CHYS 1F90 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Tabula Rasa

• School: Brock University
• Department: Child and Youth Studies
• Course: CHYS 1F90
• Professor: Shauna Pomerantz

Document Summary

Lecture 2- historical and modern day conceptualizations of childhood. Are you a child: adulthood: mature, independent, responsible, capable, powerful. No place for childhood in the medieval world . The discovery" of childhood- ari s (1962): not separate stage from adulthood. Mini adults in art: childhood as tabula rasa- john locke (17th century) Child as emerging adult future focused: childhood as innocence- j. j. rousseau (18th century) Legacy: in need of protection: vulnerable, victimized, romanticized, easily corrupted, hurt. Worst mom in the world story: let her 9-year-old son ride the subway home alone in nyc, accused of child abuse. Restricted play today: structured, supervised, controlled, free play has disappeared. Media construct: child knows more than adults, offers real" wisdom and knowledge, makes adults look stupid. Also romanticized: children as unselfconscious, calm, cool, collected, too smart for their own good, reinstates panic over protecting innocence. These conceptualizations are based on western assumptions about ability, power, autonomy, and dependency .