Ch. 9, Facing Responsibility Summary and Analysis

People create themselves by the choices that they make. People often blame others for their mistakes, as illustrated by a reference to Kierkegaard. Children must learn to face responsibility for their actions, but it is also important to allow them to make their own mistakes. Parents often demand that children begin to make choices at too young an age, which can be dismaying if the child is not yet ready to make their own decisions. Families should share responsibilities, such as budgets. Each member of a family should have their own sum to spend, which will teach children how to make choices. For example, Eleanor Roosevelt's grandnephew chooses to buy scientific equipment instead of clothes. Likewise, her husband buys books instead of clothes. Eleanor Roosevelt knows a family who wears silly hats when it is necessary to...