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Variations on an old Theme: Maternity for Women with a Very Successful Professional Career
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 April 2014
Abstract
In this study, relationships of middle-class women from Rio de Janeiro with their family and work are presented. A series of events during the 20th century have changed woman's identity, previously centered on the roles of mother and wife, so that, there are now other options for women. Carioca girls are currently educated to compete, seek greater professional growth, and value their independence. However, some social discourses still reinforce women's former role the in the family. The notion that the mother-child unit is basic, universal, and, psychologically, the most appropriate, both for the child's healthy development and the mother's wholeness, is still firmly rooted. Motherhood is therefore one of the most complex and problematic matters for modern Carioca woman. Fifteen women with successful professional careers, residents of the city of Rio de Janeiro, varying in age from 30 to 40, and with children from 6 months to 3 years of age, were interviewed. The interviews had an invisible structure, were recorded and transcribed. The discourse of the resultant texts was analyzed, using the categories I established. In this project, I focus on the results of the analysis of the category “View of Maternity” of the interviewed women.
En este estudio, se presentan las relaciones de las mujeres de clase media de Rió de Janeiro con sus familias y trabajos. Una serie de eventos del S. XX ha cambiado la identidad de las mujeres, previamente centrada en los roles de madre y esposa, de tal forma que hoy día hay otras opciones para ellas. Las chicas Carioca se educan para competir, buscar mayor desarrollo profesional y valorar su independencia. Sin embargo, algunos discursos sociales siguen reforzando su papel anterior en la familia. La noción de la unidad madre-niño como básica, universal y psicológicamente la más apropiada, tanto para el desarrollo sano del niño como para la integridad de la madre, sigue firmemente enraizada. Debido a ello, la maternidad es uno de los asuntos más complejos y problemáticos para la mujer Carioca moderna. Se entrevistaron a 15 mujeres con carrera profesional, residentes de la ciudad de Río de Janeiro, con niños de edades entre los 6 meses y los 3 años. Las entrevistas tenían una estructura invisible, se grabaron y transcribieron. El discurso de los textos resultantes se analizó, empleando las categorías establecidas. En este proyecto, me centro en los resultados del análisis de la categoría “Visión de la Maternidad” de las mujeres entrevistadas.
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