What? A children's book teaching socially accepted morality to children by way of colorful pictures and poetic meter? Say it isn't so! All sarcasm aside, this both is and isn't the case with Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose. Following in the tradition of Aesop's fables, there is a moral lesson about kindness to be found in this book. Yet it probably isn't the one you think it is. In fact, Thidwick's tale is a lesson warning against unrestrained kindness, a heads up that all that glitters is not necessarily gold. How does a children's book manage this? Should it? Let's dig deeper and see.
Questions and Answers
Questions the little ones might ask and how you might respond
- Q: Why does Thidwick toss his antlers with the animals on them?
- A: He learns his lesson, which is that kindness can only go so far.
- Q: How far should kindness go?
- A: When kindness starts harming the person being kind, physically or emotionally, then it's probably a good time to start pulling back.
- Q: But doesn't the golden rule say we should treat everyone as we want to be treated? Seems Thidwick didn't want to end up on the hunter's wall.
- A: Yes, but it's about finding a balance. Thidwick was so kind, and the animals so unkind, that the golden rule didn't work in that situation. Thidwick wasn't a helper—he was a target.