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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
A TREATISE ON
PARENTS AND
CHILDREN
BY BERNARD SHAW
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
Trailing Clouds of Glory
Childhood is a stage in the process of that continual remanufacture of
the Life Stuff by which the human race is perpetuated。 The Life Force
either will not or cannot achieve immortality except in very low organisms：
indeed it is by no means ascertained that even the amoeba is immortal。
Human beings visibly wear out； though they last longer than their friends
the dogs。 Turtles； parrots； and elephants are believed to be capable of
outliving the memory of the oldest human inhabitant。 But the fact that
new ones are born conclusively proves that they are not immortal。 Do
away with death and you do away with the need for birth： in fact if you
went on breeding； you would finally have to kill old people to make room
for young ones。
Now death is not necessarily a failure of energy on the part of the Life
Force。 People with no imagination try to make things which will last for
ever； and even want to live for ever themselves。 But the intelligently
imaginative man knows very well that it is waste of labor to make a
machine that will last ten years； because it will probably be superseded in
half that time by an improved machine answering the same purpose。 He
also knows that if some devil were to convince us that our dream of
personal immortality is no dream but a hard fact； such a shriek of despair
would go up from the human race as no other conceivable horror could
provoke。 With all our perverse nonsense as to John Smith living for a
thousand million eons and for ever after； we die voluntarily； knowing that
it is time for us to be scrapped； to be remanufactured； to come back； as
Wordsworth divined； trailing ever brightening clouds of glory。 We must
all be born again； and yet again and again。 We should like to live a little
longer just as we should like 50 pounds： that is； we should take it if we
could get it for nothing； but that sort of idle liking is not will。 It is
amazingconsidering the way we talkhow little a man will do to get 50
pounds： all the 50…pound notes I have ever known of have been more
easily earned than a laborious sixpence； but the difficulty of inducing a
man to make any serious effort to obtain 50 pounds is nothing to the
difficulty of inducing him to make a serious effort to keep alive。 The
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
moment he sees death approach； he gets into bed and sends for a doctor。
He knows very well at the back of his conscience that he is rather a poor
job and had better be remanufactured。 He knows that his death will make
room for a birth； and he hopes that it will be a birth of something that he
aspired to be and fell short of。 He knows that it is through death and
rebirth that this corruptible shall become incorruptible； and this mortal put
on immortality。 Practise as you will on his ignorance； his fears； and his
imagination； with bribes of paradises and threats of hells； there is only one
belief that can rob death of its sting and the grave of its victory； and that is
the belief that we can lay down the burden of our wretched little makeshift
individualities for ever at each lift towards the goal of evolution； which
can only be a being that cannot be improved upon。 After all； what man is
capable of the insane self…conceit of believing that an eternity of himself
would be tolerable even to himself？ Those who try to believe it postulate
that they shall be made perfect first。 But if you make me perfect I shall
no longer be myself； nor will it be possible for me to conceive my present
imperfections （and what I cannot conceive I cannot remember）； so that
you may just as well give me a new name and face the fact that I am a new
person and that the old Bernard Shaw is as dead as mutton。 Thus； oddly
enough； the conventional belief in the matter comes to this： that if you
wish to live for ever you must be wicked enough to be irretrievably
damned； since the saved are no longer what they were； and in hell alone do
people retain their sinful nature： that is to say； their individuality。 And
this sort of hell； however convenient as a means of intimidating persons
who have practically no honor and no conscience； is not a fact。 Death is
for many of us the gate of hell； but we are inside on the way out； not
outside on the way in。 Therefore let us give up telling one another idle
stories； and rejoice in death as we rejoice in birth； for without death we
cannot be born again； and the man who does not wish to be born again and
born better is fit only to represent the City of London in Parliament； or
perhaps the university of Oxford。
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
The Child is Father to the Man
Is he？ Then in the name of common sense why do we always treat
children on the assumption that the man is father to the child？ Oh； these
fathers！ And we are not content with fathers： we must have godfathers；
forgetting that the child is godfather to the man。 Has it ever struck you as
curious that in a country where the first article of belief is that every child
is born with a godfather whom we all call 〃our father which art in
heaven；〃 two very limited individual mortals should be allowed to appear
at its baptism and explain that they are its godparents； and that they will
look after its salvation until it is no longer a child。 I had a godmother
who made herself responsible in this way for me。 She presented me with
a Bible with a gilt clasp and edges； larger than the Bibles similarly
presented to my sisters； because my sex entitled me to a heavier article。 I
must have seen that lady at least four times in the twenty years following。
She never alluded to my salvation in any way。 People occasionally ask
me to act as godfather to their children with a levity which convinces me
that they have not the faintest notion that it involves anything more than
calling the helpless child George Bernard without regard to the possibility
that it may grow up in the liveliest abhorrence of my notions。
A person with a turn for logic might argue that if God is the Father of
all men； and if the child is father to the man； it follows that the true
representative of God at the christening is the child itself。 But such posers
are unpopular； because they imply that our little customs； or； as we often
call them； our religion； mean something； or must originally have meant
something； and that we understand and believe that something。
However； my business is not to make confusion worse confounded；
but to clear it up。 Only； it is as well to begin by a sample of current
thought and practice which shews that on the subject of children we are
very deeply confused。 On the whole； whatever our theory or no theory
may be； our practice is to treat the child as the property of its immediate
physical parents； and to allow them to do what they like with it as far as it
will let them。 It has no rights and no liberties： in short； its condition is
that which adults recognize as the most miserable and dangerous
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
politically possible for themselves： namely； the condition of slavery。 For
its alleviation we trust to the natural affection of the parties； and to public
opinion。