Family life in the eighteenth century

Marriage, children, economic circumstances, and social status were closely linked during the eighteenth century. Most families were what the famous English author Daniel Defoe called “the middle class” or the middle class, a family status that did not exist before the 18th century. During the 1600s, people were either rich and privileged or absolutely poor and there was no middle ground at all. The rise of the middle class began during the 18th century, and its impact on the family was enormous.

Women and men from the upper classes did not marry for love. Instead, they married strictly for financial and social reasons. Women who wanted to continue living in a wealthy household simply did not marry a lower- or middle-class man. A self-respecting gentleman did not even consider marrying a woman from a poor family. It was unlikely that she possessed the necessary social graces and dowry to marry in such a society. Also, rumors would abound as to why a rich young man would marry such a poor girl. Perhaps he had gotten her “her family way” and was inclined to do right by her? Such humiliation could never be visited upon his family.

The middle class, on the other hand, could marry whoever they wanted. It wasn’t wise for a middle-class woman to marry a poor man since her children would grow up in poverty, but if her happiness depended on it, her family was unlikely to intervene. There was no need to marry for social status or wealth as the middle class had neither.

However, the concept of the middle class was still one of privilege. Until the eighteenth century, childhood, like the middle class, did not exist. The lower class worked hard for a living and their children were expected to work alongside them. School was a privilege that only the upper class could afford. And well into the eighteenth century, childhood did not yet exist for the lower class.

The Industrial Revolution set in motion incredible changes in the society of the 1700s. The vast majority of the people who worked inside the new factories that produced items like farm equipment, clothing, and toys were lower class. Not surprisingly, lower-class children also worked within these factories, earning far less than their parents’ meager wages. The children worked just as hard as their parents, often carrying heavy loads of materials or sitting on industrial machines for countless hours in deplorable factory conditions. If the term “sweatshop” had been coined at the time, then it would indeed have described the factories where these lower-class families worked.

The middle and upper classes, however, did not set foot inside a factory. Children from the middle class began to attend school for the first time in history. Only the children of farmers were absent from school for significant periods to help with the planting and harvesting of crops during the summer and fall months.

The dominant figure in the home was the father. It was he who determined whether or not his wife could work outside the home or whether or not her children went to school. He owned all the family property and money. Divorce was extremely rare as women who left their husbands had no viable means of survival. Mothers generally stayed at home, guarding one heart and fathering several children. His job was not easy. The mothers cleaned the house, hand-made clothes for their families, cooked, cared for the children, tended the garden, and generally tried to please their husbands. Women’s social status was far below that of men and they rarely questioned their husbands’ decisions.

However, many upper and middle class families were quite content during the 18th century. The Industrial Revolution generated enthusiasm for new technologies aimed at making life easier. Marriages were usually harmonious, children were treated kindly, and belief in God was extremely important. The inherent goodness in people provided a strong backbone for families and produced a law-abiding, civilized society in which families flourished.