How to Lead a Child to Flower: Luce Irigaray’s Philosophy of the Growth of Children

Abstract

A tree or a flower contain a wordless wisdom that can pass directly from them to a child. It is not only such wisdom that is conveyed in Luce Irigaray’s To Be Born. The book’s themes range from a perspective for a collaborative construction of a new way of living for the coming generations, to bridging the spiritual and cultural divide between men and women. But a major theme of the book concerns the way in which we, as human beings, may not only bring to fruition our potentialities as adults living and developing together, but also may be able to think about children and childhood, about what it means to grow as a child and throughout one’s life, as well as how to be a carer for children.