Gender and Family - The family

7 important questions on Gender and Family - The family

What was the norm in early modern Europe family life?

  • In most of Northern Europe the nuclear family was the norm, as today, generally comprising a married couple and their children, with an average family size of four to six.
  • Adults often played an important role in the lives of their siblings, offering both financial and emotional support.
  • The eldest brother was considered to have a moral obligation to assist his sisters and younger brothers, who in turn were expected to show respect and gratitude.
  • Sisters often provided practical support and comfort to one another in contexts such as childcare, family illness or death, or an unhappy marriage.

What is the most striking difference between the modern and early modern household?

  • Perhaps the most striking difference between the modern and early modern household is the presence of people not biologically related to the householders.
  • Farmers might have live-in farm servants, while many modest urban households contained at least one maidservant, often one or two apprentices and perhaps an older journeyman.

What factors lay behind live-ins?

Two factors lie behind this.
  • First, the home was frequently also the workplace, with the household containing employees as well as parents and children.
  • Second, domestic chores such as washing and cleaning were arduous and time-consuming, making help essential, especially if the wife had children to care for and was helping with her husband's farm or trade. 
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What sometimes happened to poor children?

By their early teens poor children might be sent out as live-in servants, which guaranteed them food and shelter and created space in a cramped cottage for the younger siblings.

What roles did husband and wife play in a marriage?

  • It was generally accepted that husband and wife should play different but complementary roles within the marriage.
  • The husband's role was to provide for and govern the household, while his wife managed the home and took primary charge of young children.

How does a merchant go about choosing a family?

  • Moving down the social ladder, a merchant would often wait years until his business was securely established and then choose a much younger bride, who would be guided by her parents.
  • There was far greater freedom of choice in the lower levels of society, where there was little property at stake.

How did poor people go about buying a house?

Even the poor usually looked for parental approval and support. It took years for young folk on low wages to accumulate the modest savings needed to set up home, and material help from parents or employers was often essential to give their marriage a secure foundation.

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