The Enlightenment : .
The Value of Children .
The social consciousness of any particular era will always express itself through the mass majority and their actions. If the governing body is wise they will allow it's legislative and judicial system of government to express the social thought of the day to a certain extent. This can usually be seen in a trickle down effect. Major to minor express more of the modern thought of the day. As we examine the court cases of Marie-Jeanne Bartonne and the Saddler Committee and the value placed on children we will see the overwhelming influence of popular thought in the verdict and decision handed down.
To understand the outcomes of both of these cases you must understand the major philosophy of the day in which the trail and committee hearing took place. I will start with Marie-Jeanne Bartonne and the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment, which was the offspring of the Scientific Revolution(SR), took intellectual thought from theologically based beliefs of how the world functioned to empirical research(which was a process developed during the SR) and the development of Natural Laws that explained logically how the world, man and Society functioned. During the SR theology began to take a back seat to empirical reaseach and Natural Law but by the time of the Enlightenment the attitude toward God, theology, and the Church was that of detestable and totally illogically irrelevant. Subsequently the moral standards of the day changed. A life style of promiscuity was not frowned upon as harshly because Natural law and the pursuit of happiness often justified this immoral behavior. There was still the cut and dry truth but the attitude toward punishment had shifted from and eye for and eye or being locked away and forgotten to reform. Capitol punishment was frowned upon. The people of the Enlightenment truly believed that there was nothing man could not do or accomplish through human reason and the application of Natural Law.