Premodern Childhood

Childhood was not considered a special time for development but rather a hurdle on the way to adulthood. “The goal was to get children speaking, reading, reasoning, and contributing to their family’s economic well-being as quickly as possible.”(Mintz 50) Many kids as young as six were working outside of the home at the time. A cultural revolution began in the eighteenth century when many middle class parents began to relish in their children’s innocence and saw this a time to nurture mold their children. As this form of parenting became the norm many parents began to have less children by using birth control, thus giving the fewer children they had more of their attention. As time progressed kids spent more time going to school rather than to work. “Within the last 3 centuries “Societal views about methods of Child rearing, the nature of children’s play, the ideal duration of schooling, the participation of young people in work, and the demarcation points between childhood, adolescence, and adulthood have shifted significantly.”(Mintz

Throughout history, people have used paintings and art as a tool to express their religious beliefs and values. Illustrations depicting the Virgin Mary and child, often referred to as Madonna and Child, are one of the most recurring images in Christian and European Art through the ages. Though these paintings and sculptures may have similarities in their iconography and style each work of art varies based on the different artists’ and time periods. Two paintings that portray these features currently reside in the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. The first, Virgin and Child by Rogier van der Wyden, was originally painted after 1454. In the painting, the Virgin Mary is holding Christ against her shoulder as he twists around to face toward the viewers. The second painting is Virgin and Child with a Donor, painted by Antoniazzo Romano and originally painted c. 1480. In this painting, Virgin Mary is supporting Christ who seems to be standing and includes a figure of a man with his hands crossed in prayer. While both paintings depict the mother and child, there are both similarities and differences in style and portrayal. In this paper, I will thoroughly examine these traits, as well as address the similarities and differences associated with the two paintings. This analysis will be done by using information gained from reading Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, in class lectures from ARTH 1381 Art and Society Renaissance to Modern and ARTH 1300 Ways of Seeing Art, and close visual

According to Allison James, Children are often discouraged in the United States, from making minimal decisions on their own or showing evidence of autonomy at young ages. She asserts that childhood can denote more than one ideology, depending on where you are. In addition, James also touches on insight offered by historian , Phillipe Aries who interjects that there was no concept of childhood during the mid-evil era. Thus alluding to the cultural and social influences that factor into the structure of how a particular society defines what it means to be a child.

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.

     This paper will compare the themes found in the paintings “Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist and an Angel” by Domenico di Bartolomeo Ubaldini (Puligo) and “Madonna Enthroned” by Giotto. Both paintings deal with fables from the Christian faith but were executed during different periods in art. The Giotto painting was created around 1310 and the Puglio painting was executed between 1518 – 1520. Here, these two paintings have similar themes both at the extreme beginnings and endings of the Italian Renaissance, and as such they serve to present an exceptional example of the developments in art that occurred within that time. This paper shall compare

The idea of culture teachings in a child’s life has many different effects. Benvenuto Cellini, a Florence crafter and sculptor, wrote, “Rode off to Fiesole to see a natural son of mine, whom I was keeping at nurse with the wife of one of my workmen. When I arrived I found the boy in very good health… Sad at heart, I kissed him; and then when I wanted to leave he refused to let me go… breaking into a storm of crying and screaming… around 2 years old.” In his autobiography, Cellini went on to visit his child born out of wedlock, feeling “sad at heart”, he also mentions that when he had to leave, the boy cried even as he left, during the 1550s.(Doc. 2) This document, is somewhat different than the rest of the documents and actions during the 1550’s,

Childhood itself is a slightly ambiguous term, and is not a fixed definite period of life. The book “AS level sociology” written by Rob webb, Hal Westergaard, Kieth Trobe and Liz Steel defines childhood as “ a socially defined age status” going on to say that there are major differences in how childhood is defined, both historically, and culturally, similarly, Stephen Wagg says of childhood;

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.

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

'In children 's literature the notion and construct of 'childhood ' became an influential force...it became associated with freedom...and play; focusing on educating children malleablly. '

This paper will compare the themes found in the paintings "Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist and an Angel" by Domenico di Bartolomeo Ubaldini (Puligo) and "Madonna Enthroned" by Giotto. Both paintings deal with fables from the Christian faith but were executed during different periods in art. The Giotto painting was created around 1310 and the Puglio painting was executed between 1518 – 1520. Here, these two paintings have similar themes both at the extreme beginnings and endings of the Italian Renaissance, and as such they serve to present an exceptional example of the developments in art that occurred within that time. This paper shall compare

The focus of this investigation will be “The Medici family supported the artists of the Renaissance era by providing them financial support, throughout mentorship and because of the prevailing philosophy and humanism.” This investigation will focus on the background of the Medici family and how they supported artists of the Renaissances era. This investigation will use a primary source from an artist's work and a secondary source relating to the Medici family uprising.San Lorenzo (church). Medici chapel. Tomb of Lorenzo de' Medici which held Sculptures by Michelangelo and Adrien, De Roover Raymond. The Rise and Decline of the Medici Bank, 1397-1494. Norton Library, 2012.Both sources provide background to the Renaissance time period and how the Medic family treated artists with their power. The two sources are examples of how the Medicis changed the renaissance era through their money and power to pursue artists for their own benefit and for the time periods.