Change Of Children's Images In The Western Europe From The Late Middle Ages To The Early Modern

The invention of the concept of "child" was not caused by the development of biology,it is a social product,a large number of facts show that people found the "existence" of children only 500 years ago.The late middle ages in Western Europe,whether in painting,sculpture,or reading the text,are rarely able to see a real child,people often use "small adults" image to express them in the eyes of children,namely in the social culture of the time was not as opposed to a "adult" existing in the concept of "children","children" is a shapeless "adult".By the early modern times,the image of "little adults" was gradually replaced by the image of a clever and lively secular life of children.This change in image reflects the change in the way people look at children.This paper mainly introduces the images of children depicted in the adult world in the late middle ages and the children in the early modern paintings,sculptures and texts,as well as the reasons for the transformation of children's images.In late medieval Western Europe,the economy was backward,the food was insufficient,the church controlled people's thinking,infanticide was prevalent,and children were left alone.Children as a burden and burden,is a byproduct of adult,so in the late medieval paintings and sculptures often see is a smaller version of the adult image,and strict control in the church age,almost all of the works of art are for religious services,so religious portraits of children are young son with el nino,serious,inflexible grownup is concentrated expression of children's image during this period,and in the virgin and child image to show the mother love,is in inferior position.The children in the written expression are a kind of monster lacking rationality and enlightenment.By early modern times,this lack of images of children had changed.The holy son and the holy child in the religious portrait gradually became intelligent and full of human nature.During this period,the number of children in the secular portrait was also increasing,and there were even children's portraits specially depicting and recording children's lives,and the children in the sculpture were closer to the children in the secular life.In addition,there is a growing number of written descriptions of children,including religious texts and catechetical responses,fables and historical readings,manuals of conduct,troves of collected texts,puzzles,proverbs,songs,anecdotes and poems.Children are no longer attached to adults,but individuals with independent thoughts and needs.People begin to realize the differences of children,which can also be reflected in the early modern art works.There are many reasons for this change in children's image.First,due to the spread of Renaissance humanism,people began to realize the importance of individual independence and freedom and equality.Secondly,the economic transformation,the occurrence of the agricultural revolution,people have the financial resources and energy to pay attention to and care for fragile lives;With the invention of movable type,education became particularly important.There is also the improvement of health care,the increase of children's survival rate,and the value of children is gradually discovered as the time spent with their parents increases.Children are the "center" of modern society and family.People love and treat this kind of delicate life,but the description and record of the image of children began from the early modern times.Children gradually changed from rigid and serious little adults to lively and innocent little urchins.