Examine the contradictions in the ideologies and experiences of motherhood.

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'Motherhood is romanticised and idealised as the supreme physical and emotional achievement in woman's lives...but when women become mothers ...they find that everyday tasks of mothering are socially devalued' (Phoenix, 1991:13). Examine the contradictions in the ideologies and experiences of motherhood.

Motherhood is defined to women by society even if they do not become mothers; it is the way society view women. However, Motherhood is also very important to women over the world. "For example, in 1994 there were 6.7 million women with children under 16 in the UK: that is, 29 per cent of all women" (Robinson and Richardson, 1997:375).

Majority of women are mothers despite the fact that the number of women who are not mothers has gone up. Conversely, there is a problem of what societies expect women to do and what women do. Although the relationship of motherhood and womanhood seems to be shifting in the contemporary society it still remains complicated and opposing each other. Some women are choosing not to be mother and are therefore, rejecting society's expectations of them.

Although the core identity of women is motherhood there are also other factors that are also important to women's lives