Between the estate and the state: struggling to be a ‘good’ mother

Abstract

The paper draws on an ESRC‐funded study of 70 families in two London locations. It focuses on a set of contemporary and contradictory political discourses that work on and through the lives of working‐class mothers and thereby create tensions and impossibilities within their lives. We illustrate the ways in which these women are positioned by and within these discourses in ways that leave them vulnerable to political and media criticisms.

Keywords:

• mothers
• mothering
• working class
• discourse

Notes

1. In terms of family structure, we categorised 41 women as being married or living with a partner, and 29 as being lone mothers (none of our respondents identified as gay/lesbian). The ethnicity of the lone mothers was diverse, reflecting the sample as a whole. Given the policy interest in encouraging women, in particular lone mothers, back to work, it is worth noting that 13 of the lone mothers were working outside the home (full time or part time), 12 were at home and four were students.

2. We are very aware of the very difficult ethical and interpretational issues that this kind of research raises. We have been anxious to try and represent these women authentically and sensitively and to reflect upon the assumptions and class perspectives that we bring to bear upon the matters we discussed with them. We have attempted not to confuse class differences with class deficits. The research, especially the analysis in this paper, is intended to critique and where possible destabilise the classed, political discourses to which they are subject. The ‘findings’ of the research were shared with the respondents in the form of a digest sent to all respondents.

3. The web site ‘Mothers who work’ (www.motherswhowork.co.uk/cms/) offers the following: ‘Find out how to have the best of both worlds – a happy family life and a successful career’.

4. This refers to the murder of two 10‐year‐old girls by their school caretaker in 2002.