If you have children under the age of 12, you have probably seen Disney's Encanto. It's a cute movie with catchy tunes written by Lin Manuel Miranda and since I am pretty much obsessed with Hamilton, it seemed a solid choice of movies to watch. There's the very catchy tune "We Don't Talk About Bruno" and "Under Pressure" is basically my own personal anthem. There's a play on swear words with the whole "Miercoles" thing and a house with not only a name, Casita, but magical abilities to help the family with daily tasks (side note: my life goal is now, besides having my own Wikipedia page, to own a house with a really pretentious name. Like, Casita is not a little abode like the name implies. It's fricking huge. And has a tower.)
Anyways, as I am watching it, my therapist training took over as it often does to ruin entertainment for me, and I noticed two things: 1.) Generational trauma was all over this fucking movie. Like, trauma begetting trauma begetting trauma. That whole family could use some EMDR after Abuela got a hold of them. And 2.) The family is also a perfect example of the family roles in addiction.
What, say you, are family roles in addiction? Well, addiction is a family disease in that it does not just affect the addict (no shit, Sherlock, right? Just wait...) What most people DON'T know is that there are roles that people tend to fall into in these families. There are six different roles, and many people can have multiple roles in the family. But usually they are all present in some form. So let's dig in.
First, of course, there is the addict. In this case, that is definitely Abuela. Her addiction? The magic that the family has been gifted. In alcoholic/addicted families, we very often see an attitude of "brush it under the rug. Put on the happy face and pretend everything is OK. What happens in this house, stays in this house." Abuela is OBSESSED with preserving the Madrigal family magic, to the point of "punishing" her granddaughter Maribel for NOT have powers. (Ironic, because she does not seem to have any herself...) I will also say here...I have NEVER met an addict or an alcoholic without a history of trauma. Never. And Abuela...well, I don't want to give too many spoilers, but they address her what her trauma is in the movie. And it's a doozy. I will also note, addicts are very often charming and "give you the shirt off their back" kind of people. And we do see these traits in Abuela, unfortunately at the cost of her family.
Next, there are the enablers. And I would say, as is often the case, the entire family are her enablers. There is so much focus on their gifts and what they are able to do because of the magic (Abuela's "addiction".) There is not much said about people who marry into the family because they do not fit into the narrative of the gifted people giving back, therefore they are not much "use" to Abuela other than to continue to produce the next generation of gifted citizens, therefore perpetuating Abuela's addiction.
Then there is the hero. I actually kind of detest this label, as it implies someone who swoops in to save the day. That is not the case. This is someone who the family can point to and say, "Look. We aren't that fucked up. Look at what we produced." They are the visible sign of the family's success. There's a few heroes in this movie, the most prominent being Isabella (who hopes to continue this role by marrying Mariano even though she does not really want to.) One could also make the argument that Luisa is a hero as well as she keeps on working and serving the community as Abuela demands, even as she questions if she is even worth anything if she cannot continue to produce.
Next is the scapegoat. There are two apparent scapegoats here: Bruno and Maribel. There's an entire fucking song about Bruno: "We Don't Talk About Bruno". He is blamed for the family's problems, and then when he disappears, they act like he never existed. Then Maribel, when the house is LITERALLY cracking, is blamed for that as well. At one point, she even says point blank to Abuela "I will never be good enough for you". Addicts often demand perfection from those around them, because they need to maintain things for their addiction to survive. In this case, Abuela needs everyone to fall in line so the magic can continue. The scapegoats job is to take the focus off of the addict, and both Maribel and Bruno do a great job of doing this.
Mascots come in next. These are the funny guys, the clowns. This would be Camilo as he literally changes himself to create humor in any situation that he sees. He is the comic relief.
Finally, there is the lost child. These are the forgotten ones, the ones brushed aside. Luisa would at times fit this role as she is often left to fend for herself and to carry her anxiety all alone. Dolores would be another example of a lost child. She hears things not meant for her ears and is brushed aside as a partner for Mariano as she is not "perfect enough" like Isabella is. These ones are often the ones who provide a sense of relief for the family as "we don't have to worry about them." Unfortunately, they often end up as the ones with the most anxiety.
And like so many alcoholic/addicted families, things will fall apart eventually. You can only do so much patching, Bruno, before the house crumbles. And just like treatment for addiction, you need to develop a completely new foundation before another house can be built (hopefully a more healthy, functional house where things are aired out and not swept under the rug.)
