Description
‘A childless woman is not a woman’, the Swedish novelist August Strindberg wrote in 1884. In his work, he reflected on the ideal of motherhood that came into existence in the 19th century, including family values in which childless couples were considered less complete. The meanings of motherhood and fatherhood are always contested and changing. Historian John Gillis has argued that before 1800 maternity was separable from motherhood and it was possible to imagine motherless families and familyless mothers. This changed in the 19th century with the ‘invention of motherhood’ (Ann Dally). Although the ideal of motherhood has been widely researched, the opposite has not. We know very little about people without children in this period. In her presentation, Leonieke Vermeer will focus on the insights that ego-documents (mainly diaries) can provide onto the experiences of childless couples in the long 19th century (1780-1940) marked by the family and motherhood ideal. She will also explore how ego-documents incorporate changes in this ideal under influence of modern discourses on female emancipation and a modern lifestyle. Ego-documents contain many silences, self-censorship and euphemisms, related to sexuality. However, these silences in themselves – including little symbols in the margins of diaries – tell important stories on this topic. These historical sources can enhance our understanding of societal discourses and gendered norms regarding motherhood and fatherhood; notions that are still powerful until the present day.| Periode | 31-okt.-2022 |
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| Evenementstitel | History of Medicine and Health Seminar: organized under the auspices of the Groningen Centre for Health and Humanities and the Centre for Historical Studies. |
| Evenementstype | Seminar |
| Locatie | Groningen, NetherlandsToon op kaart |