Constructing the (M)other Narratives of Disability, Motherhood, and the Politics of "Normal"

Constructing the (M)other is a collection of personal narratives about motherhood in the context of a society in which disability holds a stigmatized position. From multiple vantage points, these autoethnographies reveal how ableist beliefs about disability are institutionally upheld and reified. Collectively they seek to call attention to a patriarchal surveillance of mothering, challenge the trope of the good mother, and dismantle the constructed hierarchy of acceptable children. The stories contained in this volume are counter-narratives of resistance-they are the devices through which mothers push back. Rejecting notions of the otherness of their children, in these essays, mothers negotiate their identities and claim access to the category of normative motherhood. Readers are likely to experience dissonance, have their assumptions about disability challenged, and find their parameters of normalcy transformed.

About the author

Priya Lalvani, Ph.D., is Associate Professor at Montclair State University. She was the recipient of the Emerging Scholar in Disability Studies Award in 2015. Her work is published widely in journals including: Disability and Society, Disability Studies Quarterly, and Equity and Excellence in Education.

Summary

Constructing the (M)other is a collection of personal narratives about motherhood in the context of a society in which disability holds a stigmatized position.

Report

"This stunning collection of mother narratives illuminates the intimate space where motherhood, disability, and society intersect. Lalvani has drawn together oft-untold stories from culturally diverse mothers of children with disabilities who share what it means to negotiate shifting and complex cultural constructions of motherhood outside the socially-defined ideal. Constructing the (M)other is a fresh and significant contribution to a disability studies perspective on mothers and children with disabilities and a must-read for all educators committed to meaningful parent-professional partnerships."-Jan Valle, Professor of Inclusive Education and Disability Studies, City College of New York

Product details

• Assisted by: Priya Lalvani (Editor), Priy Lalvani (Editor), Susan L. Gabel (Editor), Scot Danforth (Editor), Susan L Gabel (Editor), Gabel Susan L. (Editor of the series), Danforth Scot (Editor of the series)
• Publisher: Peter Lang
• Content: Book
• Product form: Paperback / Softback
• Publication date: 01.01.2019
• Subject: Humanities, art, music > Education > General, dictionaries
• EAN: 9781433169748
• ISBN: 978-1-4331-6974-8
• Pages: 250
• Illustrations: 4 Abb.
• Dimensions (packing): 15.2 x 1.5 x 22.7 cm
• Weight (packing): 381 g
• Series: Disability Studies in Education > 22
• Subjects: EDUCATION / General, Politics, Susan, Motherhood, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Women's Studies, Social interaction, EDUCATION / Inclusive Education, EDUCATION / Special Education / General, EDUCATION / Behavioral Management, FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Children with Special Needs, FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Autism Spectrum Disorders, FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Education, FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Learning Disabilities, Gabel, Disability, narratives, Patricia, Disability: social aspects, Teaching of physically disabled students, Gender studies: women, Gender studies: women and girls, Schools, Teaching of students with learning difficulties or disorders, Priya, Scot, Danforth, Mulrane, Constructing, «Normal», Lalvani