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Introduction to childhood as a modern construct
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Introduction to childhood as a modern construct
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In his chapter Clarke examines the view of the French historian Philippe Ariès about the idea of childhood through the ages and its main criticisms. Ariès claims that childhood did not always exist as a term or concept and children were treated as small versions of adults (Mook, 2007; Lowe, 2009). Van den Berg (1956) also supports this view whereas Hanawalt (2003) supports that there was a difference in the concept of childhood and adolescence since medieval and renaissance scholars. Childhood started to be conceptualized from the 17th century and there were many reasons that influenced its formation (Aries, 1962; Mook, 2007). The evidence that Clarke provides proves that childhood as a term together with the life of children changed over the time influenced by different factors like falmily-model, romanticism, religious beliefs, social class, industrialization and schooling. Other authors agree with that too (Mook, 2007; Lowe, 2009). The idea of Ariès received a number of criticisms. Some argued that the idea of childhood existed in medieval times (Pollock, 1983; Shahar, 1992). Clarke finally comes to the conclusion that despite the critiques of Aries work, childhood may be a modern social construction as children’s life has changed due to …show more content…
Future research should be worthwhile to explore further the idea of childhood in modern societies as children are those who will define history in the future and investing in them is for sure important. Another important issue related to the appearance of the term is that if childhood is a social construction as supported widely from the literature, how is it possible for historians to trace the term in the past since it is not the same as defined today and maybe the fact that it is not makes it itself difficult to be found. What if the term was so different conceptualized then that it cannot be understood and therefore not found
Children were strong and ambitious. They were the money makers of the family. This paper will argue how the mindset of a child has advanced in Canada, through the 1800s to the present era, in representing a different perspective of how a child evaluates the perception of how they approach life. Canada holds many histories of the past. The differences with children from to the past to the present are that children worked and produced a lot of labor, to keep the families from starving through the 1800s, present children rarely need to work. The educational system of the past has differed a great deal from the system they have created thought out the times that have developed. Children would use their imagination to create games and play, until the generation of television came into effect. Times have changed and children are one of the many. The social construction of childhood from the 1800s is a whole lot different from the construction of childhood from the 1970s. The agenda of children have changed and adults are not concerned with children working because the standard of living in families has developed a whole new concept, for how families should live life.
The childhood of a young boy is very crucial in what he will be like in his own life.
Centuries of Childhood is a social history of family life (1960) that is a history of childhood written by Philippe Aries’s. It is about controversial claim that childhood, as a concept ,was not “discovered” until well after the middle ages. While Child Act 2011( Act 611) is an example that is repealed the Juvenile Courts Act 1947( Act 90) the Women and Girls Protection Act 1973(Act 106) and the Child Protection Act 1991(Act 468). Act 611 preamble provides that every child is entitled to protection and assistance in all circumtances without regard to distinction of any kind , such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, social origin or physical mental or emotional disabilities. Aries is an archivist for the Institute of Applied Research
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.
I believe my concept of childhood was, in large part, formed by the way I was raised. My older sister and I were raised by a single mother in a small town in country Victoria. My mother is a socialist and feminist and I think that these beliefs informed her decisions on how to treat her children, choosing to treat us as capable individuals and allowing us to make, or at least have input into making, decisions about our bodies, our activities outside of school, and our lives in general. When reflecting on how I see children and childhood, I believe that my view of children as capable, confident, and independent, and my belief that childhood should be fun and free is due to the environment I grew up in.
time, protected by those who see us shine and fly past them on their way
‘Some idea of a child or childhood motivates writers and determines both the form and content of what they write.’ -- Hunt The above statement is incomplete, as Hunt not only states that the writer has an idea of a child but in the concluding part, he states that the reader also has their own assumptions and perceptions of a child and childhood. Therefore, in order to consider Hunt’s statement, this essay will look at the different ideologies surrounding the concept of a child and childhood, the form and content in which writers inform the reader about their ideas of childhood concluding with what the selected set books state about childhood in particular gender. The set books used are Voices In The Park by Browne, Mortal Engines by Reeve and Little Women by Alcott to illustrate different formats, authorial craft and concepts about childhood. For clarity, the page numbers used in Voices In The Park are ordinal (1-30) starting at Voice 1.
