Suffocating Love in Secrets and Lies and the BelovedEvery person in today's society has a different definition of love . One's idea of ​​love is determined by one's experiences, emotions and influences. This definition is thought about and revised an infinite number of times throughout life. The meaning changes as he experiences different relationships based on love: parent-child, priest-parishioner, teacher-student, animal owner. These relationships change perspectives on the meaning of love. Often an experience causes a person to define love incorrectly or unhealthy; however, my experiences have led me to have a healthy and positive definition of love. Since every relationship is characterized by a different type of love, each person has different definitions of this emotion. Mother-daughter love has greatly shaped my life. In my experience as a girl and also by observing relationships in society, I learned that the main role of a parent is to protect and educate their child in order to prepare them for the world they will enter as a adult. This need to protect and guide a child is encompassed in the definition of mother-daughter love. I define love as unconditional concern for a girl, characterized by the desire to guide and protect her from unhappiness and suffering while allowing her room to make her own decisions and mistakes. This love is unconditional because, regardless of her daughter's actions, feelings or life, a mother provides support and compassion. For this love to be healthy, the mother's need to protect her child must be balanced by the realization that her daughter needs space to make her own decisions and make her mistakes. This is what separates...... middle of paper ...... with possessive love, many mothers are guilty of depriving their daughters of a sense of self and the ability to take their own decisions and making mistakes. This control and lack of space can have negative effects on a child, with effects that can manifest as early as childhood or into adulthood. However, this unhealthy love seems to be passed down from mother to daughter, causing a disastrous domino effect if not stopped. All mothers receive a gift. It's a shame that some don't give this gift enough space to grow and develop in a way that would be satisfying to both daughter and mother. Works Cited Morrison, Toni. Beloved. New York: Plume Printing, 1987. Secrets and lies. Real. Mike Leigh. Perf. Brenda Blethyn and Marianne Jean-Baptiste. Simon Channing-Williams, 1997