Childhood Flashcards
(31 cards)
Aries
children in the Middle Ages were mini-adults who would enter work early and follow the same laws
Shorter
high infant mortality rates encouraged neglect towards children and calling babies ‘it’, often replacing dead babies with new siblings
Pollock
children in the Middle Ages did have a childhood just a different concept of it than today
why has children’s position change?
- laws restrict child labour
- compulsory schooling
- child protection
- smaller family size
- low infant mortality
- laws just for children (i.e., minimum age limits for sex, smoking, gambling)
- industrualisation
Pilcher
children have different habits, toys, food, drink, clothes, and activities compared to adults = separateness
golden age
childrens lives are protected, happy, and innocent - they get education, leisure, and play rather than paid work
Wagg
childhood is a social construct that is different in every society
globalisation of western childhood
western notions of childhood are being imposed on the developing world through humanitarian campaigns that align with western ideals
Punch
children are expected to work from the age of 5 in Bolivia
Malinowski
Trobriand Islanders treat children’s sexual behaviours with tolerance and amused interest
Postman
“childhood is disappearing at a dazzling speed”
children are starting to have adult rights, commit adult crimes like murder, and children’s games are becoming more adultish
Information hierarchy
19th century - printed word meant that only adults can learn about violence and sex
modern days - TV and online media means children don’t have to know how to read to access dangerous information
Opie
childhood isn’t disappearing because children maintain their own unique practices like through games, rhymes, and songs
(PM) Jenks
childhood is changing as society evolves
childhood is the preparing of children to be productive adults
adult lives are becoming more uncertain and so children will become for supervised as adults see them as the only thing that is certain
AO3 of Jenks
- little evidence
- study = small and unrepresentative
- overgeneralises
the child-centred family
lower mortality rates and people having smaller families means more attention and money can be invested into each child
(MoP) Mause
Western society’s children’s position is steadily improving and at its best today
(MoP) Aries and Shorter
today’s children are more valued and better cared for than previous generations
what effect has better healthcare had on children?
babies are more likely to survive
AO3 of MoP view on the position of children
rose-tinted view
ignores inequalities
Hillman
boys are more likely to go out alone than girls
Bonke
girls do 5x more domestic labour than their brothers
Brannen
Asian parents are more likely to be strict on their daughters, where there are ethnic differences
class differences + inequality
poorer families will have children that develop slower, often being low-weight, dead, or experiencing conduct disorders
