RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
A1 Lāma, Elza
A1 Zelče, Vita
T1 'Am I Grateful Enough?': Emotions and Communication in the 'Deep Story' of New Mothers in Latvia
JF Gender a výzkum / Gender and Research
YR 2024
VO 24
IS 2
SP 231
OP 254
DO 10.13060/gav.2023.013
UL https://genderonline.cz/en/artkey/gav-202302-0009.php
AB The ever-watchful eyes of society have created burdensome challenges for mothers in the 21st century, who are constantly trying to manage their emotions and daily life in accordance with the dominant discourse of what a 'good mother' should be like. The aim of the paper is to explore the 'deep story' of new mothers in Latvia, employing the theoretical framework of sociologist Arlie Hochschild and her concept of 'emotion work'. Data were gathered from ten phenomenological interviews with women with a child under the age of two. The results of the narrative analysis show that new mothers systematically apply the principles of 'emotion work' and communicate negative experiences only to selected confidants out of a fear of being condemned for not complying with the dominant narrative of motherhood. Although the 'deep story' of mothers is rather bleak, the key is open communication without judgement or patronising remarks.