Ep 148 - How society fails mothers with Eliane Glaser
My guest this week, Eliane Glaser, says that mothers are trying too hard and society is not trying nearly hard enough. She says worldwide mothers are overworked, underpaid, often lonely, and made to feel guilty about everything.
She says that motherhood is one of modern society’s awkward little secrets and that fixing this is the unfinished work of feminism. How powerful is that - Motherhood is feminism’s unfinished business.
She is an author, a BBC radio producer, a research fellow at the school of advanced study UEL, and has just released a powerhouse of a book called, Motherhood: a Manifesto.
We talk about the really helpful distinction between motherhood the experience - the joyful, hard mess of it, the intoxicating love, and yet the fear and rage (all those feelings which I’m sure all as mothers of you can relate to) and the institution of motherhood with its societal messages and the systems that are set up or not to support us.
This is such a helpful distinction because it enables us to bring more nuance to the conversation than is often present. It enables us to love the experience of being a mother, most of the time, imperfectly, while also allowing us to feel rage and anger at the system and the cultural messages we operate in and that often let us down.
This conversation is a little bit different from what we usually talk about on the podcast but I think it is such a brilliant complement to last week’s episode about The Motherhood Penalty and I found it really enlightening and fascinating. Her book is full of data and statistics which you’ll hear throughout the episode.
I hope you really enjoy it. Please do let me know what you think.
We talk about:
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The data and statistics of motherhood
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Why motherhood is a barrier to equality
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Motherhood the experience vs motherhood the institution
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And so much more
At a time when women are supposed to be more liberated than ever before, modern motherhood has become rigidly perfectionist.
- Eliane Glaser
As always, we continue the conversation over on Instagram, so come and join us there.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
FREEBIES! Find out how you can take control of your life, reconnect to you and more! Download ‘10 Ways to Reconnect to You’ and our weekly and monthly check-in on Motherkind.co.
Are you ready to find freedom from guilt? Let me help you find Freedom from Perfectionism if you are a mother who has ever felt not quite enough.
About Eliane Glaser
Eliane Glaser is the author of Elitism: A Progressive Defence, Anti-Politics: On the Demonization of Ideology, Authority and the State and Get Real: How to See Through the Hype, Spin and Lies of Modern Life. In addition to writing books, Eliane is a BBC radio producer, a research fellow at the School of Advanced Study, University of London, and writes for publications including the Guardian, Prospect, and the London Review of Books.
THIS EPISODE IS SUPPORTED BY NHS TEST AND TRACE
With the kids finally back at school and some normalcy returning, we are all keen to keep life moving. NHS Test and Trace are encouraging all adults in England to get tested twice a week using totally free rapid Covid-19 tests, which are now available for all adults in England.
Testing is going to help prevent around 1 and 3 people who have Covid-19 but with no symptoms or knowledge they are spreading it.
It’s a fast and easy way to find out if you have Coronavirus, with results in around 30 minutes. You can order tests to your home or go to a test site or participating pharmacies.
For more information and guidance online go to nhs.uk/gettested
The more of us who take part the more we can help protect each other.