Maternal Desire by Daphne de Marneffe

[newmainer]

Anyone read this yet? My husband's aunt just sent me an interview with her about the book. I guess its about being a stay at home mom and the advantages of making that difficult decision. I guess it is fairly controversial, which kind of surprised me. I feel pretty out of touch with what the mainstream media and whatnot thinks of sahm- is it negative? whats up with that? since when has the mainstream embraced feminism? anyway.. think i might try to get at the library.

[Magella]

I'm reading it now. It's not a sahm vs. wohm thing. It's all about how in the traditional arguments women's desire to be a mother, to care for her children, often gets ignored. About how many women actually want to care for their children, and do feel that they are finding fulfillment in the very act of caring for their children, whether they work outside the home or not. It's about how women find that fulfillment in the face of all the cultural messages, how those cultural messages can affect their ability to find that fulfillment and their self-perception/esteem. It acknowledges that the very act of caring for children can actually provide the same kind of fulfillment that a job can, and it acknowledges that different women need/want different amounts of time with their kids. It's very pro mothering-as-skilled-and-valued-profession. I'm not finished with it yet, but I'm finding it to be a fascinating read and it's one of the only books about motherhood that I've read that isn't about which kind of mom is better. So based on what I've read so far I'd recommend it.

[newmainer]

Thanks sledg- that sounds really good. I"ll check it out.