June 04, 2012

Sarah Silverman Opens Up About Adoption

Comedienne Sarah Silverman recently opened up about her own depression, saying that she would prefer to adopt a child so that she didn’t pass her mental condition along biologically.

“We live in Los Angeles, where everybody is like, ‘Don’t get your dog from a breeder, get your dog from a shelter…’ and I agree, but don’t get your people from a breeder. There are human puppies in shelters and it’s odd that that never seems to be a connection that people make.”

“If you’re not OK with yourself… it’s easier to love a dog than a person in need because you don’t see all the things you hate about yourself reflected back in the eyes of a dog. If Africa was full of springer spaniels dying of AIDS and starvation we’d probably take care of it in a day.”

While the analogy of humans and puppies may seem a bit crude, the sentiment is actually very poignant — it’s not that Silverman doesn’t want a child of her own, it’s that she understands that extraneous factors could prohibit her from reaching her potential as a loving, supportive parent. With adoption, not only would she give a child a home, but she would have the opportunity to nurture the growth of another human without her own insecurities plaguing her.

What do you think about this? Is it possible that parents of biological children can see their own shortcomings more clearly in their children? Are adoptive parents able to see their children more fully, and less critically, without the bias of shared genetics? Is this even an issue?