Bailey Christiansen

Mr. Pace
English IV
09 May 2019

The Fifth Child - Essay

“They had felt it deeply wrong so to tamper with the processes of Nature! Nature - they

now reminded themselves they once felt - was at some level or other to be relied upon” (111).

David and Harriet have four, sweet, idyllic children. Then, a fifth comes along who

changes their entire life. One of the main questions in The Fifth Child is whether a child’s

personality can be changed through nurture, or if it is determined through nature. Ben was born

with an unnatural violence from the start, and despite their efforts, they cannot change who he

becomes.

All five of the children are born into and raised in the same environment. Ben though, is

different from his siblings in that, while being cared for by his mom, he maintains his violent

streak while his siblings are kind and caring, and content with their lives. This violence vs

tenderness started even during Harriet’s pregnancies. The first four went smoothly and she had

very little pain, while her pregnancy with Ben was a difficult one. He was constantly moving and

kicking and she was in much pain.

Later on, due to his violence and aggression, they decide to send him to what was

essentially an asylum. But Harriet feels so much guilt that she goes and brings him back, much to
David’s dismay. “While she was part of the general relief, and could hardly believe she had been

able to stand such strain, and for so long, she could not banish Ben from her mind. It was not

with love, or even affection, that she thought of him, and she disliked herself for not being able

to find one little spark of normal feeling: it was guilt and horror that kept her awake through the

nights” (93-94).

One unique thing in The Fifth Child is how involved their extended family is. Harriet’s

mother basically lives with them, and their extended family is very involved in taking care of

their other children. If Harriet loses track of time when she’s with Ben, she’ll find another family

member helping out. “ ‘The trouble is, you get used to hell,” said Harriet. “After a day with Ben

I feel as if nothing exists but him. As if nothing has ever existed. I suddenly realize I haven’t

remembered the others for hours. I forgot their supper yesterday. Dorothy went to the pictures,

and I came down and found Helen cooking their supper’ ” (79).

Because of Harriet’s attention to the troublesome Ben, her other children start to suffer,

and lose touch on what family life is supposed to be like. Ultimately, they all leave Harriet and

David, and opt to live with their grandparents, or go to a boarding school. All in an effort to

escape Ben, and thanks to Harriet’s inattentiveness. Ben is on the cusp of joining a gang at this

point, and ultimately does.

Ultimately, Ben doesn’t change. He is still the violent and aggressive and vaguely

murderous child that he was born as. Even though David and Harriet had lavished basically all of

their attention on him in hopes to change him, he didn’t change. This goes to show that the
author believes that nature is the biggest factor in how a person turns out, and nurture, even the

best kind, has almost nothing to do with it.