Een Rattenvanger in Amsterdam: Feit of Fabel?

by Reyna Veldhuis

The public space of the street used to be a child space, but has been transformed into an adult space. Conversely, private home space – traditionally the domain of adults – has become a child space. Over time, children’s geographies have become more diverse. In addition to the traditional childhood of outdoor children, we distinguish indoor children and children of the backseat generation. These two new types are characterized by a decrease in playing outdoors and an increase in adult supervision. Although this may be regarded as a loss, new children’s activities have emerged, outdoors as well as indoors. Contemporary cities can be exciting places for children, but it is clear that inequality by class has become more manifest. Both new geographical childhoods have resulted in a decrease in children’s agency, which may have a negative impact on segregation patterns.

Studies which were based on oral histories, statistical and archive research, and observations in Amsterdam, compared children’s use of space during the 1950s and early 1960s with that of today.

The documentary Een rattenvanger in Amsterdam: Feit of fabel? illustrates a small part of Children’s studies, one of the fastest growing fields in the social sciences.