Bearing the weight of the world Exploring Maternal Embodiment

The Maternal Body Is A Site Of Contested Dynamics Of Power, Identity, Experience, Autonomy, Occupation, And Control. Representations Of The Maternal Body Can Mis/represent The Childbearing And Mothering Form Variously, Often As Monstrous, Idealized, Limited, Scrutinized, Or Occupied, Whilst Dominant Discourses Limit Motherhood Through Social Devaluation. The Maternal Body Has Long Been A Hypervisible Artifact: At Once Bracketed Out In The Interest Of Elevating The Contributions Of Sperm-carriers Or Fetal Status; And Regarded With Hostility And Suspicion As Out Of Control. Such Arguments Are Deployed To Justify Surveillance Mechanisms, Medical Scrutiny, And Expectation Of Self-discipline.