--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed…" description: "\"Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed, held in high regard — in our society as long as it is defined as child-rearing. It is a tragic fact that pare..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/alice-miller-3713_abuse_child-abuse-is-still-sanctioned-indeed-h_2012232.png" --- # Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed, held in high… ![“Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed, held in high regard — in our society as long as it is defined as child-rearing. It is a tragic fact that parents beat their children in order to escape the emotions from how they were treated by their own parents.” quote by Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/alice-miller-3713_abuse_child-abuse-is-still-sanctioned-indeed-h_2012232.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/alice-miller-3713_abuse_child-abuse-is-still-sanctioned-indeed-h_2012232.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/alice-miller-3713_abuse_child-abuse-is-still-sanctioned-indeed-h_2012232.png) > “Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed, held in high regard — in our society as long as it is defined as child-rearing. It is a tragic fact that parents beat their children in order to escape the emotions from how they were treated by their own parents.” [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal norms often excuse harsh parenting, perpetuating cycles of abuse across generations. **In simple terms:** Harsh parenting is normalized, continuing abuse. Key Takeaway Recognize and break the cycle of abusive parenting. Themes parenting abuse generational trauma social norms Mood somber determined Type critical educational When to use this quote - family counseling - parenting workshops - policy reform - education programs Key Concepts psychology family dynamics power structures Questions to Reflect On - How can we shift cultural perceptions of child-rearing? - What policies can protect children while respecting families? A Different Perspective Cultural change is slow and resistance is strong. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse/) [Child abuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-abuse/) [Child rearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-rearing/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Our society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-society/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Tragic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragic/) ## Related quotes > [“Until about 1970 when parents beat their children to death they very often escaped punishment. They would be prosecuted if it was clear and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-james/until-about-1970-when-parents-beat-their-children-to-death-they-very/) [Bill James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-james/) > [Some things that happen to you in childhood you never forget. You don't forget how people treated you or your parents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cedella-marley/some-things-that-happen-to-you-in-childhood-you-never-forget-you-don/) [Cedella Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cedella-marley/) > [“Of all the institutions in their lives, only the Catholic Church has seemed aware of the fact that my mother and father are thinkers—persons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/of-all-the-institutions-in-their-lives-only-the-catholic-church-has/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Don't be ridiculous, Charlie, people love the parents who beat their kids in department stores. It's the ones who just let their kids wreak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/don-t-be-ridiculous-charlie-people-love-the-parents-who-beat-their/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [“People thought I was one of those people who beats their kid in department stores.” “Don’t be ridiculous, Charlie, people love the parents who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/people-thought-i-was-one-of-those-people-who-beats-their-kid-in/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [Child-rearing is my main interest now. I'm a hands-on father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-penn/child-rearing-is-my-main-interest-now-i-m-a-hands-on-father/) [Sean Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-penn/) > [He beat me like he beat the children. Cept he don't never hardly beat them. He say, Celie, git the belt. The children be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/he-beat-me-like-he-beat-the-children-cept-he-don-t-never-hardly-beat/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [I beat my children daily, with a shoe, because I don't want them to grow up fairies. At 9 p.m. I promptly play The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/i-beat-my-children-daily-with-a-shoe-because-i-don-t-want-them-to/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [Be ever gentle with the children God has given you; watch over them constantly; reprove them earnestly, but not in anger. In the forcible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elihu-burritt/be-ever-gentle-with-the-children-god-has-given-you-watch-over-them/) [Elihu Burritt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elihu-burritt/) > [“Teachers were not allowed to beat children as they did in the past, although, Mma Ramotswe reflected, there were some boys-and indeed some young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/teachers-were-not-allowed-to-beat-children-as-they-did-in-the-past/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [Malthus married in 1804 and beat three children with his wife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-malthus/malthus-married-in-1804-and-beat-three-children-with-his-wife/) [Thomas Malthus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-malthus/) > [Child abuse damages a person for life and that damage is in no way diminished by the ignorance of the perpetrator. It is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/child-abuse-damages-a-person-for-life-and-that-damage-is-in-no-way/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [The victimization of children is nowhere forbidden; what is forbidden is to write about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/the-victimization-of-children-is-nowhere-forbidden-what-is-forbidden/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [A method of child-rearing is not--or should not be--a whim, a fashion or a shibboleth. It should derive from an understanding of the developing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selma-fraiberg/a-method-of-child-rearing-is-not-or-should-not-be-a-whim-a-fashion-or/) [Selma Fraiberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selma-fraiberg/) > [“So, your best defense is knowledge. It really is power, as they say...The more you know, the more easily you will develop your own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-pantley/so-your-best-defense-is-knowledge-it-really-is-power-as-they-say-the/) [Elizabeth Pantley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-pantley/) ## More by Alice Miller > [Almost everywhere we find . . . the use of various coercive measures, to rid ourselves as quickly as possible of the child withinus--i.e.,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/almost-everywhere-we-find-the-use-of-various-coercive-measures-to-rid/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [Wherever I look, I see signs of the commandment to honor one's parents and nowhere of a commandment that calls for the respect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/wherever-i-look-i-see-signs-of-the-commandment-to-honor-one-s-parents/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [The art of not experiencing feelings. A child can experience her feelings only when there is somebody there who accepts her fully, understands her,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/the-art-of-not-experiencing-feelings-a-child-can-experience-her/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [Disrespect is the weapon of the weak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/disrespect-is-the-weapon-of-the-weak/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [“Even if one ultimately risks losing all contact with oneself and merely functioning as a mask, an "as if" personality, there are always drugs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/even-if-one-ultimately-risks-losing-all-contact-with-oneself-and/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [“Thus he spent his whole life searching for his own truth, but it remained hidden to him because he had learned at a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/thus-he-spent-his-whole-life-searching-for-his-own-truth-but-it/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [“Most people do exactly the opposite. Without realizing that the past is constantly determining their present actions, they avoid learning anything about their history.