The Good Mother Myth

When Nancy Reddy had her first child, she found herself suddenly confronted with the ideal of a perfect mother - a woman who was constantly available, endlessly patient, and immediately invested in her child to the exclusion of all else. Nancy had been raised by a single working mother, considered herself a feminist, and was well on her way to a PhD. Why did doing motherhood 'right' feel so wrong? For answers, Nancy turned to the mid-20th century social scientists and psychologists whose work still forms the basis of so much of what we believe about parenting. It seems ludicrous to imagine modern moms taking advice from midcentury researchers. Yet, their bad ideas about so-called 'good' motherhood have seeped so pervasively into our cultural norms.