More on Love, Shakespeare, and Sex With Slaves

Recently I posted about what my kids were learning in school and a bit of explanation may be necessary.

Fifth grader learned that Thomas Jefferson had children with his slave Sally Hemmings.  We read this in the biography Who Was Thomas Jefferson? by Dennis Fradin, which can be purchased at your school's Scholastic Book Fair!!!!

To be honest, it's a wonderful book.  



I just wasn't  prepared to explain, nor could I ever, how a man could have children with his servant and then raise them as slaves.

When I tried to change the subject by asking Tenth grader what he was studying in school, I was at bit shocked when he replied, "I learned that Shakespeare molested little boys."  

This piece of information came out in a classroom discussion headed by Teen's Unitarian English Teacher, a man after my own left wing, the same teacher who had the students write an essay (with in-text citations and full bibliography) about the path to enlightenment, comparing the differences in the Eastern and Western traditions, using five sources, including the required Siddhartha, Genesis, Beowulf and two others.

Back to our 3rd president.  I was helping Ten-year old write a timeline and mentioned to him that after Jefferson's wife died, he never remarried.

Yes, he did.  He married Sally Hemmings, he said.

No, honey.  He didn't marry her.

Yes, he did.  It said so in the book.

No, sorry.  They didn't marry.

But it said so. They had children together.  How else could they do that if they weren't married?

Now being a Liberal Hippie Mom I have no problem explaining this.

But I kept quiet.

There are worse things in the world than thinking you have to be married to have children, right?

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PS  I knew there was a movement to put Christ back into Christmas.  But I had no idea there was one to put God into St. Valentine's Day.  Buying Valentines at the last minute, these were the only ones left at Rite Aid:

  

I guess I should have spent less time writing helping Teen with that paper on the path to enlightenment.

More tales of love and sex at Humor-Blogs.

Something is Rotten in the State of Ohio (Schools)

Or maybe not.  You tell me.

We live in the number one public school district in Ohio. And in exchange for the equivalent of four-year's college tuition in tax dollars, our schools maintain the highest standards.  My Teen, for example, is reading Hamlet.  And Ten-year old is reading a biography of Thomas Jefferson (who, having been corrupted by Hollywood, will always conger Nick Nolte for me).

The other day I sat down to read the biography with my youngest in case he needed any explanation.  And he did.  

But not about the Declaration of Independence.

or Jefferson's on again off again relationship with John Adams.  

Ten-year old was curious about Jefferson's  on again off again relationship with Sally Hemmings.  

Wait, I thought, looking at the book. Can this be right? Are they going there?  OMG!  They are.  

They're really going the Hemmings Way.  

Ten-year Old's questions kept rolling:

Why would Jefferson have babies with his 14-year old servant?  

OMG! What do I say?  

And why so many?  

Turn the page.  Yes. Must turn the page.

Why didn't he claim the children as his?  

Must focus on presidency here.

Did they know he was their father?

Must change topic here.

Why were they brought up to be slaves?  

Must definitely change the topic. 

And Quick.

Teen, I called in desperation, "What did you learn in school today?"

Teen popped his head in the room, "Today we learned that Shakespeare molested young boys."

Posted at Humor-Blogs.