Motherhood and Choice ─ Uncommon Mothers, Childfree Women

As both the bedrock of human survival and an unchallenged norm of the “normal” female life, motherhood expects and even compels women to be mothers—both symbolic and corporeal. Motherhood—and non-motherhood—is not just physiological. As the pivot to a web of heteronormative institutions like marriage and family, motherhood bears an overwhelming and decisive influence on women’s lives. In the face of tradition and sociopolitical discourse and policies,Motherhood and Choice explores how women as embodiments of multiple identities can live stigma-free, authentic lives without having to abandon reproductive self-determination.
Amrita Nandy asks the difficult questions here: How can women live fully? If autonomy is a basic human right, why do many women have little or no choice when it comes to motherhood? Do women know they have a choice? Through remarkable research and searing analysis, Nandy brings an important addition to feminist debates on the conflation of woman and mother, political and personal.
 

Amrita Nandy is a research scholar and activist based in New Delhi.