childhood Flashcards
Jane Pilcher modern western notion of childhood
The most important feature of childhood is ‘separateness adults and children’s lives are completely different
‘golden age of innocence’
historical reasons that childhood is a social construct
- Aries: (10th-13th)
‘the idea of childhood didn’t exist’
children were ‘mini adults’ as they played the same games and looked like adults
infant mortality so high. parents child relationship more distant
shorter: if a child died parents weren’t too upset and would have named new babies after dead babies names
Aries evaluation
- paintings are. unreliable don’t show full picture only shows the view of childhood from a rich aristocrat who has paid for a painting and the painter RICH PERSONS VIEW
however does draw to some conclusions, and right to say children were working more than now
cultural reasons that childhood is a social construct
- torbiand islanders (malinowski)
found adults took an attitude of ‘tolerance; towards children’s sexual exploration, children take. responsibility at a young age less value on children’s obedience
causes of the modern notion of childhood
- postman (printing press)
- shorter (concept of romantic love)
- schools
- 18th-century books on hand-rearing
the modern cult of childhood ARIES
argues that we are ‘obsessed’ with childhood
- laws restricting child labor
- compulsory education
- child protection laws
dissapearence of childhood postman
‘childhood is dissappearing at a dazzling speed”
creation of printing press created aninformation hierrchy which created seperatness. children cant read so are protected. but the introduction of technology has exposed children to. more information at younger age which is decreasing their innocence
evaluation of dissapearence of childhood
- opie argues childhood is not dissaprearing strong evidence continues sepreatness through unsupervised games rhyms and songs
similarly the value placed on TV is overstated by postman with many paretns still not allowing their children acsess to media until appropraite age
Jenks childhood in postmodernity
family diversity and more choice= more unstable relationships with child is only secure relationship. so they are evenmore protected than ever
childhood isnt dissapearing but its changing famileis are just becoming more child-centered
evaluation of Jenks
choices are based on middle class life. not all people have such freedom to choose
many famileis cant be child centered due to money issues
also not all families nurture children chidl abuse
childhood hasn’t improved
- toxic childhood
- inequalities among children
- inequalities between adults and kids (age patriarchy)
childhood has improved
- march of progress
- child-centered families
- child-centered society
- modern cult of childhood
Toxic childhood
technology: TVs in bedrooms cant control what children are exposed to
video games unhealthy and anti-social
marketing to children: pester power
evaluation: technology can have benefits as we live in a technology-centered world it can benefit children as a life skill
bonke on inequalities amongst children
found that girls do more domestic labour especially in lone-parent families where they do five times more housework than boys
class inequalities between children
- poor mothers more likley to have low birth weight babies
- children of unskilled manual workers are over 3x more likely to suffer from hyperactivity
inequalities amongst children
we cannot speak of children in general as if they are all equal- social class, gender and ethnicity affect their life chances
inequalities between adults and children
- control over children’s space
(signs such as ‘no school children ‘ or increased surveillance on children in public spaces) - control over children’s time
(adults control daily routine such as when they get up, eat, and play)
-control over adults body
(how they sit, walk, run what they wear and how they touch. their own bodies which contrast to sexual freedoms in non-industrial cultures)
Gittins and age patriarchy
- inequalities of adult domination in the family especially from men who see themsleves as having all power over members
this power may today assert itself in violence against children and women
Humphrey found that 1/4 of the 200 women in their study left their partners over fear of their children’s lives
march of progress view of childhood
- over the past. few centuries, the position of children in western societies has been steadily improving.
for example children, today are protected from harm and exploitation by laws against child abuse and child. labor
better healthcare also improved infant mortality
child-centered family (financial)
higher living standards and smaller family sizes mean that parents can afford to look after children correctly
by 21 a child has cost a family around 227,000
children are no longer to be ‘seen and not heard’ they are now a focal point of family
child-centred society
much media output and many leisure activities are designed specifically for children
the new sociology of the child
post modernists belive we must take the perspective of a child and not look at childhood from an ‘adultsist view’ seeing children as ‘socialisation projects’
personal life perspective
smart- new approach aims to include views and experiences of children themselves while they are living in their childhood
smart et al- study of divorce found that from being the passive victim’s children were actively involved in making the situation better for everyone
child liberationists view
- age patriarchy (gittins)
- new sociology of childhood
