"The English was really my mother, it was never me. Being the daughter of my father, I always felt very French"
- Charlotte Gainsbourg
About this Quote
In this quote, Charlotte Gainsbourg is revealing her complex identity and cultural background. She describes that while she may have matured speaking English, it was never truly her own language. Instead, she identifies more with her French heritage, as she is the child of a French dad. This recommends that her sense of self and cultural identity is greatly influenced by her father's nationality and upbringing. In spite of being raised in a bilingual family, Gainsbourg feels a stronger connection to her French roots, highlighting the effective effect of household and heritage on one's sense of self.
"Children that are raised in a home with a married mother and father consistently do better in every measure of well-being than their peers who come from divorced or step-parent, single-parent, cohabiting homes"