Childhood in "Girl with a Pearl Earring".

Paper Summary:

This paper provides an account of the book "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by Tracy Chevalier, describing some of the experiences of children in this novel and explaining the factors that influenced their treatment. The author then continues to compare the experiences of these children to today's childhood. In addition, based on the evidence, she draws a conclusion about the value of studying the past and comparing it to the present.

From the Paper:

"This novel presents an interesting comparison between the lives of children in wealthy homes and in poor homes in seventeenth century Delft. Griet at 16 is young enough to remember her happier childhood with her brother and her sister. However, Griet is also old enough when her father loses his eyes to a kiln accident to realize that her chance for a better future rests on her making a good marriage. Those chances are seriously reduced when she has to go clean house to help help her family. Griet living elsewhere will reduce the reduce the strain on her family's ability to support itself, but the eight stuivers that she makes each day will also provide financial assistance (Chevalier 6-8). Griet is not the only child who is working in the family, however. Her brother, Frans, is also employed as an apprentice at the age of thirteen. Clearly the apprenticeship was not a result of the accident, given that their father had "saved hard to pay the apprentice fee" and had planned to set up a tile factory with his son (Chevalier 10)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Chevalier, Tracy. Girl with a Pearl Earring. New York: Penguin-Plume, 2001.

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