Having explored what birth is in U.S. it is important to look at it from another perspective, another country. So I chose India, because their culture and U.S.’s are not similar. In HW # 42, I researched what the typical male role is versus the ideal male role during childbirth is in the U.S. and after doing so I found the topic to be interesting and wondered what the typical male role might be in another country, for example in India.
The birth rate in India is large; they have about 20.3 births per 1,000, with a population of 1,189,172,906 people. This fact helps one understand what birth is like in India and that just as China, India is afraid of overpopulation.
Birth rate: 20.97-births/1,000 population (2011 est.)
| Year | Birth rate | Rank | Percent Change | Date of Information |
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| 2003 | 23.28 | 91 | | 2003 est. |
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| 2004 | 22.32 | 91 | -4.12 % | 2004 est. |
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| 2005 | 22.32 | 91 | 0.00 % | 2005 est. |
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| 2006 | 22.01 | 93 | -1.39 % | 2006 est. |
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| 2007 | 22.69 | 86 | 3.09 % | 2007 est. |
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| 2008 | 22.22 | 86 | -2.07 % | 2008 est. |
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| 2009 | 21.76 | 87 | -2.07 % | 2009 est. |
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| 2010 | 21.34 | 85 | -1.93 % | 2010 est. |
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| 2011 | 20.97 | 85 | -1.73 % | 2011 est. |
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("Indexmundi")
But going back to what the typical male role is in India during childbirth, I decided to learn more about childbirth in India and came upon this book that showed what the average childbirth is like in many countries from Mexico to China. For India it said, “Traditional women in India will act subservient to their husbands and will not make their own decisions…Women from India are modest and will prefer to be draped and covered during procedures and during childbirth.” (Murray, and Huelsmann 202). Women due to their culture and religious are more modest, they like to be covered and let the male make their decisions. So this quote says that the male is in charge of the decisions during this pregnancy, while normally in U.S. it tends to be the female’s choice.
To better understand why it is male’s choice, I looked at what the gender roles are in general in this country. To help us see why typical male role is what it is during childbirth, this article a woman named Hanlon writes about what the gender roles are like in India; “ In India, their view's on gender roles is still one considered backward compared to Western society. The role of each gender in Indian society is one that is steeped in religion and culture and makes for an oppressive tradition. There are many factors that contribute to the oppression of women in India; these include geographical locations throughout the country, education, and economic and religious reasons. Indian women usually suffer from a low social status compared to men and are sometimes treated negatively. But on the other hand women are revered in Hindu practices with many ceremonies dedicated to them, but Indian society and laws still fail to treat women with equal rights as men.” (Hanlon) Hanlon’s quote gave me a better understanding of what the gender roles are in India, evidence of why the male is charge of pregnancy. That the laws still let men have more power than the woman even in 5their own childbirth.
The male role not only can be the partner but the doctor, and how the gender of the doctor taking care of these women during childbirth are women just like them, “The main reason given for the need to train medical women in India was that the cultural practices of purdah prevented Indian women from going to see male doctors. Indeed, cross-cultural studies in many parts of the world suggest that women prefer to be attended my woman doctors during childbirth due to cultural notions of modesty, regardless of whether or not women are secluded for religious purposes such as in purdah.” (Hollen 43) When reading this I thought ahead when I one day will give birth and how uncomfortable I’d feel having all my parts out to a doctor much less a male doctor, so I sympathize with Indian women on why they would rather have woman doctor. Showing how a male in the delivery room is not wanted by these Indian women due to their cultural background, but this quote even shows that it is not only religious women who want a doctor of their gender. So if a male doctor is not wanted in the delivery room, I can only imagine even the father would not be allowed but I continued to research further.
When searching what average/typical male role was in the delivery room, I found an advice column for birth partner from a baby center in India. “A woman's birth partner is a vital support at a crucial time in her life. Although these days it is often the father who attends the birth, many maternity wards welcome whomever the mother has chosen as partner. Many women ask their mother, sister or sister-in-law to help them.” ("Baby center") This is current from 2010 from a baby center in India, and it says its hospital policy being the 21st century, is that men are allowed to be in delivery room, BUT the women tend to ask their mother or sister to help and be there. So still Indian women today rather have their mother or woman figure with them, and when I read Baby Catcher by Peggy Vincent, she explains why this is for many different women, because for them they’d rather have someone who “speaks” the same language and their rhythm of body movement. For these Indian women I believe it is more because of their culture and religion that they follow, men are not allowed them until it is over and fully cleansed.
While researching I found a study two men Singh and Ram who collected data to find out men’s involvement during pregnancy and childbirth by interviewing men ages 15 – 54 from rural Ahmadnagar in India. And these were their results; “ Men who had egalitarian gender role attitudes were more likely to assist their wives during pregnancy compared to men who had traditional gender role attitudes… More than half the men were present at the time of delivery of their last child. A majority of men among those who were absent at the time of delivery reported that their wives were at their parents’ house. Going for delivery to the parents’ house is a very common feature in rural areas of India. Especially the birth of first child generally takes place at the parental home…. In such cases men may not be allowed to go to their in-laws house to assist their wives even if they wished to do so.” (Singh, and Ram 83- 102) The data shows that the males (fathers) did or did not attend their wife’s childbirth depending on their gender role attitudes. Also this data shows that the women’s parents did not allow the man to be present during his wife’s birth, being more traditional.
