Child Versus Parent

Family friction becomes most difficult, Stephen S. Wise argues, when children approach adulthood and begin to claim independence. These chapters examine the competing demands of parental authority and a young person's growing sense of fairness. Wise treats the home as a foundation of public life, with responsibilities that schools and religious institutions can only partly share. He also considers how poverty, leisure and excessive material comfort shape the possibilities of family life.

The discussion turns on the standards adults set through their own conduct. Wise questions the fairness of indulging children for years and then abruptly demanding discipline, and considers cases in which a child's conscience conflicts with a parent's wishes or business practices. His firm judgments and direct examples give the book the character of an ethical argument. Readers interested in changing ideas of parenthood will find a historical account of respect, duty and independence within the household.