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Feminism & Psychology
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New Fathers and Mothers as Gender Troublemakers? Exploring Discursive Constructions of Heterosexual Parenthood and their Subversive Potential

Julia C. Nentwich

Research Institute for Organizational Psychology, University of St. Gallen, Varnbüelstr. 19, CH-9000 St. Gallen, Switzerland, julia.nentwich{at}unisg.ch

Current constructions of heterosexual parenthood in western societies seem to be trapped in a change-retention dilemma. Many elements have changed, but many others have stayed the same. Although `new fathers' do change diapers, the mother is very often seen as the `main parent'. Parenthood is still constructed along the heterosexual gender binary that equates women with mothers and men with fathers. In this article, I analyse four different scenarios of parenthood that were discursively constructed in 21 interviews in Switzerland. I focus on the discursive construction of the subject positions `mother' and `father', the discourses drawn upon, and their potential to subvert the gendered construction of heterosexual parenthood when justifying certain versions of parenthood. Drawing on Judith Butler's concept of `gender trouble', I explore the possibilities for change and the dangers of reifying the gender binary, and critically discuss the possibilities and limitations of gender trouble in this context.

Key Words: binaries • discourse • gender trouble • gendered parenthood • new fathers • new mothers • performativity • subversion

Feminism & Psychology, Vol. 18, No. 2, 207-230 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0959353507088591
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