what were childrens roles, chores and recreations in the 1700s?
Children were dressed like little adults and, in fact, treated like adults in that they were (in the lower classes) expected to go to work as early as 5 or 6. [ They were probably more serious than our children; working in a dangerous factory will knock lots of foolishness out of a child. There was no such thing as a teenager and no cult of children who need to be spoiled and entertained. Girls were often married at 15 or 16 and, in the middle to lower classes, boys were expected to decide at about 10 what trade they wanted to go into, so they could be apprenticed.
There was no standard or
requirement for literacy; the boys in the upper classes were fluent in Latin, Greek, often French, with some Italian. They were heavily versed in the literary classics. Their less fortunate peers went to school when they could and often taught themselves after work.
Girls in the upper classes were literate and probably knowledgeable in light literature (poetry, novels, etc.) but were discouraged from learning anything more than "feminine accomplishments": playing the pianoforte, drawing, fine needlework.
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selymi|Points 7512|
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Asked 2/22/2012 7:41:56 AM
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