What was the attitude towards family in Shakespeare's time?

Just as in our own time, the family was one of the basic social and economic units of Tudor life. That being said, we might be surprised if we were to hear someone today express the sort of attitudes that governed Tudor family life. For example, married couples tried to have many children, just in case some of them died. This would be shocking to hear someone say today, but a harsh reality of Shakespeare's time was that many people, including children, were lost to illnesses that we can now prevent and treat. Something as slight as a flu might rob a family of several children, so it was lucky if parents had others who survived.

The founding of a family was quite different from our methods today. Wealthy families would arrange marriages for their children to maintain their wealth and status. The poor might also intervene in their child's decision to marry, and most people of all classes entered into somewhat loveless marriages. The popular belief was that marriage was more of an economic partnership than a romantic one, and you could learn to love each other in time. Of course, you had better not get too attached to your new spouse, because one of you might catch the flu or die in childbirth.

Most Tudor women were always in some state of childbearing. Women might marry as young as fourteen or sixteen and would become pregnant quickly. As soon as they were done breastfeeding- if this was done at all- they would quickly become pregnant again. As I mentioned before, having lots of children increased the chances that some would survive to inherit the family name and business, but it was very tough on mothers. Often, the elder sisters of a family would help to care for their younger siblings. This helped to ease a mother's workload and prepare the young lady for when she had her own children.

The understanding of child development was very different from our modern perspective, and children were often beaten for not acting "up to standards." Children were believed to have a natural sinfulness about them which manifested in crying, tantrums, and breaking rules, and which was easily remedied with a sound beating. This was not at all unusual in Tudor society and physical violence was one of the accepted means of establishing and reinforcing social dominance. Husbands often beat their wives, masters would beat apprentices, and elder children would beat their younger siblings.

Though Tudor families were shaped by the harsh realities of death and illness, they enjoyed many of the same pleasures we have today. Families ate meals together, attended church together, and might even share in leisure activities like singing or games. It is fair to say that their attitude towards the family was far more practical and detached than our modern perspective.