1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910483909703321

Autore

Curry Lynne

Titolo

Religion, Law, and the Medical Neglect of Children in the United States, 1870-2000 : 'The Science of the Age' / / by Lynne Curry

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cham : , : Springer International Publishing : , : Imprint : Palgrave Macmillan, , 2019

ISBN

9783030246891

3030246892

Edizione

[1st ed. 2019.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (ix, 197 pages) : illustrations

Collana

Palgrave Studies in the History of Childhood, , 2634-6540

Disciplina

362.7094109034

362.19892000973

Soggetti

United States - History

Civilization - History

Social history

Medicine - History

Sociology

Social groups

US History

Cultural History

Social History

History of Medicine

Sociology of Family, Youth and Aging

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Introduction -- The Physical Child -- The Public Child -- The Metaphysical Child -- The Infected Child -- Children on the Battle Line Between Religion and Medicine -- Children's Medical Care in the Courts -- The Science of the Age.

Sommario/riassunto

Drawing upon a diverse range of archival evidence, medical treatises, religious texts, public discourses, and legal documents, this book examines the rich historical context in which controversies surrounding the medical neglect of children erupted onto the American scene. It argues that several nineteenth-century developments collided to



produce the first criminal prosecutions of parents who rejected medical attendance as a tenet of their religious faith. A view of children as distinct biological beings with particularized needs for physical care had engendered both the new medical practice field of pediatrics and a vigorous child welfare movement that forced legislatures and courts to reconsider public and private responsibility for ensuring children's physical well-being. At the same time, a number of healing religions had emerged to challenge the growing authority of medical doctors and the appropriate role of the state in the realm of child welfare. The rapid proliferation of the new healing churches, and the mixed outcomes of parents' criminal trials, reflected ongoing uneasiness about the increasing presence of science in American life.