Although Moritz Schreber and Benjamin Spock stood on opposite ends of the parenting spectrum, they shared certain similarities. Both men were physicians and both wrote best-selling books on child rearing. But that’s where the parallel ends. Living 100 years apart (Moritz Schreber was born in Leipzig, Germany, in 1808 and Benjamin Spock in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1903), Schreber promoted unconditional obedience through harsh discipline while Spock advocated independent thinking over strict adherence to rules.
Moritz Schreber – advice to parents
Dr. Daniel Gottlieb Moritz Schreber was a physician and self-proclaimed child psychiatrist and taught at the University of Leipzig. He became a recognized authority on childcare in Germany, France, England and America. His books predominantly dealt with children’s health and the social consequences of urbanization and went through forty reprints between 1858 and the 1950’s.
Schreber aimed at creating obedient children from the day the baby is born. Harsh discipline started with cold baths. The child’s comfort and self-esteem were never considerations, and stroking, cuddling and kissing were forbidden. As a result, generations of Germans went without direct, loving contact with their parents.
Along with his books, Schreber introduced paraphernalia designed to create obedient children with perfect posture. For example, he invented shoulder bands to keep their shoulders back, equipment that forced them to sit up straight, and a head holder with chin clamp to hold their head straightway. He even invented mechanical devices to prevent masturbation in adolescents. When the Nazi movement started in Germany in the 1920s, there were still many “Schreberian” children around, which may have explained in part why fascism was more readily accepted in Germany than in other countries. Even by 1958, the Schreber Association still had two million members.
Benjamin Spock – advice to parents
In 1946, Dr. Benjamin McLaine Spock, a child psychoanalyst, published his first book, “The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care”, which became an all-time bestseller. Its message to mothers was that you know more than you think you do and to trust your instincts. According to the 17 March 1998 edition of the New York Times, the book had sold more than 50 million copies by that time and had been translated into 42 languages. Many new parents still follow Spock’s advice today.
At a time when physical punishment was the norm, Dr. Benjamin Spock advocated a parenting style that replaced unconditional obedience with emotional attachment: Hug and kiss your children, show them your love, feed them when they are hungry, discipline with words not corporal punishment, and encourage them to express their individuality. The assumption was that when a loving bond was firmly in place between parent and child, everything else would fall into place. Spock’s books were idolized by many new parents and helped to bring about major changes. During the Vietnam era Spock parents were also criticized for having produced children that were unprepared for the world.
The brighter side of Moritz Schreber’s contributions
If tormenting children was on the darker side of Schreber’s accomplishments, then promoting the concept of the Schrebergarten certainly was on the brighter side of his contributions. Moritz Schreber became the father of the Schrebergarten, the German term for what is known in English as an allotment or community garden. By leasing small pieces of urban land, generations of parents helped their children become active in the outdoors. These gardens are still very popular in Germany today.
Moritz Schreber promoted unconditional obedience through harsh discipline while Benjamin Spock advocated independent thinking over strict adherence to rules. www.walled-in-berlin.com
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Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.
