What Are Parents For?

Do children really need parents to take care of them? What exactly are they taking care of? Is it necessary to form a bond with the two people who were biologically responsible for creating you? What sort of bond does it have to be and why is that important in life? What is the parent's role within society?

The Moorchild challenges traditional parental roles by posing these questions through the dissatisfying experiences of Saaski, the twice-rejected, changeling heroine of the tale, in the human world. Saaski was born in the Mound and given the name Moql'nkkn. The Mound of the Folk is described as an egalitarian community of carefree love, and perpetual childlike wonder. The twinkling lights of the cook fires light up the Gathering and every bright sparkling eye reflects a private passion for life that remains unfettered by attachment or social infrastructure. Where do families fit in to this enchanting reality?

"No youngling knew its mother-- only that it must have had one. Each mother cosseted and adored her baby until the Nursery took over, then she forgot it and returned to the Gathering and a different mate and the careless life of the Folk, in which a great deal of every body's time, whether in the Mound or Outside in the humans' world, was spent in dancing, feasting, mischief, idling, and dreaming" (16).

So basically, there are no nuclear families within the Mound; there is only the sense of loyalty to the community. The narrative seems to imply that the Nursery "takes over" after the mother has finished nursing her young. In the Nursery and later in Schooling House, Saaski/Moql runs free and wild over the Moor with her fellow Younglings. They dance and play and casually absorb the lessons in the magic of the Folk. They gain a sense of identity in relation to each other, by mimicking each other in carefree fun. Saaski/Moql is happy with this way of life, and the narrative does not give the reader a sense that Saaski misses having parents. Rather, the narrative creates a society in which parents are not normally attached and present to their children. Community child rearing is often linked with visions of Utopias because it can seem liberatory to be able to share love, joy, and passion without having to feel attachment, jealousy, and resentment. Sharing the labors of having to teach children the skills they need to be productive adults is also an appealing quality of community nurseries. Within the Mound, Saaski/Moql learns magic and how to read nature and the ways to play pranks on the humans. She is allowed to explore, the run free, to make mistakes, to discover the world with her own eyes. Her independence brings her success within the Mound. She sets her own limitations, and there is no distinction between what is taught to boys and girls as far as social norms.

This very idealized, pastoral, innocent existence is shattered when Saaski/Moql is discovered to be half human. This mixing of blood was regarded as a threat to the Mound, and so they rejected her. No one seemed to bear her ill will on her way out, and no one gave signs that they would mourn her after she had gone. The Folk live carelessly and without selfish attachment.

Saaski joined the ranks of the humans, and because she was half Folk, she was doomed a second time to be rejected. At first, as an infant in her crib, Saaski calls Yanno and Anwara her "jailers" and confesses that she bears them no love or care. The perception of the parent as a captor, as a diminutive person who forces tasks upon an unwilling victim characterizes Saaski initial reception of Yanno and Anwara. They reinforce structure in her day by giving her chores. They limit her creativity and exploration by forbidding her to wander the Moor. They blame her for the scrutiny she has spread to the family name because of her "otherness." Her independence and agency are punished in the human world.

However, the more Yanno and Anwara try to restrain Saaski and reform her to follow the social norms of the village, the more Saaski rebels. She becomes complacent, apathetic, and even contrary. She is aware of what her parents want, but sometimes judges it to be wrong. Since the tale is told from Saaski's point of view, the reader identifies with Saaski more. This identification aids in problematizing the parenting strategies of Yanno and Amwara.

Instead of reinforcing the practical skills, pastoral relationships, and gleeful pleasures that Saaski learned from her time in the Mound, Yanno and Anwara teach Saaski a world of limitations. While parenting Saaski, Yanno and Anwara are seldom happy, and in fact Anwara's health suffers because of the strain and stress. Yet, both the younglings and the elders live carefree lives of joy in the Mound. Thus, the human model of childhood contrasts with the Folk model. Through Saaski's eyes, though there are small moments of belonging and love between she and her foster parents, the human model of raising children is wrong. She feels attachment and gratitude towards Anwara for supporting her playing the bagpipes, and she enjoys learning to read with Old Bess. She was deeply moved by Yanno's violent vows to protect her against the angry mob, but Saaski never really formed a selfish attachment to these foster parents. Saaski never accepted their teachings, never obeyed, and so was never able to assimilate herself into society. She ultimately returns to the Mound, electing a life away from the human world of boundaries and cares.

To me, The Moorchild highlights the problems that come when parents cannot recognize their children; each child is different with different needs and desires and personality traits. Indoctrinating all children to fit into a single, acceptable, "normal" mold is impossible, nor should it be desirable. I do not think that an existence like to the Mound is possible either. However, I think that this book argues that a child's agency should be more celebrated and that his or her creativity and individuality should be cultivated, not repressed or controlled. Difference should be enjoyed, not hushed. Aside from attempting to indoctrinate Saaski into the social norms in the town, I do not think that Yanno and Anwara do much to enhance or enrich Saaski as a character. Likewise, parents who cannot recognize their children and seek only to change them to fit into social norms may suffer similar frustrations and difficulties.