Mothers and Sons : Feminism, Masculinity, and the Struggle to Raise Our Sons

The relationship between mothers and sons has been explored for ages. From Oedipus to Al Brooks' Mother , we are fascinated by the familial bond between a mother and her son. This groundbreaking work looks at many untouched areas of the mother-son relationship including race, sexuality and ability. The contributors to this collection speak from the heart and explore how the institution of motherhood oppresses women, impedes mother-son identification and fosters sexism. The impact of the feminist movement on the mother-son relationship, which has been previously neglected in literature, is explored in-depth in Mothers and Sons _ . These deeply personal reflections includes stories of lesbian mothers identifying challenges in raising sons in our heterosexist culture as well as black mothers and sons and Jewish mothers. For all with an interest in family issues, gender issues, or a new perspective on mothering, this book is a must read. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 4 Contents......Page 5 MOTHERING AND MOTHERHOOD......Page 33 WHO ARE WE THIS TIME? AN EXCERPT FROM AMERICAN MOM......Page 35 MOTHERING SONS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS: ONE PEACEMAKER'S CHALLENGE......Page 52 MASCULINITY, MATRIARCHY,AND MYTH:A BLACK FEMINIST PERSPECTIVE......Page 66 MOTHERS, SONS,AND THE ART OF PEACEBUILDING......Page 81 IN BLACK AND WHITE:ANGLO-AMERICAN AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES ON MOTHERS AND SONS......Page 101 MEN AND MASCULINITIES......Page 130 SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE: FEMINISTS'ACCOUNTS OF MOTHERING SONS......Page 132 FEMINIST ACADEMIC MOTHERS' INFLUENCES ON THEIR SONS' MASCULINITY......Page 153 LESBIANS RAISING SONS: BRINGING UP A NEW BREED OF MEN......Page 169 CAN BOYS GROW INTO MOTHERS? MATERNAL THINKING AND FATHERS' REFLECTIONS......Page 175 MOTHERS AND SONS: CONNECTIONS AND DISCONNECTIONS......Page 196 RAISING RELATIONAL BOYS......Page 198 ATTACHMENT AND LOSS......Page 230 MOTHER-SON RELATIONSHIPS IN THE SHADOW OF WAR......Page 248 THIS IS LEAVE-TAKING: MOTHERS, SIGNATURES,AND COUNTERMEMORY......Page 264 Book Cover; Title; Contents; MOTHERING AND MOTHERHOOD; WHO ARE WE THIS TIME? AN EXCERPT FROM AMERICAN MOM; MOTHERING SONS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS: ONE PEACEMAKER'S CHALLENGE; MASCULINITY, MATRIARCHY, AND MYTH:A BLACK FEMINIST PERSPECTIVE; MOTHERS, SONS, AND THE ART OF PEACEBUILDING; IN BLACK AND WHITE:ANGLO-AMERICAN AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES ON MOTHERS AND SONS; MEN AND MASCULINITIES; SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE: FEMINISTS'ACCOUNTS OF MOTHERING SONS; FEMINIST ACADEMIC MOTHERS' INFLUENCES ON THEIR SONS' MASCULINITY; LESBIANS RAISING SONS: BRINGING UP A NEW BREED OF MEN. CAN BOYS GROW INTO MOTHERS? MATERNAL THINKING AND FATHERS' REFLECTIONSMOTHERS AND SONS: CONNECTIONS AND DISCONNECTIONS; RAISING RELATIONAL BOYS; ATTACHMENT AND LOSS; MOTHER-SON RELATIONSHIPS IN THE SHADOW OF WAR; THIS IS LEAVE-TAKING: MOTHERS, SIGNATURES, AND COUNTERMEMORY. Annotation How can feminist women raise feminist sons? How can today's mothers teach their sons to be strong but not domineering, aggressive but not controlling, opinionated but not single-minded? These and other compelling questions are answered in this groundbreaking collection of essays on the mother and son relationship. Many of the essays cover neglected terrain, including such topics as feminism, sexism, masculinity, homophobia, and racism. The contributors speak from their experiences as mothers and explore how the institution of motherhood can oppress women, impede mother-son identification, and foster sexism. The impact of the feminist movement on the mother-son relationship is explored in depth here for the first time With swelling regret and a kind of damp pride, I traveled twenty-five hundred miles to Arizona State University the summer of 1992 with my son Ryan, a high-school wrestler and English-class con man, and left him to fend for himself in the desert. "Few subjects so provoke anxiety among feminists," Robin Morgan writes, "as the four-letter word sons" (38).