The Man‐Made World
This full assurance of love and of power; this endless cheerful service; the broad provision for all people; rather than the competitive selection of a few “victors;” is the natural presentation of religious truth from the woman‘s viewpoint. Her governing
principle being growth and not combat; her main tendency being to
give and not to get; she more easily and naturally lives and teaches these religious principles. It is for this reason that the broader gentler teaching of the Unitarian and Universalist sects have appealed so especially to women, and that so many women preach in their churches.
This principle of growth, as applied and used in general human life will work to far other ends than those now so painfully visible.
In education, for instance, with neither reward nor punishment as spur or bait; with no competition to rouse effort and animosity, but rather with the feeling of a gardener towards his plants; the teacher will teach and the children learn, in mutual ease and happiness. The law of passive attraction applies here, leading to such ingenuity in presentation as shall arouse the child‘s interest; and, in the true spirit of promoting growth, each child will have his best and fullest training, without regard to who is “ahead” of him, or her, or who
“behind.”
We do not sadly measure the cabbage‐stalk by the corn‐stalk, and praise the corn for getting ahead of the cabbage—nor incite the cabbage to emulate the corn. We nourish both, to its best growth—
and are the richer.
That every child on earth shall have right conditions to make the best growth possible to it; that every citizen, from birth to death, shall have a chance to learn all he or she can assimilate, to develop every power that is in them—for the common good—this will be the aim of
education, under human management.
In the world of “society” we may look for very radical changes.
With all women full human beings, trained and useful in some form
of work; the class of busy idlers, who run about forever
“entertaining” and being “entertained” will disappear as utterly as will the prostitute. No woman with real work to do could have the
time for such petty amusements; or enjoy them if she did have time.
No woman with real work to do, work she loved and was well fitted