EN
The article discusses views on upbringing as a cultural phenomenon. It analyses two ideas characteristic of modern pedagogy: 1) the conviction that children should be helped in some way by means of education in order to make them better people, and 2) the complaint that school education is disconnected from everyday life. Both ideas are analysed in the context of the place they occupy in the functioning of contemporary societies. In conclusion I suggest that their role consists in reproducing – rather than changing – the modern society.