childhood

Question 1

AO3 criticism from Aries - (there was no childhood in the Middle Ages)

Answer 1

Pollock - its more correct to say society had a different notion of childhood
e.g high death rates encouraged neglect
e.g kids named after dead sibling, ‘it’

uses secondary data dependent on artist for accuracy
paintings should little about emotional bonds

Question 2

Aries - childhood gradually began to emerge 13th century onwards Ao1

Answer 2

schools - specialise purely in educating the young, influenced by church = kids are vulnerable
the distinction between adult and kids’ clothes

we have moved from a world that did not see childhood as special to being obsessed with it

Question 3

reasons for the changes in the position of children (3)

Answer 3

laws restricting child labour: from being economic assets and earning a wage to being an economic liability and financially dependent

declining family size and lower infant mortality: encourages parents to make a greater financial and emotional investment in the fewer they have

laws that apply specifically to children: e.g minimum ages for smoking, sex = reinforces idea that they’re different from adults and require different rules

Question 4

future of childhood - disappearance - POSTMAN Ao1

Answer 4

• similarity of adults’ and kids clothing, kids committing ‘adult’ crimes
  reason = rise and fall of print culture and its replacement by television culture
  Middle Ages = most people were illiterate - speech only skill needed to enter the adult world - no division between adult and kids world

childhood became separate with the
printed world created an information hierarchy = division between adults and kids - gave adults the power to keep knowledge about sex, violence so these things remained a mystery to kids and they became associated with innocence

television blurs this distinction - boundaries between adults and kids broken down and the ignorance and innocence of childhood is replaced with knowledge and cynicism

Question 5

disappearance of childhood - postman - AO3 Opie

Answer 5

OPIE - based on research into kids games, rhymes, books there’s strong evidence for the continued existence of a separate children’s culture

Question 6

disappearance of childhood - postman - AO3 overemphasises

Answer 6

overemphasises a single cause - television - and ignores other factrors that influence the development of childhood

Question 7

JENKS - childhood is changing AO1

Answer 7

modern society is concerned with preparing the kid to be a productive adult in the future - to achieve this the vulnerable kid is protected by the education system and family

now in postmodern society, the pace of change speeds up and relationships become more unstable (e.g with an increase in divorce) this generates feelings of insecurity - relationships with their kids become more important
adults become more fearful for kids’ security = reinforcing the view that Kida are vulnerable and in need of protection

Question 8

JENKS - childhood is changing AO3, over-generalising

Answer 8

jerks is guilty of over-generalising
sweeping statements that imply all children are in the same position

Question 9

JENKS - childhood is changing AO3, issues with evidence

Answer 9

evidence comes from small, unrepresentative studies

Question 10

has the position of childhood improved? - march of progress Ao1

Answer 10

steadily improving
ARIES & SHORTER. - today’s kids are more valued, better cared for and protected
higher living standards and
smaller family sizes = parents can afford to properly provide for kids needs

Question 11

has the position of childhood improved? - march of progress AO2

Answer 11

by a kids 21st birthday parents have spent £227,000

Question 12

march of progress view AO3, toxic childhood

Answer 12

toxic childhood - PALMER the ‘rapid technological and cultural changes ‘ in the past 25 years have damaged kids physical, emotional, intellectual development

concerns over health and behaviour - UK have above average rates for obesity, self-harm and drug abuse

Question 13

conflict view AO3 for March of progress

Answer 13

MOP is based on false and idealised image that ignores inequalities

inequalities among children - not all kids share the same status or experiences (e.g girls 5x more likely to do domestic labour than boys) - we can’t group all kids together

inequalities between kids and adults - things MOP see as protection are actually a form of oppression and control - e.g controls over kid time
controls over kids space, controls over access to resources

AO3 - child liberationists say some adult control is justified on the grounds that kids cannot make rational decisions

Question 14

age patriarchy

Answer 14

Gittins
inequalities between adults and children
age patriarchy of adult domination and child dependency

Question 15

the separateness of childhood AO1

Answer 15

Pilcher
childhood is seen as a clear and distinct life stage; children occupy a separate status from adults.

idea of childhood as the golden age.
Children are seen as vulnerable and in need of protection from the dangers of the world
Children’s lives are largely lived in the sphere of the family and education

Question 16

the separateness of childhood AO2

Answer 16

for example, laws regulating what children are allowed, required, and forbidden to do. Such as compulsory schooling up to age 18.

Question 17

the separateness of childhood AO3

Answer 17

separateness is not universal because childhood is socially constructed - different cultures construct or define development differently
e.g children in Bolivia are expected to take work responsibilities from 5 years old

Question 18

historical differences in childhood Ao1

Answer 18

childhood was short
soon after being weaned the child entered wider society on the same terms as adults
began work from an early age

Aries - ‘the idea of childhood did not exist’

Question 19

historical differences in childhood AO2

Answer 19

Aries
he used art from the period - children appear without any of the characteristics of childhood - kids and adults in the same clothing, working and playing together

Question 20

additional Ao3 - theres a danger in seeing children as passive objects who have no part in making their own childhoods

Answer 20

Mayall
risks seeing children from an ‘adultist’ point of view
may see children as socialisation projects for adults to mould

different view - ‘new sociology of childhood’ sees children as active agents

e.g. children are actively involved in divorce, trying to make the situation better for all.