Single Mothers and their Children - Disposal, Punishment and Survival in Australia (Hardcover, Revised)

In Australia until the early 1970s, women were assumed to have husbands who were breadwinners and expected to be housewives and to raise children themselves. If a woman had children but no male provider, she was likely to be economically deprived. If she had never been married she would be stigmatised by society as well. This book, the first comprehensive history of the treatment of single mothers and their children in Australia, is the story of these women and their children and the lives they constructed. Starting in the 1850s when abandonment and infanticide were not uncommon, the book's main focus ends in 1975 when the legal status of illegitimacy was abolished. While the book traces profound changes from a time when single mothers were locked in gaol for discarding their babies to the point when their situation was recognised in the form of state benefits, the authors find a good deal of continuity over the period. The book covers issues of baby farming, infanticide, abortion, sex education, birth control, adoption and marriage, in effect becoming a history of sexual practice in Australia. It uses a broad range of published and oral sources, drawn from interviews, diaries, court records and the problem pages of women's magazines. Shurlee Swain and Renate Howe tell a powerful if painful and often moving story of women who were forced to dispose of their babies and punished for sexual transgression. They also show the ways in which these women, and their illegitimate children, survived. This long-awaited book makes an important contribution to social, welfare and women's history in Australia. It will also resonate with many who have experienced single motherhood directly orindirectly.

General

Imprint:	Cambridge UniversityPress
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Series:	Studies in Australian History
Release date:	December 1995
First published:	1996
Authors:	Shurlee Swain • Renate Howe
Dimensions:	229 x 152 x 17mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover
Pages:	288
Edition:	Revised
ISBN-13:	978-0-521-47443-6
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > Australasian & Pacific history > General Books > Humanities > History > World history > From 1900 > General Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social institutions > Family & relationships > General Books > History > Australasian & Pacific history > General Books > History > World history > From 1900 > General
LSN:	0-521-47443-4
Barcode:	9780521474436

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!