Maternal Instinct, Instinctively Social?
Maternal instinct, instinctively social?
“Take motherhood: nobody ever thought of putting it on a moral pedestal until some brash feminists pointed out, about a century ago, that the pay is lousy and the career ladder nonexistent” –Barbara Ehrenreich
Few women would admit that they have never thought about having a children. Furthermore, most women experience sooner or later a strong desire of procreation. There is something difficult to explain in the relationship a mother has with her children. Why does a mother love her children so much? Why is she ready to sacrifice herself in order to save her children? This behavior is called this maternal bond, or instinct. While typically occurring during pregnancy and childbirth, material instinct also appears within this states and defines a common attitude of women towards her progenitors. This could seem logical: women carry a strong responsibility on human reproduction. Men do as well. However, the process that a women needs to go through in order to give birth to a human being is a long and difficult. Being pregnant is a major upheaval for women: psychological implications are strong and physical pain should not be neglected. The responsibility engaged by women in procreation is far more important than that of males. We don’t need to fool ourselves: in very practical terms it takes a few minutes for a man to procreate, women have to live almost a year of constant challenges that certainly modify its psyche. A man can “produce” almost an infinite amount of children (as long as he lives), a women has a limited “capacity” to speak in utilitarian terms. As a man, leaving in a word with individualistic values, it is difficult for me to identify which are the arguments that motivate a woman to have and desire children. Maternal instinct seems to be the most accurate explanation to that bonding and desire to children. Maternal instinct finds its roots on evolutionary theory, biology and genetics. It is also a
“Take motherhood: nobody ever thought of putting it on a moral pedestal until some brash feminists pointed out, about a century ago, that the pay is lousy and the career ladder nonexistent” –Barbara Ehrenreich
Few women would admit that they have never thought about having a children. Furthermore, most women experience sooner or later a strong desire of procreation. There is something difficult to explain in the relationship a mother has with her children. Why does a mother love her children so much? Why is she ready to sacrifice herself in order to save her children? This behavior is called this maternal bond, or instinct. While typically occurring during pregnancy and childbirth, material instinct also appears within this states and defines a common attitude of women towards her progenitors. This could seem logical: women carry a strong responsibility on human reproduction. Men do as well. However, the process that a women needs to go through in order to give birth to a human being is a long and difficult. Being pregnant is a major upheaval for women: psychological implications are strong and physical pain should not be neglected. The responsibility engaged by women in procreation is far more important than that of males. We don’t need to fool ourselves: in very practical terms it takes a few minutes for a man to procreate, women have to live almost a year of constant challenges that certainly modify its psyche. A man can “produce” almost an infinite amount of children (as long as he lives), a women has a limited “capacity” to speak in utilitarian terms. As a man, leaving in a word with individualistic values, it is difficult for me to identify which are the arguments that motivate a woman to have and desire children. Maternal instinct seems to be the most accurate explanation to that bonding and desire to children. Maternal instinct finds its roots on evolutionary theory, biology and genetics. It is also a
Bibliography: (1) Contrasting evolutionary explanations of maternal behavior - Anna Rotkirch (2) Le conflit, la femme et la mere – Elisabeth Badinter. (3) Mothers and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding - Sarah Blaffer Hrdy (4) Britannica Encyclopedia / Google books / Wikipedia.