In the Back to the Future series, Marty McFly travels through time and confronts members of his family from the past and the future. Explore how Marty addresses his family’s generational trauma and how he creates a better outcome in the present. You can also tinker with the various ways in which he faces the legacy of his ancestors and how finds a way to create a better future for specific family members. For example, his dad became confident and a science fiction writer. Another interesting point to unpack can be to address how Doc serves as a mentor, role-model, and catalyst for Marty’s time-traveling adventures while ensuring his families success.
This is a good idea, but a better way of looking at it is how Marty himself changes as a character after his experiences. Focus on how he reacts to seeing his father and his son, as well as what he learns about his own future and how he changes accordingly. As for Doc Brown, we see very little of their actual relationship, so a writer would be hard-pressed to find anything to analyze. – noahspud1 year ago
Even better: Examine how Marty deals with his own trauma in relation to generational trauma. More specifically, Marty struggles through three films with the idea that he's a "chicken" (and reacts badly if someone calls him such). This seems like a character trait all his own, but it takes on new depth when you consider who George McFly is and how he lets Tannen Sr. walk all over him. It gets even worse in the sequel, wherein Lorraine McFly actually ends up married to Biff and George dies. You can decide for yourself what this and Marty's actions and reactions say about generational trauma, but in my opinion, it's a lovely morsel worth pursuing. – Stephanie M.12 months ago