Concerning Children

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Concerning Children is a sharp, wide-ranging challenge to the habits that govern childhood, family life, and education. With wit, urgency, and close observation, Gilman argues that children are not possessions or passive dependents, but active human beings whose minds, dignity, and development deserve respect. She questions the cult of obedience, showing that submission is only useful in certain emergencies and often becomes harmful when treated as a universal virtue; likewise, she rejects the notion that age alone commands reverence, insisting that wisdom and service must be earned. Throughout the book, Gilman calls for a more humane system of child-rearing rooted in courtesy, ethical training, delight, and curiosity rather than punishment or coercion. She critiques conventional schooling for exhausting children and stifling the love of learning, while praising education that connects home, art, labor, libraries, and practical life. Boldly social in scope, the book insists that raising children is not merely a private family duty but a public responsibility essential to human progress. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.