Abstract
The primacy of motherhood in feminist theory is understood as a necessity for understanding cultural, political, social and economic positions of women. This chapter examines the discursive process of neoliberal ideologies and how polarisations of ‘mother’ occur in austere times. In addition, questions surrounding possible new cultures of domesticity are considered alongside intersections of class, nationality, ethnicity and place in this review of mothering under austerity. Drawing on existing published work the author reviews analyses of ideological processes and policy analyses. The debates are highly moralised and new divisions between the deserving an undeserving mother proliferate. Whilst there is a steady shift of responsibilities from the state to individual families the particularities of austerity impacts on ‘mother’ are considered across a range of positions.
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Quaid, S. (2018). Mothering in an Age of Austerity. In: Rushton, P., Donovan, C. (eds) Austerity Policies . Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-79120-3_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-79120-3_4
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