After all this research, I still cannot make a generalization of how all Indian men are not being present during the woman’s childbirth. Although there was certainly a correlation between the men and women who were more traditional and religious who did not allow father to be present during delivery while those who weren’t had the male/father there. Just like in the U.S. we see TV and how father is always there in delivery room, how can we be so sure that during most of these births that the father is present? We cannot generalize because of the different views one country can have, especially in the US “the melting pot” with so many ideas, cultures and religions how can one infer that the father is always present, and even if he is there the extent of his ability to comfort her will differ. Hope you enjoyed finding out what typical male role is like another expanding one’s view outside, that few us of do until we leave the country and see another’s!
Hanlon, R.L. "India's views on gender roles." Helium. N.p., 24 April 2008. Web. 5 Apr 2011.
Hollen, Cecilia. Birth in the threshold: childbirth and modernity in South India. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 2003. 43. eBook.
"India Birth Rate - Demographics." indexmundi. N.p., 11 March 2011. Web. 5 Apr 2011.
Murray, Michelle, and Gayle Huelsmann. Labor and delivering nursing: a guide to evidence - based practice. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company, 2009. 202. eBook.
Singh, Abhishek, and Faujdar Ram. "Men’s Involvement during Pregnancy and Childbirth: Evidence from Rural Ahmadnagar, India." 48. (2009): 83- 102. Web. 4 Apr 2011
"10 tips for labor partners." baby center. Baby center India, 2010. Web. 4 Apr 2011.
“Traditional women in India will act subservient to their husbands and will not make their own decisions…Women from India are modest and will prefer to be draped and covered during procedures and during childbirth.”
ReplyDeleteI noticed this person said prefer instead of taught, we dont really know if they like covering themselves or not but they have to or else they would be judged by they're community. I found this post to be interesting it doesn't agree with the research I did on Indian birth rituals but that was with the Hindu culture and this may be apart of a different culture. I thought it was cool how you compared it to the traditional birth rituals of Americans.
Researching the differences between birth in the United States and birth in India an contrasting there differences was the main idea of this post. I valued how you explained how although women in India value men much more then they do in America, Indian women are more likely to ask their sister or mother to be in the delivery room. Unlike in America most women want their husband to be right by their side. This project matters to me because if/when I decide to start the birth process I want to know how other countries/ communities do it so I can compare and contrast the ways I want to proceed with my birth. Your project was very interesting, one thing I would recommend is checking for grammar and spelling mistakes.
ReplyDeleteDuring the pregnancy it seems that the male has the right to do everything rather than the woman giving birth but when the labor is in action it seems that the male/father is not present more so the mother(grandmother) and the female family members but then again it depends the gender role attitudes.
ReplyDeleteI like how you said not only do the women in the U.S prefer female doctors but so do women in India too. Both women know what they want or prefer. No matter where your from all the women seem to have the same stigma.
I thought that it related a lot to my project because i wanted to learn the birth culture in India as well. I feel like it's something different from what we hear everyday and good to hear other's people views on things we might not agree on as well.
Good job with the elevator speech, I actually came to look at your blog. Your post is a very easy read. It is well written, and well revised. Your in depth analysis of Indian birthing methods, while comparable to Ally and Leah's, is very well done and it is clear your research was extensive. I feel much less ignorant after reading your post, and reading it didn't feel like drudgery. This post is very important because information is key to understanding and acceptance. Those who shun others for their customs are ignorant and uneducated.
ReplyDeleteI thought your blog was very good. Of the blogs that I have read, your by far educated me the most. I could tell that you really put a lot of effort into your work and it reflects that effort. The most insightful aspect to me was, “After all this research, I still cannot make a generalization of how all Indian men are not being present during the woman’s childbirth. Although there was certainly a correlation between the men and women who were more traditional and religious who did not allow father to be present during delivery while those who weren’t had the male/father there. Just like in the U.S. we see TV and how father is always there in delivery room, how can we be so sure that during most of these births that the father is present? We cannot generalize because of the different views one country can have, especially in the US “the melting pot” with so many ideas, cultures and religions how can one infer that the father is always present, and even if he is there the extent of his ability to comfort her will differ.” This really gave me the feeling that you put thought into your writing and were not very judgmental or critical on the males. One thing that you should try not to do as much is use the word “so” because it can sometimes degrade take the formal tone of your work. Also, first paragraph may not have been necessary or very relevant to your actual topic. However if you are including this information, you should try to make a smoother transition as you change topics. Despite this, I thought it was an interesting addition to your work and a good hook. Your blog was overall one of the best I read.
ReplyDeleteThe goal of your project was to research the differences between birth in the United States and birth in India an contrasting them.
ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting that India woman did want their husbands in the delivery rooms. As you stated Indian woman vale there men but they don’t want them in the room while they give birth unlike in America where wives want there husbands in the room with them. Your project mattes to me because I plan to travel the world when I get older and I never know what I will need to know. You project was very interesting and it tough me knew things I would have not thought to look up on my own.