Spanking Is a Global Phenomenon

By Fenold Alexis

Spanking Is a Global Phenomenon looks at this traditional method of corporal punishment from a deep perspective, placing it in its historical context, and from a wide point of view, comparing changing attitudes across cultures and generations. The result of this survey by Fenold Alexis is a work on a topic broadly connected to peoples lives, but rarely examined in such detail.

The approach of Spanking Is a Global Phenomenon takes the reader through the history and tradition of spanking, the roles of culture and religions, the connections to slavery, the laws governing spanking, and a survey of attitudes and practices by gender and generation. In the end, Spanking Is a Global Phenomenon provides a comprehensive look at a widespread and deeply rooted parenting practice that tends not to garner such thorough attention.

Fenold Alexis explores spankings scriptural and historical background, surveys its legal and cultural contexts in contemporary culture, and suggests ways for parents to administer alternative forms of discipline that work.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Nov 25, 2015
• ISBN: 9781491778845

Book preview

SPANKING IS A GLOBAL PHENOMENON

Copyright © 2015 Fenold Alexis.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4917-7885-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-7884-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015918068

iUniverse rev. date: 11/25/2015

Contents

Introduction

1     History of Spanking

2     Tradition of Spanking

3     The Role of Culture

4     The Role of Religion

5     Correlation to Slavery

6     The Rule of Law and Spanking

7     Experience of Being Spanked

8     Demographics and Spanking

9     Gender and Spanking

10   Young People’s Point of View

11   The Greatest Generation

12   Baby Boomers

13   Generation X

14   Generation Y/Millennial

15   Generation Z

16   Status of Spanking in the Caribbean

17   Survey

18   Summary

19   Conclusion

References

Introduction

Corporal punishment has become a hotly debated topic. People from every background, gender, and race have their own opinions about it. Although it was a highly accepted practice in the past, as society has evolved, many people have changed their minds. Opinions cover a wide spectrum. Perhaps no other topic is so hotly debated. Spanking or corporal punishment is not a new practice, but it has been getting a great deal of attention.

If you were in school in the early 1960s, you probably were spanked there or knew someone who was. Parents have also used corporal punishment to discipline their children at home, and it has been an acceptable form of correction. When you talk to older people about children’s misbehavior, more than likely they will tell you that kids misbehave repeatedly because they do not get a good whooping. They are referring to a good spanking—older people often believe in spanking children.

I myself was spanked many times as a child, and as a parent I used the same method to discipline my own children. I never thought about how the children felt, because I grew up with the tradition. Spanking was a normal practice for me, and it was considered good parenting.

As a family man, I was proud to say that my children were well behaved. They knew that if they did not conduct themselves properly, they would be spanked. In the Caribbean, where I grew up, spanking was a normal practice. I cannot say for sure that all parents there spank their children, but it is close to 100 percent. Children expect to be spanked.

The controversy over spanking compelled me to write this book and address the question of whether spanking is wrong or right. The history of spanking can be traced back to the Bible. What did the Bible say about spanking? Are we interpreting these passages from the Bible correctly? Should people look at spanking as an old tradition that should be modified as we evolve as a society? What roles do culture and religion play in the way people view spanking? How was this practice used to restrain slaves? I will draw on not just my own experience as a product of spanking but also on the way my children have experienced it.

It was during the turmoil over Adrian Peterson’s arrest that I realized how my children felt about being spanked. As you may recall, the Minnesota Vikings football player was charged with the felony of reckless or negligent injury to a child for spanking his son (Rudra 2014). Commenting on the case, my oldest son, who was stationed in San Diego for the Marines at the time, wrote on Facebook that if spanking was a crime, my parent and grandparents should be in prison for twenty-five years.

I replied to his post and began to defend my actions. It dawned on me that if I had to explain to my twenty-four-year-old why he was spanked, something was not right. I noticed that there were an overwhelming number of likes and comments on his post. Most of the people who responded were young Haitian Americans, and it was very obvious that this new generation of Haitians was really fed up with the practice of spanking. It made me want to bring this topic out in the open for people of all creeds, cultures, and races.

To address the question that young people like my son have brought to my attention, the generational gap has to be considered also. The greatest generation was well known for this practice, and most baby boomers grew up with corporal punishment as a method of discipline. How does generation X view or feel about spanking? What about generation Z? Then you have the generation Y; coincidently (my son is from that generation)

The question that has to be addressed is, should we rethink the practice of spanking? If our children are questioning this practice when they get older, they may still harbor some ill feelings toward the previous generation. It is not an easy feeling.

1

History of Spanking

T he practice of spanking is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, and corporal punishment was a common practice in the ancient world. In Sparta, boys were frequently disciplined, and spanking was the most common form of punishment. Boys were taken from their parents at a very young age so they could become trained soldiers. The Spartans believed corporal punishment would make boys tougher. Andrews (2013) explains that one of Sparta’s most brutal practices involved a so-called ‘contest of endurance’ in which adolescents were flogged sometimes to the death. Ancient Spartans as well as ancient Greeks practiced corporal punishment, but the Spartan system was more rigid.

Corporal punishment was also a common practice among sailors. Wickman (2012) writes that the practice of spanking was used by sailors as a way of disciplining shipmates who did not comply to their captains. To be specific, they were disciplined if they went to sleep during night watch or failed to perform their duties properly. However, this punishment was not called spanking but rather cobbling. Wickman quotes the definition of