Kinderdeugden 1844

This is a lithograph titled ‘Kinderdeugden’ or ‘Children’s Virtues’ by Jan Schuitemaker. The print is divided into four vignettes, each illustrating a moral lesson for young viewers. The tight compositions within each scene employ line and hatching to create depth and texture, drawing the eye to the figures and their interactions. Schuitemaker’s use of compartmentalization, each virtue framed separately, reflects a structural approach to moral education; virtues are presented as distinct, manageable categories. We see a semiotic encoding of social values, where generosity, diligence, and compassion are visually promoted through narrative scenes. This didactic approach, typical of 19th-century children’s literature, uses visual rhetoric to instill societal norms and expectations. The rigid grid layout reinforces the idea of order and control. The artist invites us to decode the signs and symbols within each frame, prompting reflection on the construction of virtue and its role in shaping young minds.