| Toys, Consumption, and Middle-Class Childhood in Imperial Germany, 1871-1918 Contributor(s): Hermand, Jost (Editor), Ganaway, Bryan (Author) |
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ISBN: 3039115480 ISBN-13: 9783039115488 Publisher: Peter Lang Ltd, International Academic Publis OUR PRICE: $90.01 Product Type: Paperback Published: April 2009 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Social Science | Children's Studies - Education - Social Science | Anthropology - Cultural & Social |
| Dewey: 305.230 |
| LCCN: 2009000743 |
| Series: German Life and Civilization |
| Physical Information: 294 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Germany - Sex & Gender - Feminine |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Drawing on a variety of techniques from history, anthropology and literary criticism the author argues toy consumption helped adults negotiate the transmission of middle-class values regarding modernity, technology, gender roles and nationalism to their children. Practices of consumption permitted self-fashioning from above and below; women used their control over childhood to insert themselves into political debates about the future shape of the nation at a time when they lacked the vote. Although the project to build a middle-class utopia via shopping never succeeded, millions of Germans happily bought toys at Christmas and birthdays showing their faith in the ability of modern society to make the world a better place. To understand why ordinary consumers made these choices, the book draws on a variety of sources including periodicals, trade journals, advertisements, pedagogical literature, memoirs, and toys. |