Chapter 2
reassemblingtoreadtheBibleor other
literatureout loud.On theSabbath,the
entirefamily attendedchurch together.By
mid-century,theidea of family vacations
andfamily-centeredholidays,such as
birthdays,Christmas,andThanksgiving
emerged.
A Compassionate Approach to Childrearing
A new attitude toward children also
emerged at this time.Early in the century,
children were expected to contribute
productively to the family.As the self-
sufficient family ideal began to disappear,
the role of children also began to change.
By the mid-1800s,the concept of the
family as a cooperative economic
enterprise began to disappear.Children
were still expected to help on the farm,
but they were not considered a principal
economic asset.
Education, Not Duties.Childrencameto
beviewedasyounginnocentswhoneededa
mother’sprotectionfromacorruptworldof
sex,violence,anddeath.Insteadofreferring
toaninfantas“it,”“thebaby,”or“thelittle
stranger,”astheyhadinthepast,parents
beganusingthechild’sfirstname.Children
werenowseentoneedtimetoplay.
Childhooddevelopedintoanextendedstage
oflife,andparentswerenotunderpressure
tohurrytheirchildrentoadulthood.Parents
acceptedthefactthattheirchildrenhad
distinctiveneedsandimpulses(Mintz,2004).
Communities began to place a high
priority on education,and the
schoolhouse became a central focus of the
community.Often the teacher had little
more than a sixth-grade education.
Children were freed of some of their
duties so they could attend school.As
parents became more interested in their
children’s development,books on
childrearing began to spring up.Child
misbehavior was thought to be the result
of improper supervision.
New Parenting Practices.Homeswere
nowlargerandmorecomfortable,with
moreconsiderationgiventothechildren’s
needs.Thisresultedinanincreasein
children’stoys,games,andfurniture.
Parentingpracticeschangedfrom
patriarchalauthoritarianismtogentle
guidance.Increasedloveandaffection
replacedtheuseofphysicalforcein
childrearing,whichhadbeencommonin
thepreviouscentury(Coontz,1992).More
mothersbreastfedtheirowninfantsinstead
ofusingwetnurses.Morecredencewas
giventotheeffectivenessofloving,
nurturingmaternaldiscipline,ratherthan
thepaternalharshnesswhichhadpreviously
existed.Asaresult,thefather’sroleinraising
thechildrenbegantodecrease.
Childrennowstayedathomeintotheir
lateteensorearlytwenties,whichcreated
additionalburdensonthefamily.Intheory,
thiswasalengthenedtimeoftrainingfor
adulthood.Inreality,therewerefewer
opportunitiesthaninthepastforchildrento