In 1960, the historian Philippe Ariès published a book called Centuries of Childhood that was as controversial as it was celebrated. The book could very well have been titled Centuries without Childhood, for its premise is that childhood is a recent invention that did not exist until modern times. In earlier periods, children were seen—when they were noticed at all—as “miniature adults.” This of course sounds rather strange.
I especially like this week's poet, Michael. I agree with you that the pre-Romantic period of the late-eighteenth century saw the discovery of children as we known them today, though writers today seem increasingly fearful about childhood anxiety. ¶ My undergraduate teacher Judith Plotz made me see the differences of children in paintings and poetry, and she has since then published "Childhood and the Vocation of Poetry" (Palgarve-McMilllan, 2001). Granted, Wordsworth drew on earlier poetry like Henry Vaughan's "The Retreat" in his "Intimations of Immortality," but the children of so much earlier art and literature are mere reflections on their parents.
I am now rereading "The Children's Hour" (Vintage, 2009) by the late A.S. Byatt, set during the turn of the last century, in the time of William Morris and his successors. I like her depictions of children and their elders.
I especially like this week's poet, Michael. I agree with you that the pre-Romantic period of the late-eighteenth century saw the discovery of children as we known them today, though writers today seem increasingly fearful about childhood anxiety. ¶ My undergraduate teacher Judith Plotz made me see the differences of children in paintings and poetry, and she has since then published "Childhood and the Vocation of Poetry" (Palgarve-McMilllan, 2001). Granted, Wordsworth drew on earlier poetry like Henry Vaughan's "The Retreat" in his "Intimations of Immortality," but the children of so much earlier art and literature are mere reflections on their parents.
I am now rereading "The Children's Hour" (Vintage, 2009) by the late A.S. Byatt, set during the turn of the last century, in the time of William Morris and his successors. I like her depictions of children and their elders.