What have I done?' : an exploration of the ambivalent, unimaginable emotions of new motherhood

Research output: Chapter in Book / Conference PaperChapter

8 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Women are presented with all manner of information about what motherhood is like and how it should be done. These sometimes dialogic, sometimes competing scripts shape expectations, but often fail to prepare parents-to-be for what is to come. Making use of two diverse case study interviews with Australian mothers, this chapter explores the disunity between pre-birth expectations and the lived bodily experience of new motherhood. These disconnections occur around appearance, birth, relationships, self-concept, and career, and point to the ideological nature of much parenting discourse. Mothers report a range of emotional responses to new parenthood that often do not fit with the dominant romantic narratives that are constructed around baby making including anxiety, anger, guilt, and grief. While this disconnect sometimes encourages women to resist dominant ideology, they also demonstrate commitment to gender norms and a complicated relationship with good mothering discourse.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationPaths to Parenthood: Emotions on the Journey Through Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Early Parenting
EditorsRenata Kokanovic, Paula A. Michaels, Kate Johnston-Ataata
Place of PublicationU.S.
PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
Pages145-164
Number of pages20
ISBN (Electronic)9789811301438
ISBN (Print)9789811301421
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • emotions
  • motherhood
  • social aspects

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