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‘What will it cost you today?’ The gendered discourse of parenting
| Content Provider | Scilit |
|---|---|
| Copyright Year | 2015 |
| Abstract | Family formation and parenthood have been the focus of much state attention and intervention in Singapore's natalist policies. In the 1960s and 1970s, antinatalist government policy discouraged Singaporeans from marrying early and having many children. From the mid-1980s onwards, an alarming decline in the national fertility rate caused the same government to switch to a pronatalist policy, which encouraged Singaporeans not to delay marriage and to have many children.1 The new fertility scenario was the result of changing societal and gender expectations: because the rapid industrialisation programmes of the government in the 1970s required an educated workforce, almost equal educational and employment opportunities opened up to women. This, along with growing affluence, led to changes in women's expectations of themselves and of husbands, and a rising female aspiration to be successful in careers outside the home, just like men. In order to manage these changed expectations (and those of men) amidthe crisis of declining birthrates, public discourse since the mid-1980s has acknowledged and encouraged women's participation in the economic labour force (needed for national economic development), while emphasising women's maternal roles (needed to boost the national fertility rates). At the same time, men have been encouraged to take a more active role as fathers. All this was evident in the rhetoric of the government's ten-year Family Life advertising campaign in the 1990s, which extolled the joys of parenthood.2Since then, two grassroots organisations have also arisen nationally, one to encourage parenthood (the 'I Love Children' movement, set up in 2005) and one to support active fatherhood (the Centre for Fathering, established in 1999). Given the extensive public discourse surrounding parenthood in Singapore,one might expect a loosening of gendered expectations in parenting, which the government would lead. This chapter aims to examine the government's representation of parenthood as a social practice in contemporary Singapore, and in particular, their expectations regarding women and men in relation to parenting, at a time when 55 percent of women are also active in theworkforce.3 From the point of view of government discourse, what does it mean to be a 'mother' and a 'father' in present-day Singapore? |
| Related Links | https://api.taylorfrancis.com/content/chapters/edit/download?identifierName=doi&identifierValue=10.4324/9781315767260-13&type=chapterpdf |
| Ending Page | 150 |
| Page Count | 20 |
| Starting Page | 131 |
| DOI | 10.4324/9781315767260-13 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited |
| Publisher Date | 2015-06-03 |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Book Name: Women and the Politics of Representation in Southeast Asia Cultural Studies Public Discourse Gender Expectations National Fertility Rates |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Chapter |
