Selling Anonymity: The Market for Secrecy Around Illegitimate Births

Author:

Sjöberg Johanna1,Sköld Johanna1

Affiliation:

1. Department for Thematic Studies – Child Studies, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

Abstract

Giving birth out of wedlock was associated for centuries with shame, economic burden, and secrecy. Unmarried pregnant women could escape stigma by travelling away from home and purchasing a confinement elsewhere. They could hide there when the pregnancy started to show, give birth, have their children adopted or sent to foster care, and then return home. This article explores the social economy of this stigma by investigating the market for anonymous births in Sweden through newspaper advertisements addressing unmarried pregnant women during the period 1905–1935. It shows that unmarried pregnant women risked exploitation when entering this market, in which private midwives, private maternity homes and individuals offering accommodation and employment were all operating.

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Subject

Social Sciences (miscellaneous),Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous),Anthropology

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3