What Underlies the Differentiation between the Child and the Madman? Exploration of Talmudic Categories

In the talmudic literature, the madman (shote) and the child (qatan) are very often quoted in the same sentence, and in particular regarding the obligation to fulfill the commandments. Admittedly, they share common features, along with the deaf-mute. Yet, in this lecture, I will try to determine when, why and to what extent the madman and the child are differentiated : at some point they clearly denote different categories. This differentiation is at the roof of several wide-ranging legal implications.