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/most-people-do-exactly-the-opposite-without-realizing-that-the-past/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [People who, as children, were intellectually far beyond their parents and therefore admired by them, but who also therefore had to solve their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/people-who-as-children-were-intellectually-far-beyond-their-parents/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [Parents are indeed capable of routinely torturing their children without anyone interceding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/parents-are-indeed-capable-of-routinely-torturing-their-children/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [Ultimately the body will rebel. Even if it can be temporarily pacified with the help of drugs, cigarettes or medicine, it usually has the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/ultimately-the-body-will-rebel-even-if-it-can-be-temporarily-pacified/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [The child has a primary need to be regarded and respected as the person he really is at any given time, and as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/the-child-has-a-primary-need-to-be-regarded-and-respected-as-the/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [For some years now, there has been proof that the devastating effects of the traumatization of children take their inevitable tollon society--a fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/for-some-years-now-there-has-been-proof-that-the-devastating-effects/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [“The older we get, the more difficult it is to find other people who can give us the love our parents denied us. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/the-older-we-get-the-more-difficult-it-is-to-find-other-people-who/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [It is very difficult for people to believe the simple fact that every persecutor was once a victim. Yet it should be very obvious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/it-is-very-difficult-for-people-to-believe-the-simple-fact-that-every/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [We don't yet know, above all, what the world might be like if children were to grow up without being subjected to humiliation, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/we-don-t-yet-know-above-all-what-the-world-might-be-like-if-children/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) [Explore all 120 Alice Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) ## More Abuse quotes > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [Being nice is okay,but don't allow anybody to abuse it...try to fight for your self when you know your on the right way...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-nice-is-okay-but-don-t-allow-anybody-to-abuse-it-try-to-fight/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Build a bridge over shame by teaching kids about sexual abuse. Give them a chance to run to us should they encounter it. Be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-byers-ruch/build-a-bridge-over-shame-by-teaching-kids-about-sexual-abuse-give/) [Carolyn Byers Ruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-byers-ruch/) > [It is sure that those are most desirous of honour or glory who cry out loudest of its abuse and the vanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/it-is-sure-that-those-are-most-desirous-of-honour-or-glory-who-cry/) [Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/) > [“The sole reason I stand to open it up now is that lots of people who are in pain just like I was, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/the-sole-reason-i-stand-to-open-it-up-now-is-that-lots-of-people-who/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [Democracy must be built through open societies that share information. When there is information, there is enlightenment. When there is debate, there are solutions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atifete-jahjaga/democracy-must-be-built-through-open-societies-that-share-information/) [Atifete Jahjaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atifete-jahjaga/) > [I have a theory that all abuse, no matter what kind of abuse it is, is foremost an assault on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-westover/i-have-a-theory-that-all-abuse-no-matter-what-kind-of-abuse-it-is-is/) [Tara Westover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-westover/) > [“Blaming therapy, social work and other caring professions for the confabulation of testimony of 'satanic ritual abuse' legitimated a programme of political and social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/blaming-therapy-social-work-and-other-caring-professions-for-the/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [Finally, the scariest thing about abuse of any shape or form, is, in my opinion, not the abuse itself, but that if it continues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cumming/finally-the-scariest-thing-about-abuse-of-any-shape-or-form-is-in-my/) [Alan Cumming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cumming/) > [“Research on organised abuse emphasises the diversity of organised abuse cases, and the ways in which serious forms of child maltreatment cluster in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/research-on-organised-abuse-emphasises-the-diversity-of-organised/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [“Stand up for yourself. Never give any one permission to abuse you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/stand-up-for-yourself-never-give-any-one-permission-to-abuse-you/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [All governments should be pressured to correct their abuses of human rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stallman/all-governments-should-be-pressured-to-correct-their-abuses-of-human/) [Richard Stallman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stallman/) > [“Words are free. It does not mean you should abuse them. Be kind with them. They will mirror your actions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hadinet-tekie/words-are-free-it-does-not-mean-you-should-abuse-them-be-kind-with/) [Hadinet Tekie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hadinet-tekie/) > [My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-behrman/my-illness-is-one-often-characterized-by-dramatic-overspending-in-my/) [Andy Behrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-behrman/) [Browse all 3,113 Abuse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Child abuse is still sanctioned — indeed, held in high regard — in our society as long as it is defined as child-rearing. 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