--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We try to bring up our children so that…" description: "\"“We try to bring up our children so that they are protected from the world's evils, only to find we've raised a pack of innocents who seem to be about ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/samuel-r-delany-2591_children_we-try-to-bring-up-our-children-so-that_612959.png" --- # We try to bring up our children so that they are protected… ![“We try to bring up our children so that they are protected from the world's evils, only to find we've raised a pack of innocents who seem to be about to stumble into them at every turn just from sheer stupidity!” quote by Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/samuel-r-delany-2591_children_we-try-to-bring-up-our-children-so-that_612959.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/samuel-r-delany-2591_children_we-try-to-bring-up-our-children-so-that_612959.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/samuel-r-delany-2591_children_we-try-to-bring-up-our-children-so-that_612959.png) > ““We try to bring up our children so that they are protected from the world's evils, only to find we've raised a pack of innocents who seem to be about to stumble into them at every turn just from sheer stupidity!”” [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Parents protect children from evil, yet children’s ignorance leads them into danger, critiquing over‑protectiveness. **In simple terms:** Over‑protecting can create naive victims. Key Takeaway Balance protection with education. Themes parenting ignorance danger Mood reflective critical Type literary social commentary When to use this quote - Child safety programs - school curricula - parent‑child communication Key Concepts Sociology education risk assessment Questions to Reflect On - How can we teach children about real dangers? - What balance between safety and awareness? A Different Perspective Protection can breed complacency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Innocence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocence/) [Innocents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocents/) [Naivete](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naivete/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [“world is full of evils and angels never think about them just think about the company you have”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kashvi-khandelwal/world-is-full-of-evils-and-angels-never-think-about-them-just-think/) Kashvi Khandelwal > [None of us can avoid being contaminated by the world's evils; it's all a matter of what attitude you take towards them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/none-of-us-can-avoid-being-contaminated-by-the-world-s-evils-it-s-all/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [If the structures of the human mind remain unchanged, we will always end up re-creating the same world, the same evils, the same dysfunction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/if-the-structures-of-the-human-mind-remain-unchanged-we-will-always/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The progress of the world through all its evils making it fit for the ideals, slowly but surely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-progress-of-the-world-through-all-its-evils-making-it-fit-for-the/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“Among the world’s evils—fascism, ethnic cleansing, environmental degradation—smoking deserves the most severe curricular attention in my kids’ school.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/among-the-world-s-evils-fascism-ethnic-cleansing-environmental/) [Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/) > [Every parent wants to know that their children are protected against those who have a particular agenda until they get old enough to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-duncan-smith/every-parent-wants-to-know-that-their-children-are-protected-against/) [Iain Duncan Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-duncan-smith/) > [To ensure that children are protected, the abuse and exploitation of children must be brought to light and those who violate children brought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-veneman/to-ensure-that-children-are-protected-the-abuse-and-exploitation-of/) [Ann Veneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-veneman/) > [Children and unborn children should be protected by law and welcomed into life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/children-and-unborn-children-should-be-protected-by-law-and-welcomed/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [People in China have a range of strong views about how children should be protected when they go online and whether the responsibility should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/people-in-china-have-a-range-of-strong-views-about-how-children/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [“Children who are protected from every possible source of danger never learn to deal with risk. Lenore Skenazy puts it this way, “If kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gever-tulley/children-who-are-protected-from-every-possible-source-of-danger-never/) [Gever Tulley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gever-tulley/) > [Children must be protected not because they are innocent but because they are powerless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/children-must-be-protected-not-because-they-are-innocent-but-because/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [I would rather live in a country where children are protected and their predators prosecuted, and even (which in Hollywood is evidently not always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-polanski/i-would-rather-live-in-a-country-where-children-are-protected-and/) [Roman Polanski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-polanski/) > [“From the mouths of the innocents flows truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-carson/from-the-mouths-of-the-innocents-flows-truth/) [Rae Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-carson/) > [There are no innocents in Gaza, don't let any diplomats who want to look good in the world endanger your lives - mow them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ben-ari/there-are-no-innocents-in-gaza-don-t-let-any-diplomats-who-want-to/) Michael Ben-Ari > [I was once so Innocent once so young once so stupid once so gullible once so care free It Truly Only Take's Once !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/destinysmith/i-was-once-so-innocent-once-so-young-once-so-stupid-once-so-gullible/) Destinysmith ## More by Samuel R. Delany > [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > ['You spin in the sky, the world spins under you, and you step from land to land, while we . . .' She turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/you-spin-in-the-sky-the-world-spins-under-you-and-you-step-from-land/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [What you are will make you what you will become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/what-you-are-will-make-you-what-you-will-become/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“People probably do hear watches go tic-tok. But I’m sure my childhood clock went tic-tic-tic-tic-tic-tic-tic…Why”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/people-probably-do-hear-watches-go-tic-tok-but-i-m-sure-my-childhood/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“I wanted to get out, Vyme, to keep going and not be trapped, to be free… only I was cruel. I had the chance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/i-wanted-to-get-out-vyme-to-keep-going-and-not-be-trapped-to-be-free/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [A number of things in 'Dhalgren' are just meant to function as mysteries. They're mysteries when the book begins, and they're mysteries when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-number-of-things-in-dhalgren-are-just-meant-to-function-as/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [The pulp hero, though he may be a renegade, is a guy who doesn't feel. Anything. Ever. And for the adolescent male - pummeled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/the-pulp-hero-though-he-may-be-a-renegade-is-a-guy-who-doesn-t-feel/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“they were nice in a useless sort of way, which is, after all, the only way to be truly nice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/they-were-nice-in-a-useless-sort-of-way-which-is-after-all-the-only/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [From 1968 on, I was pretty much the black, gay SF writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/from-1968-on-i-was-pretty-much-the-black-gay-sf-writer/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“Neurotics, proceed with delusions of grandeur. Napoleon Bonaparte, take the lead. Jesus Christ, bring up the rear. Simulate severe depression. Non-communicative with repressed hostility.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/neurotics-proceed-with-delusions-of-grandeur-napoleon-bonaparte-take/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“Do you follow the wrestling? Most people think it's illegal, but you can watch it there. Ruby and Python are on display this evening.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/do-you-follow-the-wrestling-most-people-think-it-s-illegal-but-you/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [Spending practically every minute of your day on pure survival is an absolutely boring life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/spending-practically-every-minute-of-your-day-on-pure-survival-is-an/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [When what is is congruent to what is supposed, the reaction is functional and the mental processes competent. When what is and what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/when-what-is-is-congruent-to-what-is-supposed-the-reaction-is/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [Everyone in a position of authority is hysterical, and everyone else is pretending to be asleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/everyone-in-a-position-of-authority-is-hysterical-and-everyone-else/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [Since I spent eighteen years of my life as a child, and nine years of that life as a pretty sexually active gay child,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/since-i-spent-eighteen-years-of-my-life-as-a-child-and-nine-years-of/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) [Explore all 158 Samuel R. Delany quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? 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