The right to control one’s own body is a principle highly valued in the United States. When you walk down the street no one has the right to attack or harm you and that if they did, they would be prosecuted through the legal system. Susan Bordo talks about this concept of “bodily integrity” and the “right to one’s person” in her essay “Are Mother’s Persons?” Bordo asserts that pregnant woman lose the privileges that come with being awarded “body integrity” because women are stripped of any recognition as persons first and bodies second. Women are denied their personhood when not allowed to have abortions, access to birth control, or who are subjected to forced sterilization. Reproductive capabilities, which are so commonly tied to how we conceive of sex and gender in this culture, are continually manipulated by outside sources other than the actual woman.
But how does this happen? In the eyes of the medical and legal community, a pregnant body is one without “subjectivity,” that is, their inherent rights as human beings that must be respected. “…becoming for all medical and legal purposes…bodies stripped of their animating, dignifying, and humanizing “subject-ivity.” (73). Pregnant women are denied recognition as human beings. Their own personal opinions, belief systems, and wishes are denied them. Decisions are made for them by other people. Essentially, any control over what happens to ones own body is handed over to someone else.
But why does this happen? It is my belief that this comes from gender stereotypes and preference of males over females. Males are considered more intelligent and thought to have stronger and more capable bodies. Thus males have more to offer the world than the silly and weak bodied women folk. Historically, the rationality of females has been questioned and undermined. Men have been the rational ones, whereas women were emotional and too delicate for logical thought. Medical and legal professionals have a source of credibility and the public is more willing to except as truth what these types of professionals are dictating it the best thing to do than a lone woman.
The preconceived notion of what a mother is and should be wanting and thinking also allows for decisions about the mothers body to be swayed in a certain way. One a woman becomes pregnant their entire identity is thought to surround around their unborn child. Nothing else matters to these women except protecting their child. They are willing to risk even bodily harm to protect their offspring. While I can’t really speak to the truth of this since I do not have a child of my own, I can imagine that even with a deep feeling of love mothers have for their children it is wrong to essential pregnant females in such a way. Isn’t it also possible for women to have other passions in their lives? I’ve heard many people say that if mothers didn’t have to work they would much rather stay at home all day with their children. But this discounts the possibility of females having interests outside of the domestic sphere. It discounts any careers aspirations or passions they may have. It appears that once a woman gets pregnant or has birth, this is thought to be the most important event in her life and thus attracting all her focus. This seems to go back to the concept of biological determinism, in which women’s lives are thought to be determined by their reproductive activities.
Overall, there are many expectations for pregnant women. The main one is that females are willing to give up their individual identity and even their lives for the sake of their child. That for pregnant women, having control over their own bodies is no longer important to them. “the pregnant woman is supposed to efface her own subjectivity, if need be. When she refuses to do so, that subjectivity comes to be construted as excessive, wicked.” (79). Borodo says that this mindset comes from a long standing “cultural archetype of the cold, selfish mother…clearly lurks in the imaginations of many of the judges issuing court orders for obstetrical intervention.” (79). This means that once again, stereotypes of woman, as being selfish and evil doers, comes into play when legal decisions are made.
My claim would be that one reason pregnant women are being easily wiped of their personal autonomy and control is because they are women. Stereotypes of women as being incapable of making rational decisions, of not having anything to offer as citizens of the world, and as persons who make decisions only in their self-interest and at the expense of others, present an negative conception of a female individual; this presentation of women as individuals who may not be capable or deemed worthy by the judgment of the public of having the right to control their own bodies can sway the masses into believing that it is best to place bodily control into the hands of another. So I’ll end by asking the question: Would things be different if men could get pregnant? Would males, as fetus bearers, be denied their personhood as well? Does the fact that females can easily be discredited make it easier to prohibit their reproductive rights and control over their bodies? Could male bodies be so easily controlled?
I’ll leave you with a quote by Florynce Kennedy: “If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament.” Any thoughts on this quote?
It is interesting to think about what would happen if the roles were reversed. If the only thing that was switched was the gender of the "mother" ("father?"), I think men would be in the place that women are today. If, however, the earliest male roles were taken up by those who are simultaneously carrying children (ie hunting), I think the world would be much different. It would be okay to exert energy while pregnant and carry out basic tasks of survival. Even more interesting to ponder is if both could have children! Would men and women be equal? Who would have been sterilized if they were deemed unfit for society? Would men who indulge in their own desires be seen as bad parents?
ReplyDeleteIn response to your question about it men were the child bearers, I believe that in our patriarchal society it would make no difference in their personhood. Child-bearing men would be doing no wrong by making unpopular choices regarding their babies. However, if the traditional roles were reversed from the start then taking that logic further we would be living in a matriarchal society where men would probably be in the same personhood situation that pregnant women are in today.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think that the fact that women are so easily discredited contributes greatly to prohibitions of their reproductive rights. In a Law and Order episode I saw recently, a pregnant woman who tried to commit suicide accused a man of rape. She was threatened with a custody battle if she didn't drop the charges because since she she attempted suicide she was considered an unfit mother. The detectives also tried to get her on psych lockdown at the hospital until her baby was born because they were so concerned about the safety of the baby. This poor woman was taken advantage of and turned from victim to perpetrator in an instant. I definitely agree with you that if this she was a man, the situation would have been totally different.