mckayunderstanding2e

Understanding Western Society
Printed Page 546

Introduction for Chapter 18

LIFE IN THE ERA OF EXPANSION

1650–1800

>How and why did daily life in Europe change in the eighteenth century? Chapter 18 examines everyday life in the era of expansion. The discussion of agriculture and industry in the last chapter showed the common people at work, straining to make ends meet within the larger context of population growth, gradual economic expansion, and ferocious political competition at home and overseas. This chapter shows us how that world of work was embedded in a rich complex of family organization, community practices, everyday experiences, and collective attitudes. As with the economy, traditional habits and practices of daily life changed considerably over the eighteenth century. Change was particularly dramatic in the growing cities of northwestern Europe, where traditional social controls were undermined by the anonymity and increased social interaction of the urban setting.

LearningCurve

After reading the chapter, use LearningCurve to retain what you’ve read.

Life in the Eighteenth Century. The huge fresh-food market known as Les Halles was the pulsing heart of eighteenth-century Paris. Here, peddlers offer food and drink to the men and women of the market. (akg-images)

>How did marriage and family life change in the eighteenth century?

>What was life like for children, and how did attitudes toward childhood evolve?

>How did increasing literacy and new patterns of consumption affect people’s lives?

>What role did religion play in eighteenth-century society?

>How did the practice of medicine evolve in the eighteenth century?

> CHAPTER CHRONOLOGY

1684	1762
– Jean-Baptiste de la Salle founds Brothers of the Christian Schools	– Jean-Jacques Rousseau advocates more attentive child care in Emile
1717	1763
– Elementary school attendance mandatory in Prussia	– Louis XV orders Jesuits out of France
1750–1790	1774
– John Wesley preaches revival in England	– Elementary school attendance mandatory in Austria
1750–1850	1776
– Illegitimacy explosion	– Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense
1757	1796
– Madame du Coudray publishes Manual on the Art of Childbirth	– Edward Jenner performs first smallpox vaccination