Images of Childhood
Proffessor Chaudhry
English 133
November 25, 2012
Images of Childhood
“It is my opinion that a story worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then.” ― C.S. Lewis(Lewis, 38)
Stories read in childhood influence, invoke thought, and open doors that we find ourselves going through as adults. What happens in childhood defines how we live our lives today. However, the luxury of “childhood” and the plethora of literature that is available to us at the present was not always accessible. In the past the view of childhood was quite different, but through gradual reform became what it is today. The image of childhood has had three major steps of change, starting with the “adult” child of the early 15 and 1600’s, the true “child” that the Puritans discovered and finally, the innocent and playful child of the Victorian Age.
Before the reform happened, it is important to set the stage of what childhood was like. Picture a home in England’s mid 1500’s, where the family sits after dinner around the fireplace. The father and son are dressed alike, as are the mother and daughter. The father reads the Holy Bible in a solemn tone, telling the story of Lot’s wife who turned into a pillar of salt for disobeying the Lord. Other than the Bible, the only thing that the children read are school lessons or stories that are heavily dressed in morality, full of admonishments, exhortations and instructions, solely for the purpose of didacticism. The children are viewed as smaller versions of adults, given the same responsibilities and duties that were to be upheld. There was no “childhood”; the sons and daughters would take on roles of the parents soon as possible. In a time where the lifespan was short and healthy babies were a rare thing, children were introduced to the adult world quickly, no line being drawn between child and adult. As a result there was no specific literature for children. “ I do not know of any survival from the age of manuscript that can be
English 133
November 25, 2012
Images of Childhood
“It is my opinion that a story worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then.” ― C.S. Lewis(Lewis, 38)
Stories read in childhood influence, invoke thought, and open doors that we find ourselves going through as adults. What happens in childhood defines how we live our lives today. However, the luxury of “childhood” and the plethora of literature that is available to us at the present was not always accessible. In the past the view of childhood was quite different, but through gradual reform became what it is today. The image of childhood has had three major steps of change, starting with the “adult” child of the early 15 and 1600’s, the true “child” that the Puritans discovered and finally, the innocent and playful child of the Victorian Age.
Before the reform happened, it is important to set the stage of what childhood was like. Picture a home in England’s mid 1500’s, where the family sits after dinner around the fireplace. The father and son are dressed alike, as are the mother and daughter. The father reads the Holy Bible in a solemn tone, telling the story of Lot’s wife who turned into a pillar of salt for disobeying the Lord. Other than the Bible, the only thing that the children read are school lessons or stories that are heavily dressed in morality, full of admonishments, exhortations and instructions, solely for the purpose of didacticism. The children are viewed as smaller versions of adults, given the same responsibilities and duties that were to be upheld. There was no “childhood”; the sons and daughters would take on roles of the parents soon as possible. In a time where the lifespan was short and healthy babies were a rare thing, children were introduced to the adult world quickly, no line being drawn between child and adult. As a result there was no specific literature for children. “ I do not know of any survival from the age of manuscript that can be