Changes in Male/Female Relations in England

In terms of accuracy, Stone's thesis is more convincing than Engels', for the wide variety and dramatic nature of the changes in the family and marriage in the three centuries simply cannot be attributed to one cause, no matter how powerful that cause. Engels simply has adopted, for ideological purposes, far too narrow a perspective to explain these radical social transformations.

On the other hand, Engels shows a humane concern for the lower classes, the workers and the women who even Stone would allow were those least likely to benefit from the liberalization of social standards.

Stone compares his effort to those of Max Weber and Jacob Burckhardt, who he says, like himself, "were obsessed with the complex interrelationships thanks to which changes in culture emerged from ch

. . .
ualism as a healthy sign for society because the capitalist believes that individualism leads to inventiveness, initiative, the self-interest that sparks industry and production. Engels, on the other hand, argues that the development of capital creates a society of selfish and competitive beings living lives virtually at war with one another, ultimately benefitting neither home, family, individual or society overall: No one even thinks of sparing a glance for his neighbors in the streets. The more that Londoners are packed into a tiny space, the more repulsive and disgraceful becomes the brutal indifference with which they ignore their neighbors and selfishly concentrate upon their private affairs. We know well enough that the isolation of the individual---the narrow-minded egotism---is everywhere the fundamental principle of modern society. . . . The disintegration of society into individuals, each guided by his private principles and each pursuing his own aims . . . has split [society] into its component atoms (Engels, 1968, p. 31). To Engels, this pursuit of individual goals is a sign of the shattering of every social group, down to the smallest unit of the family. To Stone, it means the advance of every aspect of society. En
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Approximate Word count = 1541
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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