The Human Comedy: Who Teaches Whom? Babies learn from their parents everything they need to survive in today's culture. The monkey sees the monkey doing it. As children's minds develop and grow, all they know is the world of their family and perhaps a few other adults. Everything children catch in their young eyes and ears teaches them another lesson. Adults can teach care of the sick, hospitality and good manners, but they can also transmit racist opinions and preconceived ideas. They seem to focus on death, war and financial problems; all present in the daily lives of the characters in William Saroyan's novel, The Human Comedy. These problems can completely engulf the minds, bodies and souls of busy men and women. Adults should take a second and observe their sons and daughters who have much more to teach but not enough pride and experience to put forward their brilliant ideas. According to Saroyan, children are the experts of life, while adults have better knowledge of death. Children take the time to recognize the little joys in life and can therefore live their lives with meaning that is worthwhile. Adults have gained the experience necessary to educate children on how to cope with sadness and humble their distant hopes and dreams. Characters such as Mrs. Macauley, Miss Hicks, and Mr. Spangler all play important roles in teaching vital lessons. The adults, in this novel, also give some advice on how to truly live life, while many adults do not follow these teachings at all. To survive the ups and downs of our fluctuating world, adults and children must both teach and learn from each other. Adults benefit from a type of wisdom gained through experience. Americans have learned to treat others with equal respect and accept their beliefs. After the contrasting identities of Hubert Ackley and Homer Macauley are called after school, Miss Hicks admits that she "didn't [keep Homer] inside for punishment, but for education » (56). The strict teacher simply wants her “children to be people” (56). Saroyan, through Miss Hicks, explains that children "will be truly human when, despite their natural aversion to one another, [they] still respect each other" (56). This level-headed, well-meaning teacher tries to share her personal knowledge with Homer. She does not just teach with the text, chapter by chapter, but tries to spread her experience of what civilized means..