Go to sleep, my darling

In Short

Bertrand Baxter, a forty-six-year-old sporting goods salesman overwhelmed by the women in his household, accidentally discovers he can use telepathy to soothe his infant daughter Annie back to sleep. As he continues probing her mind to understand female psychology and escape middle-aged physical decline, a battle of wills ensues with his observant wife, Rolanda. Ultimately, Baxter's obsessive mental intrusion causes a catastrophic regression, trapping his adult consciousness permanently inside the baby's developing mind while his physical body wastes away. This enduring science fiction short story brilliantly captures domestic alienation and psychological suspense.

The Story

Bertrand Baxter is a robust ex-football player who navigates a comfortable career selling sporting goods to men, yet he feels entirely alienated by the domestic sphere shared with his wife Rolanda and their four daughters. One sleepless night, tormented by the household commotion surrounding his infant daughter Annie's late-night feeding, Bertrand mentally urges her to sleep. To his astonishment, the baby instantly quiets.

Curious and hopeful, Bertrand repeats the mental command over the following nights, eventually establishing genuine telepathic contact with the child. He perceives Annie's infant hungers, fears, and dark loneliness, soothing her with reassuring thoughts and mental lullabies. When he attempts to explain his extraordinary discovery to Rolanda, she dismisses it with skeptical indifference, though her narrowed eyes reveal hidden suspicion. Undeterred, Bertrand becomes addicted to exploring Annie's mind during his workday and travels, intending to decode the eternal mysteries of womanhood through her developing perspective.

As Annie reaches three months of age, she begins fiercely resisting his mental intrusions, erecting an impalpable barrier that causes her to scream whenever he probes. Simultaneously, Rolanda grows increasingly cold and hostile, watching him with enigmatic suspicion. Despite the mounting domestic tension and a substantial seventy-five thousand dollar life insurance policy that guarantees Rolanda's financial security, Bertrand persists in his psychological surveillance.

One evening, the barrier abruptly vanishes. Eagerly plunging into his daughter's brain, Bertrand experiences an overwhelming surge of physical euphoria. Every minor ache, pulled muscle, toothache, and incipient gastric ulcer in his forty-six-year-old body vanishes as he shares the vibrant, rapid-growth sensations of a healthy infant.

The following morning, Bertrand does not wake up. Rolanda discovers him in a catatonic trance and summons a physician, who warns that his rapid, light heartbeat resembles an infant's and that he will starve if unconscious. Hospitalized, intravenous feeding and adrenaline injections briefly rouse him, but the burning physical pain of his adult body drives him right back into the safety of Annie's mind. As doctors discuss his failing condition, Rolanda comforts the baby while reflecting on the insurance money and a new house. Trapped behind a now-impenetrable mental barrier, Bertrand realizes too late that he is permanently mousetrapped inside his infant daughter's consciousness. As Rolanda rocks her and marvels at her knowing smile, Annie gurgles happily, finally rid of her father's intrusive presence.

How It Unfolds

The silent plea Lying awake while his crowded household slumbers through a chaotic late-night feeding, Bertrand Baxter mentally commands his crying infant daughter, Annie, to go to sleep. To his utter disbelief, the baby immediately stops whimpering and drifts off peacefully. He dismisses the event as a lucky coincidence until it successfully repeats the following night.

The growing obsession After confirming the telepathic connection over several nights, Bertrand begins routinely probing Annie's mind during his daily business travels and golf games. He seeks to decode the baffling mysteries of female psychology through her innocent perspective. When he attempts sharing his amazing discovery with Rolanda, she responds with cold skepticism and narrowed, suspicious eyes.

The mounting barrier When Annie reaches three months of age, she begins actively shutting her father out, resulting in frustrated screams whenever he forces his entry. Meanwhile, Rolanda grows increasingly cold and hostile, watching Bertrand with an enigmatic gaze amidst rising domestic tension and the comforting security of a lucrative life insurance policy.

