fatherhood by bill cosby
Fatherhood by Bill Cosby
“The answer, of course, is that no matter how hopeless or copeless a father may be, his role is simply to be there, sharing all the chores with his wife.
Let her have the babies; but after that, try to share every job around. Any man today who returns from work, sinks into a chair, and calls for his pipe is a man with an appetite for danger. […] If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right. Having five children has taught me a truth as cosmic as any that […] there are no absolutes in raising children. In any stressful situation, fathering is always a roll of the dice. The game may be messy, but I have never found one with more rewards and joys. You know the only people who are always sure about the proper way to raise children? Those who’ve never had any.” (61).
The lighthearted, insightful, and mentoring tone of this quote is the exact portrayal of Bill Cosby’s Fatherhood as a whole. This nonfiction book contains a different set up from the ordinary parenting guides that anxious, new parents usually read. In general, Cosby, from beginning to end, uses a nurturing demeanor to share his personal experiences about fathering as if he is fathering the reader with his words. Throughout the text, he constantly sets a reminder that a father must simply “be there” and support their child no matter of the frantic, emotional rollercoaster a child goes through. Cosby explains that “you just need a lot of love and luck [because] […] having a child is surely the most beautiful irrational act that two people in love can commit” (18).
Being a completely opinion-based piece of literature, Cosby incorporates his humor and thoughts about events during his fatherhood experiences that have made him come to love his family unconditionally. He uses stories like when he let his kids eat chocolate cake for
“The answer, of course, is that no matter how hopeless or copeless a father may be, his role is simply to be there, sharing all the chores with his wife.
Let her have the babies; but after that, try to share every job around. Any man today who returns from work, sinks into a chair, and calls for his pipe is a man with an appetite for danger. […] If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right. Having five children has taught me a truth as cosmic as any that […] there are no absolutes in raising children. In any stressful situation, fathering is always a roll of the dice. The game may be messy, but I have never found one with more rewards and joys. You know the only people who are always sure about the proper way to raise children? Those who’ve never had any.” (61).
The lighthearted, insightful, and mentoring tone of this quote is the exact portrayal of Bill Cosby’s Fatherhood as a whole. This nonfiction book contains a different set up from the ordinary parenting guides that anxious, new parents usually read. In general, Cosby, from beginning to end, uses a nurturing demeanor to share his personal experiences about fathering as if he is fathering the reader with his words. Throughout the text, he constantly sets a reminder that a father must simply “be there” and support their child no matter of the frantic, emotional rollercoaster a child goes through. Cosby explains that “you just need a lot of love and luck [because] […] having a child is surely the most beautiful irrational act that two people in love can commit” (18).
Being a completely opinion-based piece of literature, Cosby incorporates his humor and thoughts about events during his fatherhood experiences that have made him come to love his family unconditionally. He uses stories like when he let his kids eat chocolate cake for