Tough decisions when you are a parent

@torunn said
"It takes a village to raise a child." Wise words.

Yup, and it takes a village pub to cool off sometimes.

@torunn said
"It takes a village to raise a child." Wise words.

We didnt have a village but we had parents and brothers and cousins,I helped rais my brothers kids he was often working abroad, we all worked together so 12 kids brought up with love and respect,all with sound moral compasses, bringing up my 2 was never hard work,its not a job its a vocation.

@badradger said
We didnt have a village but we had parents and brothers and cousins,I helped rais my brothers kids he was often working abroad, we all worked together so 12 kids brought up with love and respect,all with sound moral compasses, bringing up my 2 was never hard work,its not a job its a vocation.

I think that's what the saying means.
I agree with you, completely btw

@divegeester said
I don’t get the metaphor?
Is it a metaphor?

Society helps raise and mould a child, not just the parents.

@ghost-of-a-duke said
Society helps raise and mould a child, not just the parents.

how do you evaluate nature v nurture?

@badradger said
how do you evaluate nature v nurture?

I'd say 79% nurture and 21% nature with regard to many things, the list of which I will leave unspecified.

@divegeester said
I don’t get the metaphor?
Is it a metaphor?

No, it is more like a fact. The more we are, the easier it is to manage the responsibility of raising children. When we lived in small communities, it was possible to keep an eye on what was going on around us. In big towns and cities that is harder, and single parents have a big task.

@torunn said
No, it is more like a fact. The more we are, the easier it is to manage the responsibility of raising children. When we lived in small communities, it was possible to keep an eye on what was going on around us. In big towns and cities that is harder, and single parents have a big task.

It’s not a metaphor… it’s a “fact” that it takes a village to raise a child?

@divegeester said
It’s not a metaphor… it’s a “fact” that it takes a village to raise a child?

That's the saying. If you exchange 'village' to 'community', it is a fact. Most parents are aware of it, I would think.

@torunn said
That's the saying. If you exchange 'village' to 'community', it is a fact. Most parents are aware of it, I would think.

Then “village” is a metaphor for community and “raise” is a metaphor for influence?

@divegeester said
It’s not a metaphor… it’s a “fact” that it takes a village to raise a child?

It was more a metonymy, substituting society for village.

@divegeester said
Then “village” is a metaphor for community and “raise” is a metaphor for influence?

There used to be villages before there were towns and cities, hence the word 'village'. 'Raise' is a good word - people used to help each other to raise the children by keeping an eye of them and telling them off when they did something wrong. Not so common these days.

@torunn said
That's the saying. If you exchange 'village' to 'community', it is a fact. Most parents are aware of it, I would think.

It is certainly a fact that most parents don't raise their children in isolation, but with the support of whatever community they live in. (Including teachers etc).

@badradger said
how do you evaluate nature v nurture?

Hard to say, but I think nurture has a greater influence. We are profoundly shaped by the environment we are immersed in. (Impacting on morality, religion etc).

@ghost-of-a-duke said
It was more a metonymy, substituting society for village.

No, it’s a metaphor.

And in either case it isn’t true. Society doesn’t “raise” children, it might influence them but it’s the parents, grandparents and immediate wider family who raise them.