Girlhood

“The page of girlhood had been turned, as by an unseen finger, and the page of womanhood was before her with all its charm and mystery, its pain and gladness.”—L.M. Montgomery

Sassy, thoughtful, refined, subdued, exuberant—these are some of the qualities and moods that the girls and young women in these paintings and prints display. The wide range of emotion reflects both the eras depicted but also changing notions about girlhood over time. The Puritans believed that children were inherently sinful and

that they needed strict discipline to overcome their base instincts. During the Enlightenment, English philosopher John Locke asserted that children were blank slates and that parents should mold them into moral creatures. In contrast, the French philosopher

Jean-Jacques Rousseau believed that children were born innocent souls whose natural goodness might be corrupted if not properly encouraged. In the eighteenth century, girls were almost always educated at home. They were instructed in skills and artistic pursuits, such as needlework, that would make them attractive wives and mothers. In America after about 1830, girls began to venture into public life more frequently, sometimes attending school. Girls in rural areas could enjoy social functions such as maple-sugaring parties, while sophisticated girls in cities might attend the theater or visit an art gallery. The twentieth century saw girls and young women ranging ever more freely through city streets and parks—but with this new freedom came greater danger. Together, these works of art document this period, both joyous and poignant, as girls put away childish things and became women.