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The Fifth Child

The Fifth Child. Harriet's and David's relationship with Ben. Ben is David and Harriet's fifth child.

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The Fifth Child

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  1. The Fifth Child • Harriet's and David's relationship with Ben.

  2. Ben is David and Harriet's fifth child. Even if they have promised not to have another baby after Paul, Jane, Luck and Helen,and although they have been careful (not to the point of Harriet taking the pill) Harriet discovers she is pregnant. From the beginning she is exhausted by the pregnancy, she’s nervous and she suffers a lot as the baby in her seems to be tearing her apart: as a matter of fact she spends her time crying and muttering to herself that the fœtus is poisoning her. Before Ben's Birth

  3. Ben: a poison? Harriet’sfifthpregancyispoisoning: • her • herrelationshipwith David- as theyseem to grow more and more apart and they argue- • theirfamily life: shecan’t look afterherchildrenanymore and she ignores Paul.

  4. Harriet and David are no copers Besides, that pregnancy is another strain on the family life: David has already taken a second job (having a try at coping and being responsible)because he can’t support his family financially but it is not enough. It’s thanks to David's father (James) and his money that they can afford the house. Harriet doesn’t manage to cope with all what she has to do in the house like cleaning, cooking, looking after children, so, they have tried to hire young girls to help Harriet with that but as they seem inadequate they ask Dorothy to help Harriet in the house. So it seems that Harriet and David can’t cope with their choices at all: • Their choice to have a big house and a family • Their choice to be conservative and not to use the pill

  5. The first signs of the failure • David and Harriet feeluncomfortable about the pregnancy . • Theyrealizethey have been irresponsible. • The family'shappinessseemsshattered. Nowadays, David and Harriet don’tagree on things and itis the first time for them: Harriet wants to invite all the family for the Christmas holidays but David doesn'twant to first because, Harriet isdepressed ,sick and tiredsohethinksshewon’t manage to copewithit and secondlybecausefinancially, theycan'tafforditeven if hedoesn’t mention that)

  6. Dorothy is angry with the news of Harriet’s pregnancy and Harriet and David are aware of that which is why they are afraid to tell her about it.Moreover,they don’t feel comfortable with it themselves. Dorothy finally accepts to stay and help them even if she has enough of being « treated like a maid » by Harriet and her sister because, she realizes that Harriet's fifth pregnancy already has a big impact on the family life and that Harriet and David can’t cope with it. Dorothy and Ben’sbirth

  7. Harriet rejects her son . Before his birth: she wants to get rid of him by inducing the birth. She doesn’t want to have him at home like with the other babies she wants to give birth in hospital. On the day of his birth: She doesn’t recognize him. She tninks he’s ugly (not a pretty baby) She feels pity for him because he looks like a troll or monster. She feels pity for him because she doesn’t like him. Harriet's relationship with Ben

  8. Harriet's relationship with Ben • Afterhisbirth • His first feeding is quite different from the other children’s (he bites her) and she puts him back in his cot and after few weeks, she has to stop feeding him as it’s too painful. • Because she blames herself for being a bad mother, she makes herself pet and play with Ben as she did with the other children even if she doesn’t like him and even if he doesn’t seem to like either.

  9. Harriet feels people blameher for givingbirth to Ben and shefindsitdifficult to copewithit and withherown feelings for Ben and eventuallysheblamesher son for it. Because of Ben, people begin to go awayfrom the Lovatts and shefeelsbad about it: it’s the end of the family’sjoyfulgatherings and the end of theirdream Later, Ben ishiddenfrom the wholefamily and kept in his room . Finally, Harriet isolatesherself more and more from the rest of the family as she’salwayslookingafter Ben thusabandoning Jane, Luke, Helen and mostparticulary Paul even if she loves him a lot. For Harriet Ben is not a baby , he’s a monsterwhoisshattering and destroyingherperfectfamily life. The beginning of the descentintohell

  10. Thingsdon'tgetbetterbecause Ben isalways violent and agressive withhismother and rejectsherdeeply and deeply as a stranger, soit's a difficult and a « forced » relationship. • Harriet alwayswantshim to be « normal » but in facthecan'tbecauseit'shispersonality. Ben isguilty in Harriet'seyes as he has destroyed all she has dreamed of sinceherchildhood. • He creates a gap, a failurebetweenher and David, her and herchildren and that'swhysherejects the fault on Ben.

  11. Harriet has to agree with the family’s decision to put Ben in establishment for children like Ben :this a new step in Harriet and Ben’s relationship. At first, it is a liberation for Harriet who feels relieved but soon she feels guilty of leaving him alone and so she takes him back home. Until that moment,Harriet was afraid of Ben but after Ben’s return from the institution she controls him by threatening him to send him away again. The final rejection

  12. David doesn’t have a real relationshipwithhis son Ben. For him, Ben is an alien: heisHarriet's son while Jane, Helen, Luke and Paul are his real children. He rejects Ben deeply and doesn’t look afterhim. He wants to send Ben to the institution even if hecan’taffordit (hisfatherwillpay for thatagain). David feelshe has lost Harriet and theirrelationshipwillneverbe the same and Harriet'srelationshipswith the otherchildren are non-existant and heputs the blame on Ben. David's relationship with Ben

  13. What is Ben?

  14. Strange feelings for Ben beginat first sight: • For both Harriet and David, he looks like a troll, a goblin or somethinglikethat but not like a baby,Theyevenwonderwhatheis. • Both Harriet and David have mixed feelings about himwhentheyseehim for the first time, itis as if hewas not their son. • Like Harriet and David, Ben is a freak . • Ben is the embodiment of Harriet and David’sfailure to challenge society. • He’s the symbol of theirunhappiness and disappointment. • He’stheirpunishment for beingtoodifferent.

  15. Conclusion In any case, Ben is a burden for his parents and contrary to hisbrothers and sisters, heisdeeplyrejected by hisfather but less by hismotherwho tries and tries to makeherself love him or behavelike a mother to him.

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