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Cultural Aspects of the Family in Hotel Rwanda

The story in Hotel Rwanda movie is based on a real life event of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda where a million Tutsi tribe members were mercilessly killed by the Hutu tribe. The context behind Hotel Rwanda film is of a hotel manager, Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle), whose career has thrived over the years through art to bribery (George et al., 2005). As the film was based on a true life event, the settings fits those of the actual event, an African-based country destructed and destroyed by ethnic differences between two tribes. The film’s settings also features a family context of a man and his family in the hub of a massacre that is beyond their understanding or power (George et al., 2005). Throughout the film, the theme of self-reliance is best explained following the absence of external help during the massacre. Family context is also key in the film as it clearly pulls out a powerful message on the strength of marriage and family culture. Therefore, this paper attempts to analyze the family setting and development in the film Hotel Rwanda.

Family Context

At the beginning of the film, Paul Rusesabagina is portrayed as a man who only cares for his family. In a scene where his Tutsi neighbors are being attacked, Paul denies to help claiming that “He isn’t family. Family is all that matters.” Other than his wife, and children and his career, Paul cares less about the outer world. However, as the genocide intensifies, Paul finds himself in an unexpected position whereby as the hotel manager, he has to protect the lives of thousands of Tutsi refugees seeking refuge in the hotel. Paul’s wife, Tatiana (Sophie Okonedo), plays a key role in molding his character as she’s the one who convinced Paul to shelter their neighbors in the hotel. Tatiana demonstrates bravery in supporting her husband throughout the film by helping other refugees as Paul focused on negotiations. In the film, Tatiana’s character is used to demonstrate the importance of a strong marriage system, where a wife supports her husband in every situation. Her strong character is portrayed in how she handles bad news and the way she protects her children throughout the film. The genocide pressures and stresses helps unleash Pauls’ full potential and ability as he applies every technique to protect his people. He goes to the extent of threatening the general that he would rat him out if he did not assist him in protecting those in the hotel (George et al., 2005).

Family Value

 Paul Rusesabagina’s family demonstrates great virtues and moral values as they play a key role in saving lives during the massacre. In one of the scenes, Tatiana words of encouragement to her husband were, “You are a good man,” which generally represent unity and family support (Cooper, 2017).  Further, they value a lot about family based on the way they are determined to find Tatiana’s brother and his children throughout the massacre.

Socialization and Child Bearing

The Hotel Rwanda genocide had the intentions of ending the Tutsi generation for good which meant that all Tutsi children were to be slaughtered. In the film, children play a key role in demonstrating fear and suffering through songs and cries. Paul’s children could not bear the thought of being separated from their father. The kids from the orphanage could not hide their relief as they arrived at the hotel for refugee.

Healthcare Beliefs and Practices

In present of genocide attacks, healthcare becomes a vital need that is hard to access. One of the scenes show Tatiana cleaning her son’s wounds with anything she could find in her kitchen. In the film, health practices relied on the little that anyone knew as they were all locked up in a hotel.

Adaptation

Clearly, adaptation was beyond the characters’ control as they had to survive. Tseng, (2018) claims that survival tactics automatically register during stressful times such as the genocide incident.  For instance, survival tactics immediately registered in Paul and Tatiana who worked as a pack to saving the lives of their family and the Tutsi refugees. Paul’s instincts prevented him from abandoning the refugees but instead chooses to risk his life for the sake of others.

Assessment of Development or Functional Competency

Based on Beaver’s System Model, the film’s family level of functional competency can be described as optimum (Carlson, 2018). From scene to scene, Paul’s family demonstrate high levels of family competence and communication which fosters support and prevented all forms of intragroup conflicts. “You are a good man”, said Tatiana to her husband during a rough and devastating moment (George et al., 2005).  This shows that she believes and fully supports her husband’s decision and efforts in the massacre. With such support, Paul’s family emerges alive at the end of the genocide making their family-work team effective and worthwhile. 

In conclusion, the genocide that starts off as a propaganda announced in the Hutu power radio escalates to levels beyond control with the main focus being on eliminating the entire Tutsi future generation. A film of pronounced uplifting and moral value, “Hotel Rwanda” is a sobering reminder of the importance of family value during tough times such as the massacrethe juvenile, black males to seek professionals help whenever they experience mental illnesses such as depression, which result in suicide.