Fetal Positions
I just read Fetal Positions: Individualism, Science, Visuality, a fairly short book by Karen Newman examining the ways medical ideas about fetuses and pregnancy have been shaped by visual representations. It's an interesting book with lots of fascinating illustrations. Here are a couple of passages I found that I thought were worth sharing. First, she writes,In early medicine, the uterus was believed to be passive and the fetus active during labor, with birth taking place thanks to the autonomous efforts of the fetus, conceived of as a "small hero breaking his chains, overcoming the bonds and restrictive or oppressive forces of his womb-world." (33)
Along the same lines, Newman quotes from Williams Obstretics, "the most widely used standard obstetrical textbook in medical schools in the United States and Canada," from the 19th edition (published 1993), which says that "the fetus is the dynamic force in the orchestration of its own destiny" (102).
Furthermore, according to Williams Obstetrics,women are physiologically ill-adapted to spend the better part of their reproductive lives in the nonpregnant state. (102)
That is just a horrifying statement.
Along the same lines, Newman quotes from Williams Obstretics, "the most widely used standard obstetrical textbook in medical schools in the United States and Canada," from the 19th edition (published 1993), which says that "the fetus is the dynamic force in the orchestration of its own destiny" (102).
Furthermore, according to Williams Obstetrics,women are physiologically ill-adapted to spend the better part of their reproductive lives in the nonpregnant state. (102)
That is just a horrifying statement.