Something to Cry About
eBook - PDF

Something to Cry About

An Argument against Corporal Punishment of Children in Canada

  1. 338 pages
  2. English
  3. PDF
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

Something to Cry About

An Argument against Corporal Punishment of Children in Canada

About this book

Why does our society think it is okay to hit children?

Almost everyone thinks it is wrong to abuse a child. But many parents and teachers believe it is okay to spank children, rap their knuckles, slap their faces, pull their hair and yank their arms, as long as the punishment does not result in serious injury or death, and is intended to improve a child's behaviour. Susan M. Turner explores the historical, psychological, sociological and legal foundations of this belief from a philosophical perspective and argues why it should be abandoned.

Something to Cry About presents evidence from recent studies showing that all forms of corporal punishment pose significant risks for children and that none improves behaviour in the long term. Dr. Turner also examines Section 43 of the Canadian Criminal Code — a law that protects those who punish children in their care by allowing them to hit the children as long as such punishment is "reasonable," even though Canadian case law shows that "reasonable" has included breaking a child's fingers. Turner presents a comprehensive argument in favour of repeal.

In Something to Cry About, Turner takes a definite stand, but does so in a way that invites critical dialogue. Her work is the first to set out the debate over corporal punishment in multidisciplinary terms pertinent to Canadian society. She brings together in one place a wide variety of thought and data which can be consulted by all Canadians concerned with the welfare of children.

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Yes, you can access Something to Cry About by Susan M. Turner in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Social Sciences & Family Law. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Table of Contents
  5. Preface
  6. Acknowledgements
  7. Introduction
  8. Chapter 1: The Terms of the Corporal Punishment Debate
  9. Chapter 2: Very Short History of Moral Philosophy
  10. Chapter 3: Morality and Culture: When Values Collide
  11. Chapter 4: Philosophical Morality: Happiness and Harm
  12. Chapter 5: Human Adults and Human Children
  13. Chapter 6: The Paradox of Child Protection
  14. Chapter 7: Corporal Punishment: Its Defenders
  15. Chapter 8: Corporal Punishment and Special Defences in the Law
  16. Chapter 9: The Legal Challenge for Section 43
  17. Chapter 10: What About Spanking?
  18. Chapter 11: Child Abuse and Family Statism Revisited
  19. Notes
  20. Bibliography
  21. Appendix
  22. Index