Asking who wants motherhood could be a little bit of a real understatement, in my opinion. Instead, we must always go deeper into it. What needs motherhood and why? Is it individuals, males, females, society or the world as a whole? Within the essay, ‘Motherhood: Who Desires It?’, written by Betty Rollin in 1970, I notice numerous unanswered questions and problems and my goal now's to seek out the answers to them. What's motherhood? Why precisely do, or don’t, we want the story? Ought to it even be thought-about a myth at all? However, will it have an effect on US in today’s society?
The ‘motherhood myth’ could be a little bizarre although I can see where she’s coming from. The myth, as Rollin states, is “the concept that having babies are some things that all traditional girls instinctively need and want and can relish doing” (286). It's true that the thought of family relationship is pushed on females from a really young age, after they are bought pets and baby dolls to require care of whereas the boys are bought video games and sports gear on holidays. It's embedded in our minds as females that caring for others a family are our job. However, not every woman within the world was raised up to believe that having a family and raising kids are a few things that they must want, need, or relish doing. Not everybody was raised the same and lots of guardians bring their daughters up to believe the exact opposite as so much as having children and starting a family goes, just so they won’t be curious or make mistakes soon in life because of being too eager to start a family. I am a part of that class, therefore, I couldn’t relate to the current article much. My mother never blew up the subject of bearing children or being around or taking care of them, although she continually did. Wherever is the reassurance, the parable and the argument for those like me, who weren’t accustomed to on the ‘myth’ that Rollin speaks of? I feel as if Rollin contradicts herself a little bit in her essay because in a sense you notice that she doesn’t wish all women to be placed during this bubble or conception of “having babies is what’s you’re supposed to do” or “all you’re sensible for”. However, she is placing all girls in a bubble of truly having faith this aforementioned narrative. Not solely will the myth change who it applies to on the premise of cultural values, however also by generation.
The motherhood story relates to completely different generations in several ways. For instance, it should have been relevant throughout the time this text was written, however in 2014 not as much. Considering my generation, and the way teenage pregnancy is something that's universally seen and universally accepted, I begin to think if the motherhood story had something to do with that. I think that the solution is no. To most teen girls, having babies isn’t one thing they assume they must do, or one thing that they're excited about or spend their time getting ready for; however, having sex is. Extremely rare may be a teen pregnancy planned and even once it's you’re still not totally ready. This might not solely be true of teenagers however also of girls of all ages, pregnancy isn't perpetually planned and simply because it's on a conflict doesn’t mean that it’s intentionally. Another factor to think about is that Rollin’s piece was written in 1970, which was most likely towards the end of the ‘baby boom’ that the U.S. had around that time. Therefore, perhaps then it had been a trend to have children, and perhaps then each lady was being raised to need to have children, to extend the population and things of that nature. In present time however, the population is already increasing enough, and plenty of cities and states have become overpopulated, therefore having kids isn’t a big issue or goal for several folks right away. So, the motherhood story might apply in some places to some women, however certainly not all especially within the U.S.
I feel as if Rollin may have developed her argument more relatable to those that don't seem to be directly affected by or exposed to the concept of the ‘myth’, and additionally perhaps go more into why the parable started, wherever it came from and if it had something to do with the events that were occurring at that point of time. When reading Rollins original essay, I can tell that she had coherent argument however I didn’t recognize exactly where she was coming from as way as information goes. She uses heaps of various evidence and while in some ways that it helps the article, in a lot of ways it doesn’t. for instance, she references a psychiatrist, however she additionally uses a great deal of anecdotal proof like when she uses quotes from the ladies (290). She did a great job supporting her argument with these evidences, however, she may have worded certain things differently or selected better transitioning technique that the reader won’t feel like she was just randomly bouncing around. She was referring to a very vital issue at the time and also one thing everybody can relate to in a technique or another, thus reliability is a crucial feature in her argument. She tries to seem trustworthy by not showing bias, etc. However, this is often a tough factor to try to when you are writing regarding or in favor of ladies and you may be a lady yourself. I think that she did the best job she could and whereas she may have done better, she additionally may have done worse, therefore I applaud her for putting in the effort. you'll be able to additionally tell that she is passionate about what she is talking about, perhaps she has been a victim of the ‘myth’ herself.
Overall, I enjoyed reading Rollins’ essay. It gave me one thing to consider at analysis, it got my brain going, and it allowed me to envision things from her point of stance. It opened my eyes as a result of I never even thought of kinship within the manner that she delineated it. Although I personally have not been directly exposed to or taught this same ‘myth’, it absolutely was still fascinating to examine. Anytime I browse this piece I come up with a brand-new question or plan, and that’s however it’s speculated to be once reading. What's motherhood, is it an idea? I don’t know; perhaps it’s all simply a story.