Some Thoughts Concerning Education · Character

Children

The restless minds Locke means to rescue from dead-language drills, set Latin themes, and verse-making that teach nothing but torment and empty invention.

major

Also known as children, theirs, their, Children, themselves, Their

First appearance: Some Thoughts Concerning Education

As a major figure in Some Thoughts Concerning Education, Children is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Referenced as the subjects of education, whose early corruption is a general complaint and whose proper upbringing is a parental duty.

In the storyDedicationOpen this moment free

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In Locke's treatise, children are not abstractions but the living test of every method he proposes — the boy sweating over a theme on a Latin tag he cannot understand, the pupil forced to versify who has no poetic vein, the young gentleman who should be learning to speak well on matters he actually knows. Their tension is with the schoolmasters who rack their invention for words before they have any sense, demanding bricks without straw. They matter because Locke's entire argument turns on whether education fits the child's capacity or crushes it.

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See Children in Some Thoughts Concerning Education

Character Web

13 connections

A slice of how Children sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Professional
Social
Psychological
Other

Character groups

Protagonist
Educational Subjects and Examples
Classical and Scholarly Authorities

+8 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Breaking point

The emotional and psychological peak occurs when Locke shifts from private, humble correspondence to a public…

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Relationships

The Great Masters
professional · ambivalent
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or… How this plays out →
A Child
social · positive
People Strangers to Business
social · ambivalent
Your Son
family · positive
My Young Master
family · positive
Paradise
psychological · positive
His Son
family · positive
A Child
social · positive
Paradise
psychological · positive
The Great Masters
professional · ambivalent
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or… How this plays out →
People Strangers to Business
social · ambivalent
The Great Masters
professional · ambivalent
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or… How this plays out →

The Great Masters
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or teachers.
A Child
A child is part of the larger group of children, sharing similar experiences and learning environment.
People Strangers to Business
Children are contrasted with adults unfamiliar with practical affairs, highlighting their need for worldly education.
Your Son
Your son is a specific child among the general group of children, often used as an example for parental concern.
My Young Master
My young master is a specific child under the narrator's care, part of the broader group of children.
Paradise
Children are associated with paradise as an ideal state of innocence or a reward for proper education.
His Son
His son is a specific child within the group, used to discuss individual differences in upbringing.
A Child
A child is part of the larger group of children, sharing similar experiences and learning environment.
Paradise
Children are associated with paradise as an ideal state of innocence or a reward for proper education.
The Great Masters
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or teachers.
People Strangers to Business
Children are contrasted with adults unfamiliar with practical affairs, highlighting their need for worldly education.
The Great Masters
Children are taught and disciplined by the great masters, who are their tutors or teachers.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Children in Some Thoughts Concerning Education

In the story

Children appears across 4 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Dedication
Referenced as the subjects of education, whose early corruption is a general complaint and whose proper upbringing is a parental duty.
Some Thoughts Concerning Education
Locke discusses how children's memories are often overloaded with rules they cannot understand or remember, and advocates for habit formation through repeated practice.
When Grammar Should Be Taught?
Children are discussed as learners who suffer when put into books beyond their capacity; they learn language insensibly through pleasant reading.
Endnotes
Referenced as the subjects of parental education in Roman and Greek tradition.

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Children unlock in the free preview.

See Children in Some Thoughts Concerning Education

See Children in Dedication