The Politics of Reproduction

In public and private life, women's fertility is the focus of strong passions. Why are some willing to undergo invasive medical treatment to become pregnant? Why are others willing to use backyard abortionists if clinics are unavailable? This text explores the social politics behind reproduction.

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In public and private life, women's fertility is the focus of strong passions. Why are some willing to undergo invasive medical treatment to become pregnant? Why are others willing to use backyard abortionists if clinics are unavailable? The author looks beyond the slogans that dominate the abortion debate to explore the contexts in which women make decisions about fertility and raising children. Drawing on the experiences of younger and older women, she looks at the changing ways women have negotiated fertility, contraception, adoption, abortion, assisted reproduction and motherhood. She analyzes the ways in which the media, the medical profession, public policy and the law constrain and shape women's experiences, and she examines the role of the women's movement, arguing that we need to look beyond commonsense understandings of motherhood, heterosexuality and family formation which shape policy debates.