Gender Politics and the Contradictions of Nurturance: Moral Authority and Constraints to Action for Female Abortion Activists
Author(s)
Ginsburg, Faye D.
Abstract
Women activists on both sides of the abortion debate frame their positions in terms of nurturance as a source of female identity. In both cases, nurturance is seen as opposed to the male-dominated materialistic culture. However, pro-life women place more emphasis on acceptance of biological reproduction, whereas pro-choice women stress using nurturing values as a guide to social action. The abortion issue brings out a contradiction in the female gender role between nurturance as a source of female authority and as a constraint on identity and behavior. Women in Fargo, ND, were interviewed.
