Lower people get ‘a good dressing down’ from aristocrats and they like it. The people want delinquents to be punished by a cruel aristocracy. But the overall requirement is for the nanny to be trusted by the base who respect her.

The dynamics of the nanny role includes her control over her people who are immature. She is expected to set the rules, acting with firmness and fairness. Foucault proposed that laws sanctioned by the aristocracy are wanted by the people to preserve the social order and prevent mayhem.

People want the nanny to be fair but that is difficult because people are not equal.

In constitutions like England’s, the nanny has two parts… first, actions which excite and preserve the reverence of the population and touch other nations—the dignified parts…and next, the efficient parts—those by which it, in fact, works and rules.

Walter Bagehot 1826–77

An over-reaching nanny state, that interferes with individuals, could be judged to compare unfavourably with the imposition of protection.

‘Many of the laws have been implemented in the expectation that they will reduce violence or improve health and safety. The excessive laws were accused of restricting freedom, ruining livelihoods and small businesses, turning the nation into a nanny state,’

Google

A nanny is expected to nurture her charges and the state can implement free public education, free opera, ballet, museums and theatre.

A nanny is like a monarch who has to be preoccupied with fair treatment of the concerns of all her subjects. Each person wants, at some time, personal acknowledgement. Their trust expects to benefit materially. Their trust expects appropriate favour. Unless their individual needs are addressed by the nanny, there will be nothing holding them to her and the nanny state will fail. Her dignity will dissipate and a realm that had once worked efficiently will stall.

When nanny control ceases, those who had criticised the overreach could be gratified. A nanny’s pampering can have a bad effect. From Derrida’s post modern view, provision of welfare benefits can make the recipient dependent, or even addicted. To avoid creating dependency, the nanny should consider doing nothing at all. Others could find the new freedom and opportunities daunting, daring, dangerous and even more profitable. By comparison, a nanny state is more comfortable.

I have written about Nanny state issues in my novel Turkeys Not Bees available on Amazon https://tinyurl.com/hwn74md2  

My other writing is on my blog martinknox.com