The Fifth Child Essay

The Fifth Child Essay

What is a perfect family? The Huxtables (The Cosby Show)? The Adams (The Adams Family)? The Banks (Fresh Prince of Bel-Air)? All are good examples of "perfect families". They all love each other and even when having problems, in the end they're one big happy family. The Fifth Child on the other hand, is an example of a breakdown of a family. The Fifth Child is by Doris Lessing. The main characters are Harriet and Ben Lovatt. Ben is a young child going through a tough time fitting in with his family. Harriet is a married mother of five and is trying to find out who her son Ben is really is. The person I think who is responsible for the breakdown of the Lovatt family is Harriet.

I believe Harriet is responsible for the breakdown of the family because while pregnant with Ben, she took pain killers. Although during this time period people didn't fully know the effects of drugs on babies, I believe Harriet should've just push through the pain of pregnancy. When Harriet felt agonizing pain and that her stomach was too big for 5 months pregnant, she visited Dr. Brett. ""I'll give you a sedative," Dr. Brett said. For her. But she thought of it as something to quiet the baby." This shows that Harriet is responsible for the damage of the family because she was only thinking of herself more than the baby. I'm sure she had "pains" before during the other 4 pregnancies, but now she decided to get a sedative.

Another reason Harriet is responsible for the breakdown of the Lovatt family is because she allowed her children to avoid being with Ben. And eventually this caused her three eldest children to live off with other family members. "Luke always went for his school holidays to Grandfather James, who whom he "got on" so well...Luke was living with the rich, and thriving...Helen was happy at Molly's house. She lived in the room her father had once made his real home. Jane had prevailed on Dorothy to come and reason with Harriet and David, for she wanted to live with Dorothy and Aunt Sarah and the three healthy cousins and poor Amy." If Harriet would've found ways to help her children love and appreciate Ben, maybe the children could've stayed home with their true family.

Some say that David is the true reason for the breakdown of the Lovatt family