In the world on which we live, to be a mother or a father can succumb to heavy scrutiny. There are many different discourses and definitions of what it is to be a.
mother and what it is to be, considered a father. The discourses that surround.
motherhood and fatherhood are slowly being deconstructed by the shift from.
contemporary to current issues. Through the work of Tallcott Parson, Marxism and.
Bowlby we are given the opportunity to compare their work to the structualist.
functionalist and the feminist movement to create our own idea of what motherhood.
and fatherhood is considered to be. Furthermore when looking at motherhood and.
fatherhood we cannot disregard one's cultural capital and the reality that the.
discourses surrounding motherhood and fatherhood are socially constructed.
When looking at motherhood and fatherhood in recent times some discourses.
remain the same as when Tallcott Parsons was studying motherhood and fatherhood.
in the 1950's. However with the help of the feminist movement there are cracks being.
formed within the discourses. Post structualist feminists work to deconstruct a.
problem. An example of this of this may be the realisation that mothers are not.
necessarily the primary caregiver. Today children have many more people in their.
lives accepting roles all who may readily know what it is the baby needs. Tallcott.
Parson suggests mothers are the primary caregivers and it is the mothers who.
apparently knows what it is their baby needs or wants. A crying baby is always.
handed back to the mother this reinforces the discourse that mothers know what it is.
their baby needs.
Rutler, 1991 as cited in Everingham, 1994, pg 68 states " It is slowly being recognised.
that the person involved in this unique primary relationship need not be the biological.
mother". People are starting to realise that the person walking with that child is not.
necessarily the child's biological mother. In Sweden the state is attempting to sell.