Killing Children
Encyclopedia
"Killing Children" is a short story by Orson Scott Card
. It appears in his short story collections Capitol
and The Worthing Saga
. Card first published it in the November 1978 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact
.
for murdering his mother. However when his mother shows up at the hospital to visit him he starts acting like a five year old boy and runs away from the hospital. While outside he goes onto the plains of his world and finds an abandoned
baby. Since he can do nothing to help the baby he leaves it where he found it and is later found by the primitive
tribe that abandoned the baby. The next day the tribe goes back to where the baby was left and eats it. Linkeree sees this and decides that it was his past they are cutting up and eating and is cured of his insanity
. He realizes that it was a young woman that he was dating that he killed but that his mother had driven him insane from years of psychological abuse
. When Linkeree returns to the hospital he tells his doctor that if he goes back to live with his mother he will go insane again. His doctor agrees and helps him leave his world and go to the planet Capitol.
, such as the sleeping drug Somec and the taping of memories. Linkeree is one of the colonists that goes with Jason Worthing to found a new world in chapter 5 of Card’s novel The Worthing Chronicle
.
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
. It appears in his short story collections Capitol
Capitol (collection)
Capitol was Orson Scott Card's second published book. This collection of eleven short stories set in the Worthing series is no longer in print...
and The Worthing Saga
The Worthing Saga
The Worthing Saga is a science fiction book by American writer Orson Scott Card, set in the Worthing series. It is made up of the novel The Worthing Chronicle and nine related stories...
. Card first published it in the November 1978 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact
Analog Science Fiction and Fact
Analog Science Fiction and Fact is an American science fiction magazine. As of 2011, it is the longest running continuously published magazine of that genre...
.
Plot summary
Linkeree Danol thinks he is in psychiatric hospitalPsychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
for murdering his mother. However when his mother shows up at the hospital to visit him he starts acting like a five year old boy and runs away from the hospital. While outside he goes onto the plains of his world and finds an abandoned
Abandonment
The term abandonment has a multitude of uses, legal and extra-legal. This "signpost article" provides a guide to the various legal and quasi-legal uses of the word and includes links to articles that deal with each of the distinct concepts at greater length...
baby. Since he can do nothing to help the baby he leaves it where he found it and is later found by the primitive
Primitive culture
In older anthropology texts and discussions, the term "primitive culture" is used to refer to a society that is believed to lack cultural, technological, or economic sophistication/development...
tribe that abandoned the baby. The next day the tribe goes back to where the baby was left and eats it. Linkeree sees this and decides that it was his past they are cutting up and eating and is cured of his insanity
Insanity
Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity...
. He realizes that it was a young woman that he was dating that he killed but that his mother had driven him insane from years of psychological abuse
Psychological abuse
Psychological abuse, also referred to as emotional abuse or mental abuse, is a form of abuse characterized by a person subjecting or exposing another to behavior that may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder...
. When Linkeree returns to the hospital he tells his doctor that if he goes back to live with his mother he will go insane again. His doctor agrees and helps him leave his world and go to the planet Capitol.
Connection to the Worthing Saga
This book uses several plot elements also used in The Worthing SagaThe Worthing Saga
The Worthing Saga is a science fiction book by American writer Orson Scott Card, set in the Worthing series. It is made up of the novel The Worthing Chronicle and nine related stories...
, such as the sleeping drug Somec and the taping of memories. Linkeree is one of the colonists that goes with Jason Worthing to found a new world in chapter 5 of Card’s novel The Worthing Chronicle
The Worthing Chronicle
The Worthing Chronicle is a science fiction novel by Orson Scott Card set in the Worthing series. This book by itself is out of print having been published along with nine short stories in the collection The Worthing Saga .-Plot summary:...
.