So when I was 13 I said, I'm rollin' my own\
173	And I'm leavin' Missouri and I'm never comin' home
174	[[/folder]]
175
176	[[folder:Theatre]]
177	* ''Theatre/{{Hadestown}}'': Persephone twice brings up harsh but practical advice her mother gave her -- it carries even more weight than normal since her mother is [[Myth/ClassicalMythology a literal goddess]].
178	-->'''Persephone:''' But let me tell you something that my mama said to me:\
179	You take what you can get, and you make the most of it
180	[[/folder]]
181
182	[[folder:Video Games]]
183	* ''VideoGame/StarcraftIILegacyOfTheVoid:'' At one point during the Korhal missions, [[PlayerCharacter Hierarch Artanis]] and Commander Raynor are discussing the invasion of Amon's forces to Dominion territories. At one point, Raynor says, ''"My mother used to say 'when it rains, it floods.'"''
184	* One of Sturges' random lines in ''VideoGame/Fallout4'':
185	-->'''Sturges:'''My old man taught me that duct tape could fix anything. Don't think he was talking about bullet holes.
186	* Parodied in ''VisualNovel/MonsterProm''. In one potential scene in multiplayer mode, Damien, the AxCrazy prince of Hell, can come to a player for romantic advice during one of their rounds if he’s started crushing on another, telling them that his parents have always told him that “when you love someone... shoot them and see what happens”.
187	-->'''Damien:''' ...However, Principle Giant Spider, my therapist, and the rule of law all seem to agree that shooting someone to see if they’re "the one" is not very "legal".
188	[[/folder]]
189
190	[[folder:Webcomics]]
191	* ''Webcomic/{{Unsounded}}'': Sette is pretty much always ready with one of her Da’s pithy quotes. Her cousins also have many of these memorized.
192	-> ''Chores before whores as me old uncle Nary always says.''
193	* ''Webcomic/{{xkcd}}'': In "[[https://xkcd.com/357/ Flies]]", a character falls back on this only to discover that their mother's ProverbialWisdom was ''not'' infallible.
194	[[/folder]]
195
196	[[folder:Web Original]]
197	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': When Jaune and Ruby are both brand-new to Beacon Academy, they're both nervous and team up together to try and navigate their new surroundings. Regarding the fact they don't know anyone at this school yet, Jaune tries to cheer them both up by quoting his mother's advice about handling new situations.
198	-->'''Jaune:''' My mom always says "strangers are just friends you haven't met yet".
199	* ''LetsPlay/AScotsmanInEgypt'': Hew Mar is always remembering things his father told him. Unfortunately, his father was an [[AbusiveParents abusive asshole]], and so much of it consists of remembering the insults used on him.
200	* ''Podcast/MyMommaToldMe'' is a podcast about conspiracy theories in the black community, and every week the guest tell the hosts Langston Kerman and David Gborie a theoyr they've been told preceded with an audio sting of the podcast title. The name is a somewhat ArtifactTitle, but often the guest do mention that they literlaly have heard it from their mother.
201	[[/folder]]
202
203	[[folder:Western Animation]]
204	* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'': In "Slimer, Come Home", Egon, out looking for the runaway Slimer, [[NoSocialSkills accidentally convinces a gang leader to leave him alone]] by describing what he's looking for (a ghost) in {{Technobabble}}. When the gang asks why he didn't let them jump the lone, slender geek, the gang leader answers that his father told him [[HorrifyingTheHorror never to harass anyone weirder than he is.]]
205	* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS1E12TheGunganGeneral "The Gungan General"]]: Hondo tells a fellow pirate ''"Now, as my sweet mother always said, 'Son, if one hostage is good two are better.'"'' while discussing their current scheme.
206	* ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicSchoolBus'': Ms. Frizzle has a seemingly endless series of female relatives from whom she quotes oddly specific aphorisms. For example, in the rainforest episode:
207	-->"As my cousin Bea used to say, 'Pollen's gotta travel for its secrets to unravel.'"
208	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In "Rock Bottom", Spongebob remembers his grandfather giving him an oddly-specific piece of advice after his latest failure to catch a bus out of the eponymous Rock Bottom, a remote town at the bottom of a deep-sea trench.
209	--> '''Spongebob''': I guess Grandpa Squarepants was right. Never run for a bus. ''([[NarrativeShapeshifting imitating his grandfather]])'' Especially one that's going up at a 90-degree angle!
210	* A recurring thing with Beshte in ''WesternAnimation/TheLionGuard'' a number of episodes have a “Well, my dad always says…” line from him. “Live long enough and you’ll see everything” shows up a few times.
211	* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfSamAndMaxFreelancePolice'': In one episode Sam quips "It's like my grandma always used to say, 'Idle hands are the devil's monkey bars.'" When we meet Sam's Grandma Ruth in "Christmas, Bloody Christmas", she actually says "Idle hands end up in the machinery."
212	* Spoofed in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', when [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E20TheBoyWhoKnewTooMuch Bart was witness to a crime while skipping school]], and he asked Marge for [[IHaveThisFriend hypothetical advice as to what should be done in such a situation]]. Marge told him about what his uncle used to say:
213	-->'''Marge:''' Well, Bart, your uncle Arthur used to have a saying, "Shoot 'em all and let God sort 'em out". Unfortunately, one day he put his theory into practice. It took 75 federal marshals to bring him down. [[LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain Now let's never speak of him again.]]
214	* ''WesternAnimation/ThePatrickStarShow'': Parodied in "[[Recap/ThePatrickStarShowS1E2StairWarsEnemiesALaMode Stair Wars]]", when Patrick and [=GrandPat=] are arguing over who gets to go up the stairs first.
215	-->'''Patrick''': I'm sorry, [=GrandPat=], but Dad always told me...\
216	''[Patrick imagines Cecil in a thought bubble]''\
217	'''Cecil''': Son, the best advice I could ever give you is: never back down from a stair-off.\
218	'''[=GrandPat=]''': ''I told you that! That's my advice!''
219	[[/folder]]

Context Main / AppealToFamilialWisdom