Author: Laura Gilliam<br />File Type: pdf<br />Children of the Welfare State uses the case of Denmarkemployed as emblematic of the European stateto consider the ways in which children are civilized within child-focused institutions, such as schools, daycare, and the family unit, under the auspices of the welfare state. Through deep ethnographic studies, the authors build a clear account of childrens experiences at a variety of ages, different genders, and from differing ethnic and social backgrounds. Ultimately they show that even though Danish welfare institutions are marked by a strong egalitarian ideal, they nonetheless tend to reproduce dominant norms of social class and distinctions of ethnicity and religion. **