audiobook The Many Faces of Alexander Hamilton: The Life and Legacy of America's Most Elusive Founding Father by From Brand: NYU Press in History

Description

In the past quarter century; "bad" mothers have moved noticeably toward center stage in American culture. While Susan Smith will eventually fade from the tabloids; the monster mother that she represents has a storied and long history. Mothers have been blamed for a host of problems; from autism in children (due to chilly "refrigerator" mothers); to homosexuality (attributed to "smothering" moms); to welfare dependency and crime (caused by black "matriarchs" and single mothers). Some mothers are not good mothers. No one can deny that. There are women who neglect their children; abuse them; and fail to provide them with proper psychological nurturance. While such mothers have always stimulated the American imagination; the definition of what constitutes a bad mother has expanded significantly in recent years. Indeed; with a distinct minority of American families living the two-parent; one-worker lifestyle once considered the norm; we all face the discomfiting question; Do most mothers now qualify as "bad" mothers in one way or another? Drawing together the work of prominent scholars and journalists; "Bad" Mothers considers such diverse topics as the mother-blaming theories of psychological and medical "experts;" bad mothers in the popular media; the scapegoating of mothers in politics; and the punitive approach to "bad" mothers by social service and legal authorities. The volume also includes the stories of individual "bad" mothers; from sterilization survivor Willie Mallory to rock star Courtney Love. Ably edited by two leading scholars; "Bad" Mothers marks an important contribution to the literature on motherhood.