Yes, the discipline wand is used in the House of the Old.
In chapter 12, Fiona tells Jonas this. She explains that she has a lot to learn in
caring for the old, and one of the areas is "punishment for disobedience" with the
discipline wand.
"[Did] you know that they use a discipline
wand on the Old, the same as for small children?"
She does
not go on to elaborate, but we can assume that since she says "the same" that the
application is the same. In chapter 7, the discipline wands are described as “a system
of regulated smacks” with the discipline wand, described as “a thin, flexible weapon
that stung painfully when it was wielded” and the Childcare workers are specially
trained to administer “a quick smack across the back of the hands for minor misbehavior”
and “three sharper smacks on the bare legs for a second
offense.”
Note that this system is only used on small
children. Older children make apologies for misbehavior. The fact that the community
treats the Old the same as young children implies that they do not consider the old to
be adults with adult rights and characteristics. They are considered dependent, like
small children.
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