10 Parenting Tips From Susan Sontag's 1959 Journal That Remains True Even Today


The writer Susan Sontag gave birth to her son, David Rieff, in 1952. After his mother died in 2004, David found this still-relevant list of parenting tips, written when he was seven, in one of her journals.


1. Be consistent.
2. Don’t speak about him to others (e.g., tell funny things) in his presence.
3. Don’t praise him for something I wouldn’t always accept as good.
4. Don’t reprimand him harshly for something he’s been allowed to do.
5. Daily routine: eating, homework, bath, teeth, room, story, bed.
6. Don’t allow him to monopolize me when I am with other people.
7. Always speak well of his pop (no faces, sighs, impatience, etc.).
8. Do not discourage childish fantasies.
9. Make him aware that the grown-up world is none of his business.
10. Don’t assume that what I don’t like to do (bath, hair wash), he won’t like either.

 By Susan Sontag

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