Babies Movie Analysis

I first watched this film two years ago when I saw it in the library DVD shelve. I found the concept of babies interesting since they are adorable and tiny, but watching it with a symbolic interaction perspective has given me an insight that I did not have the first time I watched it. Even though all the babies were born to different social environments and economic statuses, the parents wanted their child to be safe and provided what they perceived to be the best basic needs.
The film shows the mothers interacting more with the babies than the fathers. But the social interaction that fathers provide show a great insight to a community’s culture since a fathers’ roles can vary greatly depending on how they perceive gender roles. Hatti’s father appears in the film the most. It shows him taking her to a “mommy and baby” class, feeding her, and taking her a shower. At one point at a park, he puts her on a roller coaster and she ends up falling. Fathers are known to take higher risks with their children, which are important since mothers tend to cuddle their daughters more. Ponijao’s father did not appear in the film, but he did appear in the bonus features and got credit. Mari’s father is shown entertaining her while he talks on the phone.
I was also surprised to see Ponijao’s mother cutting his hair with a knife and how his mother cleaned his poop from her knee with a corn cob. These type of behaviors are common in their perspective countries, but brought out my ethnocentrism because in the United States, the Child Protection Services would be called immediately. These types of behaviors would be considered dangerous and unsanitary, but to them it is probably common and the norm. Using diapers are not practical for pastoral societies and buying electric clippers are not logical in a society that does not seem to use