By Birth or Consent: Children, Law, and the Anglo-American Revolution in Authority

by Holly Brewer

Book Overview

In mid-sixteenth-century England, people were born into authority and responsibility based on their social status. Thus elite children could designate property or serve in Parliament, while children of the poorer sort might be forced to sign labor contracts or be hanged for arson or picking pockets. By the late eighteenth century, however, English and American law began to emphasize contractual relations based on informed consent rather than on birth...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0807858323
• ISBN13: 9780807858325
• Release Date: February 2007
• Publisher: Omohundro Institute and Unc Press
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.9" x 9.2"