In Doris Lessing's novel The Fifth Son, there are two main characters who are unaware of some, if not most, of the things they do. This unconsciousness of the characters Experience is what leads to the inevitable conflict in the story: the distance that grows between the members of the Lovatt family, these unconscious actions and thoughts in the characters that lead to the division in the Lovatt family, also raises the question in the novel who is really responsible for the misfortune of the previously thought to be perfect family. Say No to Plagiarism Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned” Get an Original Essay The most obvious character who is unaware of the totality of his actions is none other than Ben. From the beginning, the boy never seems to know his own strength. Since conception, Ben has harmed Harriet by making her extremely moody and irritable, but also by physically hurting her from the inside. ; kicking harder than a child should. As Harriet was giving birth to Ben, she noticed that “she was hurt – she knew it; There must be a huge black bruise inside. . . and no one would ever know” (Lessing 48). There is an unspoken thought among all the characters in the novel that Ben is different - almost alien - however, it is not his fault. Neither Ben nor Harriet had any choice about what the boy would look like at birth. It's clear that Ben actually has some kind of special needs; we don't know what exactly, but the evidence is clearly there. In the mid-20th century, when this novel is set, having any kind of problem in a child was not acceptable, especially in a middle or upper class family. Ben can't help but discover that he has some problem or disability, but his family decides to send him to an institution to die anyway. This is where Harriet's unconscious thoughts are predominantly shown. Harriet may say over and over how much she dislikes Ben throughout the novel and how she wished more than anything that he was dead, but something she cannot control is her maternal instincts and affection. towards the unwanted boy. Even though Ben is not accepted into her family, Harriet still cares for him and begins to love him as the novel progresses. David, the children and the grandparents are all happy when Ben is sent to an institution, knowing that he will die there, but they are perfectly fine with this fact. Harriet, always an outcast, no longer feels the same. She may say she hates Ben and wants him dead, but when that thought becomes reality, Harriet decides to save her son. No matter how much she tries to repress or smother him, Harriet cares for Ben and wants to raise him as her own, just like her four previous children. When Ben was just a few months old, Harriet says she "made a point of going to him every day when the other children were out of the way, and taking him into the big bed for a bit of cuddles and play, while she had with them all. Never , not once, did he indulge in a moment of love” (Lessing 56). Harriet would like Ben to be a normal child, but even if he will never be one in her eyes, she cannot avoid the instinctive love she feels. for him, and will always make sure he is safe. Even at the end of the novel, when all the other children have decided to leave Harriet and Ben is also almost of age, Harriet gives her fifth child a piece of paper with the address where she could find her parents if she needed them after they moved to a new and foreign house. Although Ben leaves this paper forgotten on the floor, Harriet couldn't help but make sure she did everything she could to be a mother to him. he It can be argued on both sides that Harriet was the one to.