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In the history of psychoanalysis, mother have too often been viewed from the perspective of, and as adjuncts to, their children. Even today it is often difficult, when discussing the mother-child relationship, to remain focused on the mother's dynamics and feelings; the psychoanalytic clinician finds it all too easy to identify with the child. Early feminists, on the other hand, attempting to disentangle the mother from the demands of her child and allow her the freedom to pursue her own goals, did not acknowledge the fact that the ordinary mother is profoundly changed by the fact of mothering an actual child. For both these reasons, it is a pleasure to read a book that examines aspects of the inner life of mothers.
Many of the papers in this book were first presented at a conference sponsored by the William Alanson White Society; contributions by other authors have expanded the volume to fourteen chapters. Most, though not all, of the writers are psychoanalysts. The book tackles a variety of issues, from maternal subjectivity and physicality to political, social, and gender issues. It also has chapters dealing with pregnancy, infertility, the role of the father, the couple's transition to parenthood, and the child therapist's relation to the mother.
Many of the papers in the first section, “What Mothers Want and Need,” are written from an intersubjective postmodern perspective in which gender is understood to be a fluid social constuct. In chapter 1, “The Psychic Landscape of Mothers,” Daniel Stern begins by asking, What are mothers? He defines them as primary caregivers, regardless of age or gender, who fit into “the motherhood constellation,” a unique motivational state of organization of sexual life that functions to meet the needs of the infant.
A new aspect of maternity that Stern discusses is the mother's falling in love with her baby. Although his declared interest is in the