How Did Philippe Aries View Of Childhood

James Poses the idea of childhood takes on the identity of systemic cultural practices as they pertain to children's needs and maturity levels. (James 28). Thus there are many societal

As time goes on the aspects and views of individuals change, which is usually caused by their surroundings. These aspects can generally be displayed in various physical forms and actions . During the duration of the 1500’s to the 1700’s major events lead to many to Europeans alter their religious and cultural views which can clearly be seen through their techniques of childrearing. The techniques displayed the mindset of the individuals as views based on the corrupt church transformed into new ideas of enlightenment.

There is little evidence of what it was really like in the past so it is difficult for a lot of people to re-construct the life of a child, however from what I have researched, and in my own opinion I am going to summarise the historical changes in childhood experience and relate these changes to childhood development and rights.

Childhood is a social construct that has been weaved together by societal norms and domineering perspectives. Childhood is not a physical or mental state but an abstraction that has been melded by society as time has progressed. In Karen Sanchez-Eppler’s excerpt titled “Childhood” from the novel Keywords for Children’s Literature, she explains how the attitudes and atmosphere surrounding childhood have vastly changed throughout history to yield the general, modern conception of childhood. Children have been deemed adults in the Middle Ages and childhood has been a vaguely regarded concept. However, as society has become more progressive and developed, an interest in distinguishing the young from the older individuals

The various essays comprising Children in Colonial America look at different characteristics of childhood in the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. Children coming to the American colonies came from many different nations and through these essays, authors analyze children from every range of social class, race, and ability in order to present a broad picture of childhood in these times. While each essay deals with an individual topic pertaining to childhood, they all combine to provide a strong argument that children were extremely valued in society, were not tiny adults, and were active participants in society.

One of the main features of childhood studies is the idea that childhood is socially constructed. This means that not all childhoods are the same and that it may differ depending on the time in which it is taking place, as well as the social environment or the place that it is taking place. This can be seen at the Museum of Childhood, and how different times have shown changes in the way children act, play, dress, or ultimately are treated in society. Additionally it draws on key differences in the human societies affecting different childhoods in any given period or place, and can examine how the childhood in that given period is constructed. Furthermore a social constructionist looks at the consequences of any given factor and the impact it has on children.

Childhood is a social and cultural construct that varies by region, class, and histories era. The young people’s experience different from the past. For example, two centuries ago, adults were far less to care their children as specific creatures and by the end of the eighteenth century, childhood became a stage of life that required special care and institutions to protect it.

This could have been painted like this because women were always depicted as being weak and submissive compared to men. Children around this era were classed as being "miniature adults" that should be seen and not heard, according to Philippe Aries. Aries argued that childhood is a social construct, and in the Victorian era, childhood wasn't even a concept. Aries went on to examine images and based his theory on looking at historical, Victorian images of children. These images depicted children to be mini adults, and were often dressed in

“If the broader culture 'knows' anything about children and childhood in the Middle Ages, it is that medieval culture didn’t know anything about children” (Classen). Childhood, schooling, and parenting were very different in the Renaissance generation. Education was scarce because there was not much else to learn besides the family trade. School was most likely a bad atmosphere for students due to the harsh discipline and the ways teachers treated

The readings of both The Abandonment of Children and the Ancient and Medieval Family by John Boswell and Child-Exposure in the Roman Empire by W.V. Harris are not only informative but incredible fascinating pieces. The idea of abandonment and exposure of children is something that in today’s society, or at least the society that I, and many of my peers live is not so much focused on, or even thought about. But for the children during the Roman period this abandonment element to life was not only somewhat common, but a very big hurdle in which many Roman children had to overcome. Children today we are not “exposed” to the same difficulties that the children of Rome were, much of this has to do with the society then, compared to the society

Childhood as disappearing/not disappearing will be discussed within this essay. There is no universal definition for childhood however in the western culture childhood is a period of dependency, characterised by learning the norms and values of society, innocence and freedom from responsibilities. Sociologists such as Postman and Jenks would argue that childhood is disappearing however Opie and Opie and Palmer would contradict this.

The concept of childhood, is not a natural state, but it has been socially constructed through society and can only exist in a society that understand the term this has been reinforced through history. Another issue is how much of ‘childhood’ has been socially constructed (created and

Ground-breaking, momentous, and a time of great struggle, the Industrial Revolution was famous for its innovations and infamous for the sobering reality it inflicted upon the standard family. Mid-18th century Britain brought poverty to everyday urban workers. With it, came an increase in child labor like never seen before. In order for a normal family to survive in the urban lifestyle, all members of a family had to work. This included children as young as four years to work as chimney sweepers, miners, and most popularized in 18th century Britain, factory workers. By the year 1800, children under the age of 14 in Britain’s factories accounted for 50% of the labor force (“Industrial Revolution, Child Labor”). Though the number continued to grow, all did not go unaccounted for. Romanticism, an effort opposite the movement, gave recognition to the emotional conflicts overlooked. Romanticism shed light on the daily struggles of the everyday man, woman, and the most neglected up until that period of time, the child. Throughout history, others have written about childhood, but Romantic poets began to question what it meant to be a child. The question, though not answered directly, later became revealed in their works where it exposed their belief systems. The role of the child in British Romantic Poetry represents the early life of Romantic poets, and the qualities they possessed in childhood.

Childhood is usually understood as a set of experiences and behaviours, gained in the early stages of the human existence, considered as the preparation for the adult world. However, the history of childhood is a very complex topic and it has become a very influential area of study in recent years. In 1962, the ‘Centuries of Childhood’ by Philippe Ariés introduced the idea that childhood was a new creation developed in recent centuries and as a concept it was believed to be nonexistent before the seventeenth century. This concept means that there was no awareness of the process of childhood. In several studies of the medieval period, Ariés noticed that childhood was not acknowledged or even attempted to be portrayed during this period. For

According to Philippe Aries (1960), “In medieval society the idea of childhood did not exist” (Veerman, 1992. p.3-5). He said, “The change in people’s views and ideas about childhood was seen mainly in the modern world. Young children that were seen as young adults were not surrounded by the protection of their family and this led to children from the age of seven being transitioned to young adults.” Philippe Aries (1960) argued that childhood was phased from modern changes in the development of schooling and that the idea of childhood did not emerge until the renaissance. (Burfeind and Bartusch, 2015, p.42). I disagree with Phillipe Aries as I believe childhood existed before the 16th century. Children liked playing with toys and there was