The Spock Paradox: Permissiveness, Control, and Dr. Spock's Advice For
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Syracuse University SURFACE Dissertations - ALL SURFACE 5-14-2017 The Spock Paradox: Permissiveness, Control, and Dr. Spock’s Advice for a New Psychology of Parenting for Democracy in the Mid-20th Century U.S. Namhee Lee Syracuse University Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/etd Part of the Arts and Humanities Commons Recommended Citation Lee, Namhee, "The Spock Paradox: Permissiveness, Control, and Dr. Spock’s Advice for a New Psychology of Parenting for Democracy in the Mid-20th Century U.S." (2017). Dissertations - ALL. 706. https://surface.syr.edu/etd/706 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the SURFACE at SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations - ALL by an authorized administrator of SURFACE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstract “The Spock Paradox: Permissiveness, Control, and Dr. Spock’s Advice for a New Psychology of Parenting for Democracy in the Mid-20th Century U.S.” examines the paradoxical aspects of Dr. Benjamin Spock’s childrearing ideas. From its publication, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care in 1946 received immensely positive reactions from readers with its unbreakable sales record, next to the Bible. But, at the same time, especially in the 1960s onward, Spock’s advice was stigmatized as permissive by the conservatives and oppressive and male-dominated by feminists. Considering this, this dissertation focuses on a central paradoxical trait of Spock’s childrearing advice, his seemingly permissive approach toward control through a new psychology, which actually represented a new mode of control. It explores this paradox by paying particular attention to the question of how Spock developed his ideal of raising a proper citizen through his concept of self-control. By changing the basis for self-control, his advice supported the idea of a new form of control to be strengthened by means of more internalized and elaborate guidelines. Calling into question the existing belief that Spock’s methods of control were looser and more lenient, this study examines the patterns of transformation in his child rearing ideas from authoritative and visible controls to subtle and internal controls in the mid-twentieth century. Based on this, this dissertation argues that these paradoxical aspects in Spock’s childrearing idea might have acted as catalysts to lay the groundwork for a passage to a more self-centered moral norm in the therapeutic culture. The Spock Paradox: Permissiveness, Control, and Dr. Spock’s Advice for a New Psychology of Parenting for Democracy in the Mid-20th Century U.S. by Namhee Lee B.A., Sookmyung Women’s University, 2003 M.A., Syracuse University, 2012 M.Phil., Syracuse University, 2013 Dissertation Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History. Syracuse University June 2017 Copyright © Namhee Lee, 2017 All Rights Reserved Acknowledgments I would not have been able to complete this dissertation had it not been for great support from professors at Syracuse University, who had showed me what it is like to be an intellectual. First, I would like to thank my advisor, Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn, for being an inspirational teacher for me. Her incessant encouragement, support, and wisdom enabled me to bring my entire study eventually into fruition. She taught me that intellectuals should prove their knowledge by trying to embrace other people’s ideas and opinions, and thinking about how to contribute to society with the knowledge that they acquired. Emphasizing a communal feeling among her advisees, she helped me develop an intellectually cooperative spirit. Through her writing seminars and a great deal of informal meetings, her philosophy of teaching illuminated my hidden creativity. I have also been so honored to work with excellent faculty at SU, including my committee members. The late Ralph Ketcham, who made a huge contribution to the Syracuse community, always inspired me to continue my study with confidence. His seminar on the foundation of American political thought, which I took twice, enabled me to have a better understanding of the political basis of early America. James R. Sharp was the one who observed my academic development as my teacher, TA supervisor and a committee member. Susan Branson’s history course, for which I was her teaching assistant, was the most interesting and exciting course I have ever served in. Albrecht Diem helped me to form my initial thought on the idea of self-discipline regarding preliminary research for my dissertation. Jeffrey Gonda’s enthusiastic and engaging style of teaching allowed me to improve my teaching strategies. Last, but not least, I would like to thank John Western for joining in the defense as committee chair. I am also very grateful to my beloved colleagues, Lex Jing Lu, Yoshina D. Hurgobin, Sravani Biswas, Andrea Catroppa, Paul Arras, Thomas A. Guiler, Matthew D. Stewart, David Wolken, and Lei Duan. They helped me feel more warmth in this community and complete this iv work with their helpful critique and support. I would also like to give a special thanks to Sunghee Cho, a great friend, who has been psychological support and an academic stimulus during my time in Syracuse. Finally, it would have been impossible for me to exist without the support of my parents, Kyunghee Shin and Namsoo Lee. I will never find any way to be like them: always generous, dedicated, caring and loving. Their support is my basis of self-trust. I would also like to thank my everlasting friend and partner for my life, Woojin Doh, for being always supportive of my study for four years. You are done with being alone now. And, to my beloved sister, Yunhee Lee. Thank you for being so patient with your eccentric sister. v TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER ONE To Form a More Perfect Union: Basic Care....................................................................30 Mother and Child Union...................................................................................................31 Declaring Independence...................................................................................................47 Forming an Independent State..........................................................................................58 CHAPTER TWO Forming the Citizen-Child.................................................................................................75 A Big Bossy Giant: On Punishment................................................................................79 A Nervous Giantess: On “Urging” Children...................................................................87 The Pursuit of Happiness...............................................................................................101 Instilling Self-Government............................................................................................109 CHAPTER THREE Forming the Citizen-Parent.............................................................................................123 Trust Yourself.................................................................................................................127 Know Thyself.................................................................................................................134 Control Yourself.............................................................................................................153 Role of Parents: Permissiveness? Or New Ideal?...........................................................163 CHAPTER FOUR The Common Sense of Baby and Child Care................................................................169 Domestic Insurrections...................................................................................................172 Agora for Information.....................................................................................................204 Controlled Independence................................................................................................209 CONCLUSION A Peaceful Polis..................................................................................................................214 Bibliography.......................................................................................................................223 vi 1 Introduction Life itself is perhaps always full of attempts to conquer its own uncertainty. The desire to ease the feeling of anxiety about this uncertainty of life is a fundamental issue throughout human history. Especially after the tragic early decades of the early twentieth century, uncertainty that came from unprecedented aggression of human beings was a central matter to deal with for many. An American pediatrician who was beloved by many Americans during the mid-twentieth century, Benjamin Spock could also not escape this concern about the uncertainty of our lives. His main interest about the life of children, I believe, was how American society could cope with aggression toward the lives of others. It is precise to say that he aspired to control it through his advice about how to raise children. He delivered that advice over the course of a lifetime of treating patients, delivering talks, corresponding with the public, and publishing articles and other works at a prolific rate, including a book that eventually became the best-selling book of the twentieth century U.S. apart from the Bible.