Mini-Document Essay

Students enrolled in English 1102 classes taught by VSU Instructor Diane W. Howard during spring 2004 semester, read “Going Through the Change,” Janice Daugharty’s first collection of short stories. After reading the collection, the students explored topics in the stories, relating them to their hometowns or communities. Simply put, the students related the ideas in a literary piece to their own lives, finding points or areas of similarity as well as areas of disagreement. Once they identified points—in agreement or in contrast—the students researched and wrote a mini-documented essay on the subject “Regional Identity.”

Documented Essay on Child Rearing

by Timothy Jameson Brewer

Child rearing has always been as aspect of human cultures and societies. It has been portrayed in history through stories such as Janice Daugharty’s “Looking to Miss Sara”, through verbal accounts and other written reminisces. According to dictionary.com, child rearing is defined as: “To bring up to maturity, as young; to educate; to instruct; to foster; as, to rear offspring.” Times have most definitely changed over the past fifty years with regards to how children are treated. Many traditions encompass the topic as well as many laws preventing such practices. Child rearing refers to both discipline of children and children working habits and jobs.

Child discipline is a topic of child rearing. Corporal punishment has for the most part always been an aspect of discipline; I know it has been in my life. I can relate to the instance in “Looking to Miss Sara,” when Miss Sara “spanks the child’s hand” for picking on some other child (“Looking to Miss Sara” 101). Growing up in my grandmother’s house and the discipline that I received there has always remained in my mind. If there were ever an instance where I smarted back at something that she said or if I ever did anything that was in violation of the rules, I was slapped on the cheeks.

Also in “Looking to Miss Sara,” religion is used as a form of discipline. The author refers to Sara using Sunday school songs as a weapon to fight against misbehavior (“Looking to Miss Sara” 103). It is guilt that is placed upon the child in order to coax good behavior out of the bad. I know from my own life that indeed I have received corporal punishment on many occasions, but the times that I knew (well, at least thought) that my father, mother, or grandmother were upset or disappointed at me, then that was the worst feeling. For me, experiencing guilt is far more punishable than that of a spanking. However, there has always been an issue of how much corporal punishment is too much.

Child abuse has always been a serious topic of discussion and focal point of many recent laws. “It has been reported that over 3,350,000 children were in an abusive situation in the year 2001. Between 1960 and 1993 the number of cases has multiplied by at least five times over” (Jim Hopper). In the time that “Looking to Miss Sara” is set in, child abuse was not typically a major issue; however, times have changed and child abuse is now one of the main issues in America today. As an unfortunate victim of child abuse myself, I can account for the absolute horror that is placed upon a child in an abusive rearing situation. No matter how long removed any child is out of that violent environment, he or she will forever be haunted by the experiences. Miss Sara took extra care to make sure that what she did, even when disciplining, to a child would not harm them in a long term way. This reference was made obvious to the reader by Miss Sara’s reactions and thoughts about child torture (Daugharty 102).

Child labor in America has always existed; from the times of the immigrants until now. Even in epic stores such as Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn, child labor is depicted. Huckleberry is forced by his caretaker to white wash a particular fence. From the story, the reader can gather that it was a hot summer day and he, for the short time that he did his work himself, was outside by himself sweating and painting away (Mark Twain). In modern times, this particular activity would still be for the most part agreeable according to child labor laws. However, since the 60’s, there have been many new laws protecting children in an official workplace. For instance, except for a select few jobs a child under the age of 14 cannot be employed by a company. The hours that a child can work has been limited to very few, and the environment in which they work in must be suitable and safe for their age (Child Labor Informations).

I know from my own experience that there are very strict regulations on minors in the working area. I recall being forced to take periodical breaks and having to leave earlier than the adults who performed my same tasks. These laws have been instilled due to employers taking advantage of children and placing them in harmful places of occupation. My parents required that I maintained a job throughout high school; this was a stipulation that I had to meet in order to gain certain privileges. However, for the most part I conclude that my father’s wishes for me to hold a steady part-time job were to teach me some very important lessons about responsibility and money. Therefore, by his doing this he was rearing me in the manner of labor. Thirty years ago children worked (sometime refrained from attending school) for the purpose of contributing to the families financial gain. Times have definitely changed over the past 30 years.

Hence, “Child-rearing is the most important and significant thing you will do in your life” (Peace and Harmony). Both discipline and labor in a child’s life become the backbone of the adult that they become. Morals, beliefs, and hatreds are derived from how each individual child is raised, and how he or she is reared from the time that they are born. Modern times have proven a definite change in how our society views the roles and rearing of a child; however, it is my belief that modern times are more suitable for the bettering of a child.

Works Cited

Daugharty, Janice. “Looking to Miss Sara.” Going Through the Change. Pages 100-109. New York City: Ontario Review Press, 1994.

Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry: Child Labor Laws.

<http://www.doli.state.mn.us/childlbr.html#Hours%20of%20work>. Accessed on March 23, 2004.

Hopper, Jim. Child Abuse: Statistics, Research, and Resources. 1 April, 2004. <http://www.jimhopper.com/abstats/#official-us>. Accessed on March 23, 2004.

Peace and Harmony. Your Questions Answered Concerning Child Raising. 2000. Seventh Monkey Productions. <http://home.earthlink.net/~harmonyunltd/> Accessed on March 23, 2004.

Internet Wiretap. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. 1993. <http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/People/rgs/sawyr-table.html> Accessed on March 23, 2004.