tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post7585934948351632138..comments2023-12-23T04:56:29.702-05:00Comments on Ferule & Fescue: Another countryFlaviahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17832765671541392835noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-4221934927720966932016-05-06T09:21:16.914-04:002016-05-06T09:21:16.914-04:00Kate:
Ah, I can't believe I didn't reply ...Kate:<br /><br />Ah, I can't believe I didn't reply to this sooner--but love the info (really? Seven??) and the comparison both: stranger danger!Flaviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17832765671541392835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-51451705969174998442016-04-20T03:55:32.626-04:002016-04-20T03:55:32.626-04:00I see something similar in French stuff because by...I see something similar in French stuff because by the late 17thc the age at which children can legally be said to convert is plummeting (from 14 to 7 if I remember right) - Protestant families are very worried that the Catholic majority lure their kiddies over with shiny toys (since that's what Catholicism is all about, right) and apples (sound familiar?). But it's not about going abroad, it's about being seduced right at home: the rhetoric about it is very much like our fear of the creepy neighbor. <br /> Katenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-76236338109031513292016-04-20T00:11:31.115-04:002016-04-20T00:11:31.115-04:00Historiann, Susan:
Yes, I think I'm more attu...Historiann, Susan:<br /><br />Yes, I think I'm more attuned to the parent-child relationship and the ways it shows up in both literary and non-literary texts thanks to this seminar--one of whose concerns is the inter-generational dynamic. <br /><br />Nicholls's opening scenario instantly reminded me of Thomas Browne's letters to his sons when they first went abroad, and how anxious he is about how they'll persevere in their faith in Catholic countries. I used to see this as, if not idiosyncratic, then as a sign of how we change as we age (Browne famously declared <i>himself</i> able to wander into a Catholic church when there wasn't a Protestant one around, and still worship God aright--and now he's urging his son to make sure he has a Protestant companion, and not to fear asking around for a Protestant church??). But I really hadn't thought about the specifics of the parent-child dynamic, or about the larger cultural fears about the impressionability of youth, or rumors of kids being seduced into seminaries and convents abroad, or the rest. <br /><br />Granted, Browne is writing at a very different political and religious moment than Nicholls. But one instance might be idiosyncratic. Multiples start to suggest something larger.Flaviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17832765671541392835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-34161967002838773472016-04-19T15:18:13.787-04:002016-04-19T15:18:13.787-04:00What a great story. And yes, knowing that in all...What a great story. And yes, knowing that in all the religious turmoil, maybe some parents did worry about the choices their children were making is interesting. It's one of the ways we can find ourselves closer to the early modern.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09716705206734059708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-12605295319625023502016-04-19T11:03:34.484-04:002016-04-19T11:03:34.484-04:00It's not paranoia if the Inquisition is out to...It's not paranoia if the Inquisition is out to get you, man! Never underestimate the intriguing genius of the Jesuits, or the reach and grasp of the Scarlet Whore of Babylon! <br /><br />(JK. I'm now a Catholic historian, as you know.)<br /><br />I completely sympathize with the parent's anxieties now. He wants his child to ask difficult questions about the world as it is, but not to question his father's path. I haz feels about this.Historiannhttp://historiann.comnoreply@blogger.com