1. Many social thinkers observe that the family in the West is falling apart.They seem to believe that it had been stable in the past, and is only now undergoing change. The fact is that family change has always been taking place.
2. Although, it is widely believed that in the past children grew up in large households, including parents, grandparents and other relatives, there is evidence in pre-industrial Europe that the family evolved from extended to nuclear .Most households were small (mean household size was 4.75). It seems unlikely that in the past few centuries many families in England and America had grandparents living with them. Nevertheless, the relationships within the nuclear family were not much closer than those with the neighbours, relatives or other friends.
3. Moreover, in the sixteenth century, marriage became a collective decision even in nuclear families. The parents' power over their children had been extended by the State and Church to their choice of career and spouse. However, by the mid-seventeenth century, it became more acceptable for individual family members to pursue their own privacy and happiness.
4. Furthermore, throughout most of the pre-industrial era, the household was the central productive unit of society. Children were trained for their future occupations in their own homes, or were employed in someone else's household. But as the economic functions of the household became a safe shelter from the outside world, in the eighteenth century, children had come to rely more and more upon each other and their parents for their emotional needs.
Child Upbringing
5. Up to the seventeenth century, Western families often mistreated their children. Allowing children to die was sometimes encouraged, or at best, tolerated.For example,it was not uncommon for some mothers, even from well-to-do families, to leave their infants at foundling hospitals or with rural wet nurses , a practice that left the infant vulnerable to death. However, despite the fact that parents began to express more and more affection for their children, the latter were not protected by law from abusive parents until the nineteenth century.Ironically, efforts to prevent cruelty to animals preceded those to accomplish the same ends for children by nearly half a century.
6. In Colonial America, for example, children were expected to think and behave pretty much as adults from an early age.They were expected to read as soon as they could talk.This notion continued to operate until the introduction of the kindergarten in the United States in the late nineteenth century when reading at an early stage was avoided.The above examples show how the socialization of children is dependent on the adults' conception of them, and on knowledge based on scientific and medical findings in child-rearing .
7. Historically, the primary responsibility for rearing the children in the West belonged to the parents. Nevertheless, while the role of the father was always recognized, the mother's role in the upbringing of children was increased. Mothers became responsible for providing care, affection and education for children, though they were less literate than men.
8. Throughout much of Western history, parents ended to control their children's behaviour. Children were expected to be obedient and to contribute to the well- being of the family. By the late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century, however, much of this control had diminished and the rights of children as individuals were increasingly recognized. Interestingly, child rights have changed so rapidly and so far that efforts are being now made to re-establish parental responsibility.
9. In brief, there have been major changes in the socialization of children in Western society. It would not be easy for many people to agree on the advantages and disadvantages of these changes, whether from the point of view of the child, parents or society. While some welcome the increasing individualism of freedom of children within the family, others lament the loss of family responsibility and discipline.
[(Adapted from Baudoin, E. Margaret et al, Reader's Choice , Ann Arbor: The
University of Michigan Pres, (1988) pp. 236-240)].
2. Although, it is widely believed that in the past children grew up in large households, including parents, grandparents and other relatives, there is evidence in pre-industrial Europe that the family evolved from extended to nuclear .Most households were small (mean household size was 4.75). It seems unlikely that in the past few centuries many families in England and America had grandparents living with them. Nevertheless, the relationships within the nuclear family were not much closer than those with the neighbours, relatives or other friends.
3. Moreover, in the sixteenth century, marriage became a collective decision even in nuclear families. The parents' power over their children had been extended by the State and Church to their choice of career and spouse. However, by the mid-seventeenth century, it became more acceptable for individual family members to pursue their own privacy and happiness.
4. Furthermore, throughout most of the pre-industrial era, the household was the central productive unit of society. Children were trained for their future occupations in their own homes, or were employed in someone else's household. But as the economic functions of the household became a safe shelter from the outside world, in the eighteenth century, children had come to rely more and more upon each other and their parents for their emotional needs.
Child Upbringing
5. Up to the seventeenth century, Western families often mistreated their children. Allowing children to die was sometimes encouraged, or at best, tolerated.For example,it was not uncommon for some mothers, even from well-to-do families, to leave their infants at foundling hospitals or with rural wet nurses , a practice that left the infant vulnerable to death. However, despite the fact that parents began to express more and more affection for their children, the latter were not protected by law from abusive parents until the nineteenth century.Ironically, efforts to prevent cruelty to animals preceded those to accomplish the same ends for children by nearly half a century.
6. In Colonial America, for example, children were expected to think and behave pretty much as adults from an early age.They were expected to read as soon as they could talk.This notion continued to operate until the introduction of the kindergarten in the United States in the late nineteenth century when reading at an early stage was avoided.The above examples show how the socialization of children is dependent on the adults' conception of them, and on knowledge based on scientific and medical findings in child-rearing .
7. Historically, the primary responsibility for rearing the children in the West belonged to the parents. Nevertheless, while the role of the father was always recognized, the mother's role in the upbringing of children was increased. Mothers became responsible for providing care, affection and education for children, though they were less literate than men.
8. Throughout much of Western history, parents ended to control their children's behaviour. Children were expected to be obedient and to contribute to the well- being of the family. By the late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century, however, much of this control had diminished and the rights of children as individuals were increasingly recognized. Interestingly, child rights have changed so rapidly and so far that efforts are being now made to re-establish parental responsibility.
9. In brief, there have been major changes in the socialization of children in Western society. It would not be easy for many people to agree on the advantages and disadvantages of these changes, whether from the point of view of the child, parents or society. While some welcome the increasing individualism of freedom of children within the family, others lament the loss of family responsibility and discipline.
[(Adapted from Baudoin, E. Margaret et al, Reader's Choice , Ann Arbor: The
University of Michigan Pres, (1988) pp. 236-240)].
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