Over the past two centuries, there has been a steady recession of the social role of fatherhood. Fathers have either gradually moved or been moved from the heart to the margins of family life.
Overall, the cultural story of fatherhood in the West has been essentially downhill since the Industrial Revolution of the late 18th and 19th centuries. But at the outset of the 18th century, fathers were regarded as primary and irreplaceable caregivers in the family.
Five aspects of 18-century father-hood
The central role that fathers played in the nurture and flourishing of their children can be seen in five distinct ways:
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