Discuss the conflict between childhood and adulthood in Charlotte's Web. Think about how the adults are portrayed, how the children are portrayed, and how the adults interact with the children. Use examples from the novel to help support your answer. It would be a good idea to focus on specific characters.
*Please edit this small essay. Thanks!!!*
p.s. English is my second language!
This book Charlotte’s Web teaches lessons to both children and adults. In this novel, the children are very energetic, and eager to learn and discover new things while adults portray the opposite, which are serious, and lack of imaginations.
The adults and children have their own way of seeing things. When Fern asked her mother, “I don’t see why he needs an ax,” and her mother said, “One of the pig is a runt.” (White. 1) To Mr. and Mrs.Arables “runt” may be something that is small, weak, and useless. But to Fern it is a pig that is helpless and in need of care. Fern had referred to her parent’s decision as “injustice” to killing a pig because it’s small by stating, “If I had been born very small at birth, would you have killed me?” (White. 3 While her parents valued the usefulness of things to provide them economically, Fern values that all life are equal and has right to live. Mr.Arables also mentions to fern, “I know more about raising a litter of pigs than you do.” (White. 3) This shows that adults tend to think that they are smarter and went through everything that children goes through. Fern has proved her father wrong. She mothered the pig by starting off by training it to drink the milk from the bottle. Like any mother, she warms his milk and tied his bib on, held the bottle for him and later on put him to sleep. This tells the adults to never under estimate their children.
Children are full of imagination whereas as adults think realistically. When Charlotte wrote “SOME PIG” on her web to save Wilbur, Mr.Zuckerman just didn’t want to admit and had a hard time believing that it was written by a spider but a miracle. When Mrs.Arables was worried about her daughter visiting the barn and her imagination about the talking animal, the doctor reminds her that children will be children and change as they grow. “Children pay better attention than grownups.” (White. 110) This shows that some parents forget about how they behaved as a child themselves. It is nature that children will be living life with imaginations and discovering things as they grow up and just focus on the present. On the other hand, the adult are very realistic and thinks about the future.
Therefore, children and adult will always have different view of things.
opposite, which are serious = opposite; they are serious and lack imagination.
One of the pig = one of the pigs
as “injustice” to killing a pig = as unjust killing a pig...
all life are equal = all life IS...
has right to live = has the right...
frn = Fern
went through everything = and have gone through
that children goes = that children GO
she warms his milk and tied = don't shift from present to past = warms and ties, holds...puts him to sleep
wereas as = wher eas adults
but a miracle = and not by a miracle.
imagination = imagination (singular)
the adult are = the adultS are....think
children and adults
"It's called the generation gap!"
Sra ( aka Mme )
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This book, Charlotte's Web, explores the conflict between childhood and adulthood, highlighting the differences in how adults and children are portrayed and how they interact with each other. The children in the novel are depicted as energetic, curious, and imaginative, while the adults are portrayed as serious, pragmatic, and lacking in imagination.
One example of this conflict can be seen in the interaction between Fern and her parents. When Fern questions why her father needs an ax to kill the runt pig, her mother dismisses her concerns, saying that the runt is small and therefore not worth keeping alive. However, Fern sees the runt as needing care and nurturing. She questions her parents, asking if they would have killed her if she were small and weak at birth. This highlights Fern's belief in the value of all life and her sense of justice, which contrasts with her parents' focus on practicality and economic considerations.
Fern also proves her parents wrong when she takes on the responsibility of raising the runt pig. Despite her parents' belief that they know better, Fern successfully cares for the pig by training him to drink milk from a bottle, warming his milk, and putting him to sleep. This challenges the notion that adults always know best and shows the importance of not underestimating children.
Children are portrayed as full of imagination, while adults tend to think realistically. An example of this is when Charlotte writes "SOME PIG" on her web to save Wilbur. Mr. Zuckerman has a hard time believing that a spider could create such a message and sees it as a miraculous event rather than an imaginative act. Similarly, Mrs. Arables is worried when Fern tells her about the animals talking in the barn, but the doctor reassures her that children have vivid imaginations and that it is normal for them to believe in such things. This highlights the difference in perspective between children, who pay attention to the present and live with imagination, and adults, who often focus on practical concerns and the future.
In conclusion, Charlotte's Web explores the conflict between childhood and adulthood by contrasting the energetic and imaginative portrayal of children with the serious and practical depiction of adults. Through the interactions and perspectives of the characters, the novel highlights the importance of valuing children's perspectives and not underestimating their abilities, as well as the need for adults to embrace imagination and remember their own experiences as children.