Wet-nurses frequently were used, even by Puritans. There
were no baby bottles. Many babies died, causing their parents much
grief. About 1/4 of women's deaths occurred during childbirth. A
child was deemed to be the husband's if he was within the four
seas, i.e. not in foreign lands, for an agreed length of time.
Illegitimacy was infrequent, and punished by church-mandated
public penance by the mother and lesser penance and maintenance by
the father. Adultery was subject to church court sanctions as was
defamation for improper sexual conduct.
The established church still taught that the husband was to be the
authority in marriage and had the duty to provide for, protect,
and maintain his wife. Wives were to obey their husbands, but
could also admonish and advise their husbands without reproach. In
literature, women were portrayed as inferior to men intellectually
and morally as well as physically. In reality wives did not fit
the image of women portrayed by the church and literature.
Quarrels were not uncommon and were not stopped by a husband's
assertion of authority. Wives were very active in the harvesting
and did casual labor of washing, weeding, and stone-picking.
Farmers' and tradesmen's wives kept accounts, looked after the
garden, orchard, pigs, and poultry; brewed beer; spun wool and
flax; and acted as agents in business affairs. Wives of craftsmen
and tradesmen participated actively in their husbands' shops.
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