Interrogating motherhood / Lynda R. Ross.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ross, Lynda R., author.

Series:

Open paths to enriched learning.

OPEL - Open Paths to Enriched Learning

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Motherhood--Social aspects.

Motherhood.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (174 pages).

Place of Publication:

Athabasca University Press 2016

Edmonton, [Alberta] : AU Press, 2016.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

It has been four decades since the publication of Adrienne Rich’s <em>Of Woman Born</em> but her analysis of maternity and the archetypal Mother remains a powerful critique, as relevant today as it was at the time of writing. It was Rich who first defined the term “motherhood” as referent to a patriarchal institution that was male-defined, male controlled, and oppressive to women. To empower women, Rich proposed the use of the word “mothering”: a word intended to be female-defined. It is between these two ideas—that of a patriarchal history and a feminist future—that the introductory text, <em>Interrogating Motherhood</em>, begins. Ross explores the topic of mothering from the perspective of Western society and encourages students and readers to identify and critique the historical, social, and political contexts in which mothers are understood. By examining popular culture, employment, public policy, poverty, “other” mothers, and mental health, Interrogating Motherhood describes the fluid and shifting nature of the practice of mothering and the complex realities that definecontemporary women’s lives.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgements

1 The Study of Motherhood

2 Reflections on Motherhood: Theory and Popular Culture

3 Paid Employment and the Practice of Motherhood

4 Enabling Policies: In Theory and in Practice

5 Mothering and Poverty

6 Mothers, Mothering, and Mental Health

7 “Other” Mothers, “Other” Mothering

8 The Future of Motherhood

References

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (ebrary, viewed February 10, 2017).

ISBN:

9781771991445

1771991445

9781771991452

1771991453

OCLC:

962129439