The History of the Robins: For the Instruction of Children on Their Treatment of Animals

by Sarah Trimmer

Excerpt from The History of the Robins: For the Instruction of Children on Their Treatment of Animals
Many young readers, doubtless, remember to have met with a book entitled An Easy Introduction to the Knowledge of Nature, which gives an account of a little boy named Henry, and his sister Charlotte, who were indulged by their mamma with walking in the fields and gardens, where she taught them to take particular notice of every object that presented itself to their view. The consequence of this was, that they contracted a great fondness for animals; and used often to express a wish that their birds, cats, dogs, &c. could talk, that they might hold conversations with them. Their mamma, therefore, to amuse them, composed the following fabulous histories; in which the sentiments and affections of a good father and mother, and a family of children, are supposed to be possessed by a nest of red breasts; and others of the feathered race, are, by the force of imagination, endued with the same faculties.
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234 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1786

About the author

Trimmer, Mrs. (Sarah), 1741-1810
from Library of Congress website

Reviews

[Abigail]

One of the giants of late 18th-century English literature for children, Mrs. Sarah Trimmer penned this contrasting portrait of two families - one robin, one human - for her children Henry and Charlotte, who had expressed a wish that the animals could speak. In it, she attempts to show the importance of treating animals humanely - a common topic in the children's books of the day, although this title is unique, in making this concern the focus of a full-length novel. The story alternates between the Redbreast family, with a mother and father bird, and four new chicks - Robin, Dicky, Flapsy and Pecksy** - and the Benson family, with a mother and father human, and two children, Harriet and Frederick. As the Redbreasts teach their children what they need to know to survive, and instruct them that not all humans are cruel, Mrs. Benson in turn teaches her children about their moral duty to treat animals kindly. These latter lessons are couched in religious terms, and make it plain that the human/animal divide is to be maintained. Both sets of parents also warn their children against the wrong way: the Redbreasts by introducing the chicks to various other kinds of birds, some of whom (like the chaffinch) have been led astray; and Mrs. Benson by introducing the children to Mrs. Addis, a widow who so loves her animals that she neglects her duty to her children. A visit to a prosperous farm is also arranged, to show the children how animals should be properly looked after. The book ends as the Redbreast children leave the nest, and looks ahead to when the Benson children, now all grown up, are models of benevolent humanity...

Originally published in 1786 as Fabulous Histories. Designed for the Instruction of Children, Respecting Their Treatment of Animals, this interesting tale has also been published as The History of the Robins. It is fascinating to see how many ideas still with us today, regarding the relationship of humans and animals, are explored here. I don't think the vision of benevolence promoted by Mrs. Trimmer would find favor with some of today's animal rights activists, as her narrative explicitly preferences humans over animals, in terms of one's duty, but I would imagine that for many others, this still rings true. I love animals, but if I had to choose between saving a human infant and a puppy, I would have to choose the infant. The discussion of the treatment of farm animals will also ring a bell with many people today, as the argument is put forward that although some animals are used by people for food, their treatment prior to death should always be humane. One wonders what horror Mrs. Trimmer would have experienced, if she knew of factory farming! I appreciated the ideas put forward about the cruelty and stupidity of disturbing or harming animals, particularly birds, and that this was extended even to insects, whom Mrs. Benson argues should be left alone, unless they pose some danger to humans. As someone who has always felt that there is a particular cruelty in keeping birds as pets, I also liked that this was addressed. Mrs. Trimmer was one of that "cursed Barbauld crew" of women Rationalists that Romantic essayist Charles Lamb condemned as promoting trivial knowledge in their books - see my review of Barbauld's Early Lessons for Children, from Two to Three Years Old for a fuller exploration of this - but although her tone might not agree with the contemporary reader, there is nothing trivial in the knowledge presented here. Rather, there is something strikingly modern in the concerns expressed, and in the ideas presented. We are, after all, still discussing and debating these issues today. Recommended to anyone interested in 18th-century English children's literature, or in the evolution of humane education in the Anglophone world.

**It is fascinating to note that some scholars believe that Mrs. Trimmer's work, popular well into the late 19th century, may have been an influence on Beatrix Potter, and that her robin names may have been the inspiration for Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter.