Childhood is a period of maturation when our personalities begin to develop into the type of individuals we will eventually become. This is a crucial time where our identities are forming based upon how we are treated by those around us. +If a child is often handled as a burden that individual will take on a negative persona. In the case of children living under the dark hands of slavery, it was impossible to have a normal childhood. A slave's parents were always off conducting laborious tasks, or they were sold away...
The term “hurried child syndrome” is defined by the Urban Dictionary as “a condition in which parents overschedule their children's lives, push them hard for academic success, and expect them to behave and react as miniature adults.” This fairly new issue was first proposed by child psychologist David Elkind in 2007. Elkind’s book “The Hurried Child” clearly shows his concern for the next generation and what the word “childhood” has become for them. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, “childhood” is defined as “the state or period of being a child.” And “child” is defined as “an unborn or recently born person.” Noticeably, the dictionary definition is completely objective. There is no implication of how childhood is, or what it involves. In the major advanced cultures around the world, childhood has always been mentioned with a positive connotation of innocence and joy. But the hurrying of children seems to be defying this way of thinking.
Maybin, J. &Woodhead, M. (2003). Childhoods in context. Southern Gate, Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Ltd
While all societies acknowledge that children are different from adults, how they are different, changes, both generationally and across cultures. “The essence of childhood studies is that childhood is a social and cultural phenomenon” (James, 1998). Evident that there are in fact multiple childhoods, a unifying theme of childhood studies is that childhood is a social construction and aims to explore the major implications on future outcomes and adulthood. Recognizing childhood as a social construction guides exploration through themes to a better understanding of multiple childhoods, particularly differences influencing individual perception and experience of childhood. Childhood is socially constructed according to parenting style by parents’ ability to create a secure parent-child relationship, embrace love in attitudes towards the child through acceptance in a prepared environment, fostering healthy development which results in evidence based, major impacts on the experience of childhood as well as for the child’s resiliency and ability to overcome any adversity in the environment to reach positive future outcomes and succeed.
The text depicts a historical perspective on Middle Childhood, as during the twentieth century, children were viewed primarily as an economic source of income, in terms of providing for the family. According to the text this happens often in European counties and in parts of the United States. Elizabeth D. Hutchinson, Dimensions of Human Behavior The Changing Life Course 3rd, 2008. In this short review we will look at how this historical perspective in itself is not a question to how, but when these individual give.
There are proponents of the debate that childhood is disappearing which will be discussed in this section which include Postman (1983), Elkind (1981) and Palmer (2006). In considering these points of view which are mostly American, one must firstly set in context what is meant by the disappearance or erosion of childhood. This key debate centres on Postman (1983) who wrote “The disappearance of childhood” which is a contentious book about how childhood as a social category which is separate from adulthood is eroding. He defines a point where childhood came into existence, which was treated as a special phase in the middle ages based on the work of Aries in his book “Centuries of childhood” (1962, cited in Postman 1983). According to Postman, a major influence on how childhood was perceived differently to adulthood was the invention of the printing press and literacy in the mid sixteenth century. That is to say children had to learn to read before the secrets of adulthood in particular sex and violence was available...
Childhood is defined as the period in human development between infancy and adulthood(book). In a historical perspective, this is relatively new social construction. Early childhood most often refers to the months and years between infancy and school age children. Child development is influenced by a lot of factors. These factors influence a child both in positive ways that can enhance their development and in negative ways that can change developmental outcomes. To understand why childhood is such a crucial time in human life it is important to study the development before and after birth along with any factors that may alter life in between.
A childhood is the delicate phase of every adolescent's life where they must mature into their own person, with their own responsibilities. Although every individual will eventually bloom with their own personality, morals, and perspectives, the education and values we learn and see along the way add to the fingers that mold. We begin when we are born, and are taken in by strangers. These priceless people show us love, and just how strong attachments can be. Family ties snare us in their loving webs and become the support network to catch us throughout our youthful falls. They are our first real pictures of people, and their actions and emotions immediately become examples.