Rethinking advanced motherhood: a new ethical narrative.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_4835761C5F68
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Rethinking advanced motherhood: a new ethical narrative.
Journal
Medicine, health care, and philosophy
Author(s)
De Clercq E., Martani A., Vulliemoz N., Elger B.S., Wangmo T.
ISSN
1572-8633 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
1386-7423
Publication state
Published
Issued date
12/2023
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
26
Number
4
Pages
591-603
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article
Publication Status: ppublish
Abstract
The aim of the study is to rethink the ethics of advanced motherhood. In the literature, delayed childbearing is usually discussed in the context of reproductive justice, and in relationship to ethical issues associated with the use and risk of assisted reproductive technologies. We aim to go beyond these more "traditional" ways in which reproductive ethics is framed by revisiting ethics itself through the lens of the figure of the so-called "older" mother. For this purpose, we start by exploring some of the deep seated socio-cultural discourses in the context of procreation: ageism, ableism and the widespread bias towards geneticism and pronatalism. Afterwards, we provide a critical overview of the key arguments against or in support of advanced motherhood. We then briefly discuss how entrenchment by both sides has produced an impasse in the debate on the ethics of advanced motherhood and proceed by arguing that it is fundamental to bring about a change in this narrative. For this purpose, we will revisit the feminist usage of the concept of vulnerability which will allow us both to criticize culturally prescribed norms about motherhood and to address the painful reality of age-related fertility decline. In the last section, we argue that instead of defining "older" motherhood as an ethical problem, we should problematize the fact that female reproductive ageing is an understudied and ill-sourced topic. We believe that allocating resources to research to better understand female reproductive ageing is not only ethically permissible, but might even be ethically desirable.
Keywords
Female, Humans, Reproductive Techniques, Assisted, Aging, Dissent and Disputes, Research Design, Delayed childbearing, Feminism, Infertility, Older motherhood, Reproductive ethics, Vulnerability
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
03/10/2023 10:03
Last modification date
23/12/2023 8:05
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