5 - Middle- and Upper-Class Childhoods in Towns, c. 1700–1870

Summary

Chapters 5 and 6 examine the experience of growing up in the towns, contrasted with the rural upbringing outlined in chapter 2. Chapter 5 starts by examining the content of advice manuals for child-rearing, and their general message that parent-child relations should be affectionate, with a shift in emphasis from the father's to the mother's role. The second part discusses child-rearing among the aristocracy, with its privileged but none-too-easy path to adulthood. The third section turns to the middle classes, highlighting their ideal of non-working mothers, emphasis on domesticity and concern for education. It also outlines material conditions for middle-class children and the advantages and disadvantages of their approach to child-rearing.