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Aizah Sadiq
2,434 PointsWhat does this do?
What does super().init do
1 Answer
Erlend Dybvik Indrelid
5,843 PointsHi! super() is used to get access to the methods of the subclass' superclass. This is useful because it stops repetition of code if any of the methods from the superclass is needed in the subclass. super().__init__ is thus used to get access to the superclass' __init__ method. If you are still unsure of what super() does, Realpython does a great job explaining its exact purpose:
class Rectangle:
def __init__(self, length, width):
self.length = length
self.width = width
def area(self):
return self.length * self.width
def perimeter(self):
return 2 * self.length + 2 * self.width
# Here we declare that the Square class inherits from the Rectangle class
class Square(Rectangle):
def __init__(self, length):
super().__init__(length, length)
As you can see, the Square class inherits from the Rectangle class, and can thus access Rectangle's __init__ method by using super().__init__, followed by the required arguments. Let me know if it is still a bit unclear!