Christiane Richard-ElsnerKind und Kindheit in der Stadt in didaktischen Quellen um 1300 und um 1500

About this book deutschenglish

In the Middle Ages, children were probably far more visible in everyday life than they are today. However, children hardly ever appear in medieval sources. Thus, this thesis investigated the view on children and childhood in sources that served to instruct urban residents below the elites. In order to analyse cultural changes over time, sources written around 1300 and 1500 were selected and analysed: sermons close to everyday life by Berthold von Regensburg and Johannes Geiler von Kaysersberg, popular poems such as the "Renner" by the schoolmaster Hugo von Trimberg and the "Narrenschiff" by the publicist Sebastian Brant, as well as normative texts on schoollife by an anonymous author and Paulus Niavis.

How are children shown in the sources? Are there specific group designations, for example for children and adolescents or for boys and girls? It becomes apparent that love and care for children legitimise the worldly way of life. What roles are assigned to parents? How are children socialised into their environment? Where and how should the typical children's play take place? How are children involved in domestic work? What do the sources tell us about the social environment of the Latin school? Similar to the 21st century, the authors in the Middle Ages are primarily concerned with the question of the appropriate socialization of children. It becomes clear that although both the role model effect of elders and direct instructions play a role, they are differently emphasised by the authors and in the periods studied. Likewise, the focus on corporal punishment differs.