The ultimate regression During a subsequent evening attempt, Bertrand finds Annie's mental barriers completely gone and sinks deep into her consciousness. The complete psychological transfer instantly cures all his middle-aged physical aches, pulled muscles, and ulcer pains. His adult body slips into a catatonic trance while his mind takes permanent refuge inside the healthy infant.

The permanent trap Hospitalized and failing, Bertrand briefly revives from medical adrenaline injections, but the harsh physical pain drives him back into the baby's mind. Trapped behind an impenetrable mental wall, he listens helplessly as Rolanda discusses his condition and plans their financial future. Annie smiles knowingly and gurgles happily, finally relieved of her father's intrusive presence.

The People

Bertrand Baxter is a robust, forty-six-year-old sporting goods salesman who easily relates to men but feels entirely alienated by the women in his crowded household, particularly his wife and four daughters. He wants to understand female psychology and escape the creeping physical decline of middle age. Standing in his way are the baffling complexity of women and, ultimately, his infant daughter Annie's resistance. He ends up trapped permanently inside Annie's mind while his physical body wastes away in a hospital.

Rolanda Baxter is Bertrand's forty-year-old wife, described as a statuesque woman who manages the household and pursues occasional domestic bargains. She wants financial security and stability for her children, supported by Bertrand's strong earning power and a seventy-five thousand dollar life insurance policy. Standing in her way is Bertrand's erratic behavior and his invasive telepathic experiments. She ends up unburdened by her husband, financially secure with insurance money, and blissfully raising Annie.

Annie Baxter is Bertrand and Rolanda's baby daughter. Initially a peaceful infant who makes sense to her father, she wants basic comfort, warmth, and peace. Standing in the way is Bertrand's invasive telepathic probing into her private mind, which she initially resists with barriers and screams. She ends up free of her father's mental intrusion, smiling knowingly and gurgling happily as her mother rocks her into a secure future.

In Its Own Voice

Reflecting on his lifelong inability to comprehend women despite his effortless rapport with male customers, Bertrand summarizes his domestic frustration:

Women found him attractive enough. His six-foot-four, square-jawed athletic prowess had given him the pick of the class of '29, including the statuesque Rolanda. But to marry a woman and to understand her were different matters: the former ridiculously easy, the latter bewilderingly impossible.

Describing his eerie telepathic vision while standing over his sleeping baby in the nursery, Bertrand observes:

He closed his eyes and sought her mind--and saw himself standing above the crib--through her eyes!

Contemplating the mysterious psychological regression that leaves her husband unresponsive in a hospital bed, Rolanda offers a quiet reflection:

You poor little darling. You'll never know your daddy.

What It's Really About

The story explores the profound psychological chasm between the sexes, depicting deep male alienation in a domestic world dominated by women and children. Bertrand's desperate quest to decode the feminine mind highlights broader thematic anxieties regarding middle-aged aging, bodily decay, and the loss of personal autonomy. By literalizing psychological regression into a horrific bodily trap, the narrative questions the boundaries of privacy, paternal control, and the ethics of invading another person's inner consciousness. Ultimately, it examines whether men can ever truly comprehend women, suggesting that attempting to infiltrate the female sphere leads only to total self-annihilation and complete escape from adult responsibility.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate classic mid-century speculative fiction with a dark psychological twist will find this story deeply compelling. Reading it feels like watching a domestic comedy gradually curdle into an eerie, claustrophobic psychological thriller. The narrative stays with you through its haunting depiction of body horror and entrapment, driven by a sharp, unsettling premise. However, modern readers must contend with the dated mid-century gender attitudes and patriarchal tropes woven throughout the text, where women are frequently stereotyped as baffling domestic consumers and men view themselves as beleaguered outsiders in a world of feminine trivialities. Despite these period attitudes, Winston K. Marks crafts a tightly paced, imaginative narrative that turns a seemingly mundane domestic annoyance into a chilling exploration of identity loss. The striking juxtaposition of tender fatherly affection with parasitic mental invasion creates a uniquely disturbing atmosphere that lingers long after the final page.