We all experience parenthood, if not as parents, then by way of having been parented or, in the face of ubiquitous images of idyllic family life, in the longing to be parents or to be parented. Thus, parenthood is one of the most powerful social constructs. This collection of essays gives evidence of the fact that families have never been "real;" that family, like gender or race, is not primarily based on biological criteria, but, above all, has to be performed and is a result of narratives. The relationship between these narratives - their variations in Irish, English, German, Mexican, and Chilean literature or film - and their material confinement is at the core of the essays gathered in this book. (Series: Cultural Studies / Kulturwissenschaft / Estudios Culturales / Etudes Culturelles - Vol. 40)