In The Family, Sex and Marriage: In England 1500-1800, Lawrence Stone explores the evolution of the social attitudes towards the institutions of family and marriage. Using a combination of personal accounts and public documents (Stone 24-25), Stone recreates successfully the world of the English society during this period. Through his detailed descriptions, he shows the reader the picture of filthy cities, epidemics and venereal diseases, the plight of the poor people, the rampant infanticide and abandonment of children, the early deaths of children adults, arranged marriages and infidelity.
According to Stone, before 1500, the parents and kin determined the choice of marriage partners. During this period, social and economic interests surpassed the individual wishes of the marriage partners. Especially for the rich, wealthy families used the institution of marriage to forge powerful connections with the aristocracy (Stone 88-89). However, with the increasing dominance of the State between 1500 and 1700, the influence of the kinship network began to decline (Stone 93). Consequently, a shift was made towards the nuclear family, thus giving the father the ultimate authority over his wife and children (Stone 100-101). Within this social transition, Stone also depicts the radical changes in the relationships between husband and wife, parent and children (145). During the Puritanical era, without support from the kinship groups against the authority of the husband, the wife lost her freedom and power against her husband (Stone 136-138). At the same time, children were physically abused in the homes and schools in order to break their will (Stone 115-121). However, from the late sixteenth century onwards, in an increasingly secularized society, there was a trend towards affective individualism. Once again, the family was transformed by the new social attitude. In this new family, formerly oppressive familial relationships became warm and...