ABSTRACT
Itisstillpopularlysupposedthatearlymodernparentsadoptedaformalattitude towardstheirchildren,regardedtheminacoolanddistantmanner,and,notuncommonly,werenegligentandcruel.Historiansofthefamilyclaimedasmuchinthe 1960sand1970s,but,asPollock(1983)demonstratedatlength,theirviewwas largelyuntenable.'Itdistortedtheevidencebyignoringpersonalwritings,focusing onconductbooksandsermons,andoverlookingwhatthemoralistsandpreachers saidaboutloveandcare.Alongsideandsupportingsuchmisrepresentationwasthe dubiousassumptionthat,becauseofhighratesofinfantandchildmortality,mothersandfatherswerereluctanttogettooemotionallyinvolvedwithoffspringthey werequitelikelytolose.2
