Urban Poverty

In this research project there will be a great deal of changes from then and now because of time era and also the change in influence. This research project is about how life was like for a boy living in the 1880 to 1900 era compared to the present day. I will discus their home life, family life, and personal life, morals, & responsibilities. The first paragraph within each title will be "then", and the second paragraph within the title will be the "present day". This will cover all of the information that I have found on the selected subject. This information will be presented in my report in many paragraphs. Each of the paragraphs will be labeled separately

for a better understanding. Responsibilities Then The childhood of a boy living in the 1880 to 1900 era was very different from how life is today. Such as there responsibilities were to assume the behavior of adults as soon as possible, but this all changed after The American Revolution. The American Revolution had such an effect on the political and social behavior; some of this was that it encouraged families to become more egalitarian. Magazine articles advised that the parents should be a less authoritarian institution. The children had needs of there own, they were individuals, and not simply the property of there parents. Which meant that they didn’t need to dress exactly like them and take up their habits and responsibilities. They did not have that many activities for work had filled most of their time. Urban and middle class families did have to send there child to work but can mostly prosper by not having to send their children to work. But still the child was a necessary and valuable economic asset for most families. This was do to the fact that still a vast majority of American families lived on farms and they must depend on the work of all family members. By the age of six or seven these farm children had specific responsibilities to help on the farm. The boys by the age of ten or twelve would have to take on men’s tasks. The responsibilities of slave children were like the responsibilities of white children that lived on the farm. Except by the age of ten or twelve the slave children both boys and girls were sent to work in the field from sunup to sundown. Now The responsibilities now are different from back then in the 1880's to the 1900 time period. This is portionaly because in 1880 to 1900 we did not have the luxury we have now because of lack of technology or lack of money/funding for there inventions. So then they needed all the help they could get around the farm this included all the family members. All members of the families had their special responsibilities such as carrying for the animals, crop tending, or helping around the house. Most boys now have the same chores except that the technology has made it so we don’t have to work from sunup to sundown what they got done in that time we can get done in a few hours. So basically technology has made a deep impact on the boys life then to the their life now. Also there are not as many families living on farms as there were in 1880 to 1900 there are more families living in cities than farms. Home life Then Our home life now was better than back then because back then there was more physical labor that was required. Punishments were on the harsh side with beatings and verbal abuse that were tough to take, rather than the reasoning and caring loving home we have now. Back then there was a less loving home and more of an attitude from parents that thought that children were there to take over there duties as soon as possible rather than be there for a kind loving hand. Boys now do not have to do the exact chores that there fathers do the mostly take on chores that they are more capable of completing rather than ones that would hurt them in the long run. Now The children of the poor would often not attend school regularly or dropped out at an early age. “The family life of a young child that had a father that could not provide for the family or was absent had to run errands, scavenge for coal, and help the mother, who took laundry, cared for boarders, or did sewing or piecework in there home. Young boys would sell newspapers or often become street peddlers”. Personal life Then Personal life now for a 15-year-old has freedoms rather than back then they had boundaries. They were forbidden from doing such things now we are given permission by asking the head parent of our household. There are responsibilities that take up personal life but not as much as would take up a 15-year-old boy living in 18880 to 1900 eras. Our personal life is now dependent

on the time we have and give our selves back then that pretty much had no personal life because work was there personal life. Now Most of a child’s life was consumed by work little time for personal opportunity to express them selves and for reflection. Children were among America’s