Is it possible for Stephen to revert to childhood? (chapter 9)

In chapter 9, after handing in the basket, Stephen runs "home to Mummy". The word “mummy” suggests the wailings of a little boy who looks for the comfort of his mother´s bosom. When reading it, we have the impression that Stephen is sick of the adult world and that he is trying to escape his anguish by reverting to childhood.

Once at home, we see his parents trying to find out what is going on.

Mrs Wheatley wants to help his son, and insists on his telling her what has happened. In fact, this section of the chapter opens with a reference to how many times Mrs Wheatley has asked him what has happened: “´I can´t do anything’ , says my mother for the tenth time, `if you don't tell me what the matter is.´” This shows she really cares for his son. As for Mr Wheatley, we  see how worried and sad he is for his son and how he looks at him "with mournful sympathy". Moreover, he tries to cheer him up by telling him: "I'd take all your troubles from you if I could  and give you mine instead. You've got worse troubles than anyone's ever had before. I know that. Mine you wouldn't find so bad. Other people's troubles never are". He devotes time to speak with his son and to advise him, and that proves he is a loving father.  

However, in spite of all his parents´ efforts to help him, Stephen won´t answer his questions. He is not a little child any more. He is growing up and has taken new responsibilities. He feels he has been entrusted with a secret, and he won't reveal it. His parents cannot help him with his problems because they can´t know the truth he has been confided.

The process of growing up is difficult and it has its ups and downs. Even though Stephen refuses to reveal anything about the hidden man, he behaves childishly again in the middle of the night, when he slips into his parents´bed. However, “the old safe place is no longer the comfort it was”. Lying between his parents, he feels trapped and claustrophobic and he even becomes aware of his own mortality: “ It comes to me as a terrible force that one day I´m going to be lying in my coffin, deep in the earth.”

In conclusion, Stephen has grown up and that is a reality that will not change. It is not easy for him to accept he has matured, and sometimes he feels he would like to be a little child again. We see how he is still looking for the comfort of a little boy in the hope that it will soothe his anguish. However, nothing can make him feel better. No matter how lovingly his parents behave, he is not able to find in them the comfort he used to find in his childhood.