Parenting...

I finished reading just recently one of the better biography on Joseph Pulitzer, 558 pages long by James McGrath Morris. In this book three things stood out in my mind.

One, the issue of discipline. Though Pulitzers (seven, two passed away before his time) children were mostly raised by nannies, tutors and people from boarding schools, he saw to it that proper respect be accorded him. One incident was when he told his daughter to leave the dinner table because he would not allow her to talk to Joseph in a disrespectful way, nor would he allow her to explain her side of the blame in such an angry tone of voice.

Two the issue of filial disrespect. The above incident could be under this. However this particular assessment has something to do with his children not having any communication with their father. To Joseph(Jr.) his son, he wrote: "Thirty five days since I sailed and not one word from you" Thirty five times I have told you with pain, how much pain you give me when you don't write simply as evidence of neglect-and that you do not think of."

Three the issue of encouragement(or discouragement).
The book writes: His father's harsness inflicted great pain on Joe. Only a few months earlier, during a carriage ride and in front of Ralph (his oldest son) Joseph had dressed Joe down as "utterly worthless, ignorant and incompetent." In another part of the book Father told son: "I donot expect perfection and Lord knows I am indulgent enough and affectionate enough and weak enough in my children," But I leave you under no delusion; I must say that if you should work ten times as hard with a hundred times the talent you possess, it would still be no equivalent or recompense for the constant pain and suffering and distress, mental, moral, and consequently physical, by day and by night, and almost every waking hour of the night and day, you have caused me this winter before and certainly one winter before that."
Sadly, this Joseph is the one brother to inherit his father's journalistic talent. Despite his father's lack of confidence in him, he guided his father's Post-Dispatch and it flourished as one of the nation's important and profitable newspaper.
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