What Are Children For?: On Ambivalence and Choice (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781250276131)

A modern argument, grounded in philosophy and cultural criticism, about childbearing ambivalence and how to overcome it

Becoming a parent, once the expected outcome of adulthood, is increasingly viewed as a potential threat to the most basic goals and aspirations of modern life. We seek self-fulfillment; we want to liberate women to find meaning and self-worth outside the home; and we wish to protect the planet from the ravages of climate change. Weighing the pros and cons of having children, Millennials and Zoomers are finding it increasingly difficult to judge in its favor.

With lucid argument and passionate prose, Anastasia Berg and Rachel Wiseman offer the guidance necessary to move beyond uncertainty. The decision whether or not to have children, they argue, is not just a women's issue but a basic human one. And at a time when climate change worries threaten the very legitimacy of human reproduction, Berg and Wiseman conclude that neither our personal nor collective failures ought to prevent us from embracing the fundamental goodness of human life--not only in the present but, in choosing to have children, in the future.

Author: Anastasia Berg, Rachel Wiseman
ISBN-10: 1250276136
ISBN-13: 9781250276131
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Language: English
Published: 06/11/2024
Pages: 336
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.00lbs
Size: 8.25h x 5.38w x 1.00d

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 03/18/2024
Kirkus Reviews 04/15/2024
Library Journal 05/01/2024 pg. 108