Caregiver, Health-seeker, Nurse : Caring Fathers and Masculinity in 17th and 18th Century Europe

Sammanfattning

Stay-at-home dads, paternity leave, caring masculinity – discussions around fatherhood today are contextualized through popular historical understanding of “traditional” family roles, leading to the conclusion that caring and engaged modern fathers are an unprecedented phenomenon. This thesis argues that an important piece to the historical narrative is missing, and that modern dads resemble pre-modern fathers in the ways they care. Early modern fathers represented male authority within his household, an expression of hegemonic masculinity which was used as a metaphorical tool to legitimize a king’s right to rule. But with power comes great responsibility, and care was fundamental to the fatherly ideal. Through the analysis of medical and advice manuals printed primarily in 18th century France, this thesis examines the myriad ways fathers showed care for their children. Care is treated as a habitus of mind; a daily practice grounded in love and concern for one’s child. Parenting advice presented the socially expected behaviors of an ideal father, while medical texts included clinical observations of fathers caring for sick children. Together, a more holistic picture begins to form of the expectations and realities facing early modern fathers. These sources provide us with examples of men performing masculinity and confirming their manhood through the caring acts of fathering.