#80 - When a mother likes the groom.

Ueno Chizuko

#80　上野千鶴子『女ぎらい』

新婦の母が婿に惚れるというシチュエーションはよくあるが、あるいは自分が惚れたいような男を娘の婿にしたいと思う母はいくらでもいるが、その場合でも、その男と結婚したのは娘であって、自分ではない。娘が幸せであればあるほど、母親はふくざつな思いを味わうだろう。

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Vocabulary:

• 上野千鶴子　うえのちづこ　Ueno Chizuko (critic, 1948-)

• 新婦　　　　しんぷ　　　　bride

• 婿　　　　　むこ　　　　　groom

• 惚れる　　　ほれる　　　　to become infatuated, to fall in love

• 結婚する　　けっこんする　to marry

• 味わう　　　あじわう　　　to experience, to taste

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Grammar:

1. ～であればあるほど

   This pattern in used often, so it’s worth remembering. It means “the more (X is…)”. You can use it with any verb. For instance: 考えれば考えるほど複雑になる = the more I think (about it), the more complicated it gets; 見れば見るほど好きになる = the more I see it, the more I like it.

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Translation:

It often happens that the mother of the bride becomes infatuated with the groom, and there are countless mothers who want to have a man that they want to fall in love with themselves be their daughter’s husband, but even in that case, the man is married to their daughter, and not to them. The happier the daughter is, the more the mother is likely to experience mixed feelings.

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Amazon.jp link for the book I used:

上野千鶴子『女ぎらい』