Has the story of Aurore aided the cause of children who are mistreated?
There is no evidence that the media attention given to the story of Aurore nor the dramatisations that her life inspired have contributed to any significant reduction in the incidents of abuse or negligence towards children in Quebec. Possibly the excessive nature of the treatment by a wicked stepmother has overshadowed the reality of physical abuse endured by children at the hands of their biological parents. Increased awareness by Quebec society regarding the mistreatment of children possibly stems from a movement founded in the medical world of the United States halfway through the 20th century. An article shockingly entitled “The battered child syndrome”, published in an American medical journal in 1962, shook the whole of the Western world and resulted in laws meant to put a stop to these occurrences. A team of paediatricians and radiologists brought to light what had been a taboo subject for centuries, the high frequency of physical abuse endured by children within their family c
