A
human child who has lived in social isolation from a very young age and therefore has no knowledge of the world, language, or social behavior. Some wild children have been neglected by
insane parents; others are children who have grown up and survived in the wild. They are extremely rare, but when discovered, cause quite a sensation, esp with psychologists.
aka feral child, savage
'Viktor' was found in the woods in
France around 1800. He apparently grew up alone as a savage in the wild.
'Genie' was found in 1970 in LA neglected for almost her entire 13 yr
life stuck on a potty chair in a room.
In both cases, there was only partial success in trying to make these wild children '
normal.'