The Role Of Cruel Children In The 16th Century

Thieves, prostitutes, slaves, and bastards, these all connect in a common social status. In the 16th century, when a man and woman had a child out of wedlock, the descendent was deemed illegitimate; meaning that by law they had no right to their parent’s inheritance. The law of primogeniture, proved to greatly impact not only the social life inside and outside of the family, but the life of the bastard child. 16th century society regarded the bonding of a man and woman in marriage with the upmost importance. Those who diverged from these accepted standards faced ridicule and disapproval by their family and community. Whether set in the frame of monarchy or not, a bastard child experienced tremendous amounts of rejection and disapproval. In 16th century society, illegitimate children were viewed with condemnation and seen as disreputable, furthermore, they suffered both psychological and physical abuse due to their illegitimacy.

Society showed strong condemnation and discrimination toward illegitimate children, and even saw them

Exclusion creates a strong desire and need for a person to belong. “…these children are left to feel like an outsider, especially in the earlier decades where children were often shunned by their families and their community as it was considered socially and religiously immoral to be an illegitimate child.” Another effect of disaffection on the child’s psyche is the destruction of their view of self-worth. When people constantly propel the idea of someone encompassing the epitome of immorality, insufficiency, and worthlessness, that person starts to form a distorted view of themselves. Disfigured self-image directly correlates to hopelessness, depression, and suicidal tendencies. The damage that a society can do to a child cannot go unnoticed. The destruction detestable people cause in the mind of an illegitimate child shows