[Stacy]

This edition looks vastly different from mine-- mine was published in 1875 by "Mrs. Trimmer". I love my cover; it has always been one of my favorite old book covers. It is a brownish-red, and has artistically rendered robins on front with a nest accented with gold.
The story, aimed at children, is a chapter book and alternates between a family of robins in a tree outside a house owned by a family. The robins teach and instruct their children that not all humans are bad or abusive to animals (in particular birds), and the parents of the children are teaching their little ones the virtues of being humane to animals (especially birds, since that is the focus of the story). What struck me was how modern (except for how the characters talk) the viewpoint was. I had always wrongly assumed (from other books and old movies) that the main viewpoint that long ago was that animals were expendable (take the buffalo massacre, for example) and without feeling. I had thought that the shift had come with the creation of the Humane Society and, later, activist groups like PETA.... I did realize that there were people way ahead of their time, advocating for sensitive and proper treatment of animals and their protection. That was an eye-opener! Now I will view the past a bit differently!

[Grace Harwood]

Have you ever wondered what happens to naughty children who are cruel to animals? Ever wondered what the 18th century viewpoint was on how God sees animals? Have you ever wanted to meet a learned pig who can AND tell the time? Ever wondered what an ant would say to you if you accidentally damaged his nest? Or how eighteenth century robins speak to each other? Well, wonder no more - as this is the book which will answer all these questions and more.

The answers in some cases are really quite disturbing (yes, naughty children, if you wilfully hurt animals and upset your parents, you can expect to be abandoned in the wilderness to shift for yourselves) and in others, simply wonderful (Mr & Mrs Robin and their four children are utterly charming and speak to each other so politely).

In terms of an educational book for children, Mrs Trimmer's views (she was deeply religious) come through clearly in the text (in Mrs Trimmer's view, there are some things that God doesn't want his children - i.e. the human race - to know, so they shouldn't enquire too deeply). It sets her at odds with other educational writers of the time, like Charlotte Smith or Mary Wollstonecraft, who would never ascribe to that theory. There are also lots of threats in the text aimed at the children (of being abandoned/thrown to wild beasts/disowned by their parents if they don't behave - and by "behave" Mrs Trimmer means do exactly what she thinks they should do!)

The accelerated growth of the robin nestlings ("Robin", "Dicky", "Flapsy" and "Pecksy" - how does she come up with her names??) enact a kind of microcosm of childhood as they progress quickly through the foibles of babyhood, into teenage rebellion and then into adulthood, making mistakes along the way that human children (and adults) will also make, but over a much longer span. This permits Trimmer to show a whole range of morality issues related to many stages of childhood/adults by just focusing on the robin family.

You may not agree with everything in this book (i.e. Trimmer anthropomorphises every single creature hopelessly whilst simultaneously conveying the clear message that in terms of the world, only the wants of humans are necessary to consider - everything else is subservient to them) but this book does contain a kind of advocacy for the animals featured in it, arguing for kindness and humanity towards every living creature. It also isn't over accurate about natural history (Mrs Trimmer puts in an American bird in the English landscape, just because the moral suits her tale). Further, some of the tales of animal cruelty are downright nasty, containing graphic descriptions of just what children can and will do to animals and insects, if not educated correctly on the matter. With all of this in mind, however, in my view, this is a charming book with so much of interest in it (the point when Mr & Mrs Robin decide its time the kids left the nest, for example, is hilarious - and actually quite true to life - anyone who has observed birds will know that robins hate each other and will not abide another robin on their territory).

I would really recommend this book for a light, fun read.

[Chandrica]

I LOVED THE ILLUSTRATIONS. SO PRETTY AND SO DAINTY! oh but the story kind of is two volumes of how we should be kind to animals but not as kind as we should be to human beings (which becomes problematic for me because well, puppies come before humans any day!) However, no reason to complain. I picked this book up solely for its didactic purpose for my project, so yeah.

[Janet Ramski]

This was a lovely volume written for young children. (but with an amazingly advanced vocabulary and reading level - even if read aloud, I think modern children would have difficulty with some of the phrasing) It was a highly moralized story covering relationships and treatment of animals, centering on a family of Robin Redbreasts and their encounters with various humans.

[Randie D. Camp, M.S.]

I read, "The Quarrel". Just one story in the collection but it was a didactic tale teaching children to respect their caretakers because they depend on them for food and shelter. The moral was a tad bit too threatening for my taste, but the tale reflects the practices of the time.