The idea that children are our first priority has become a mainstream idea in Taiwanese society. Behind the child-centered discourse, created from adults' perspectives and molded by other dominant social values, lies many unequal power relationships.
In commercials and news, this kind of discourse has been embodied in slogans like "don't let your kids lose at the starting point." Kids bear the direct brunt of such slogans. So do their parents, who as a result dare not slack off in investing in raising and educating their children. Mothers, in particular, bear the brunt of the pressure as they are usually deemed responsible for rearing the next generation.
Recently I realized that this type of pressure is on women from the very moment they give birth, as breastfeeding has gained increasing importance in Taiwan in recent years. In all the discussions about breastfeeding, the children are still the focus point. We can see the slogan "Don't let your kids lose at the starting point" in relevant news. Here the starting point is established as early as the moment babies come into the world. And the mothers are the ones who have to make the breastfeeding effort and self-sacrifice to help their kids win the race of life.
Most discussions on breastfeeding emphasize that breastmilk is "natural," which "of course" is good for kids. Such discourse suggests that women can "naturally" breastfeed after giving birth as if they were natural breastmilk fountains. The idea that they don't need any support from outside just perfectly matches the discourse that "maternal love is natural."
Emphasis on the "naturalness" of breastfeeding, however, overlooks the practical difficulties in nursing babies. Women who have tried breastfeeding know and fear feeding problems. The process is by no means easy, smooth or natural. All women experience problems like a shortage of breastmilk, full breasts, inflamed nipples and fatigue caused by breastfeeding.
Although these problems are not totally neglected in relevant discussions, they are still regarded as difficulties that can be overcome by the mother herself. So breastfeeding is deemed no tough job as long as the mother tries her best, bears the pain and keeps in mind how much her babies are going to benefit from it.
Therefore, breastfeeding has become more than a calling. It is the mother's ethical responsibility. Any mom who "slacks off" and fails in breastfeeding will feel a sense of guilt for the rest of her life. If her children have any health problems in the future, it's because she did not breastfeed them.
Apparently, in this case, the mother's interests are secondary to the interests of children. Similarly, when women decide to spend more time pursuing their careers, they are often reminded that "your child has only one childhood." Confronted by this, I cannot but wonder: Doesn't a mother have only one chance to be in her thirties as well, for instance? Isn't it just as important?
Here I don't mean to put mothers' interest in conflict with their children's. I simply want to provide a different perspective. If our society does have children's best interests at heart, adjustments should be made at structural and institutional levels to ensure that children's real interests are safeguarded.
Many women give up breastfeeding mainly because they have to go back to work after their maternity leave expires and it's not convenient to express and store breastmilk at work. If we sincerely believe that breastfeeding is good for both mothers and children, we should help mothers at an institutional level, rather than leaving them to sort out problems on their own.
Shaw Ping is an associate professor of Communications at National Sun Yat-sen University.
TRANSLATED BY JENNIE SHIH
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