Creating the Modern Pregnant Woman, 1876–1926

In 1912, Dr. J. Morris Slemons’ new medical advice book, The Prospective Mother: A Handbook for Women During Pregnancy, demonstrated the burgeoning public discourse regarding the expectations for the modern pregnancy.  Within the pages of this advice manual emerged the cultural image of the modern pregnant woman who became the embodiment of the modern medical pregnancy. The Prospective Mother reflected a growing medical literature that argued that the obstetric profession must educate women to accept instead new modern ideas about creating a healthy pregnancy. At the same time, his book also revealed the presence of a growing obstetric specialty that expanded its authority as it extolled the need for prenatal care. To accomplish this, obstetricians created the cultural image of the modern pregnant woman and her role during pregnancy as an ideal that served as an example for all women.  

By examining obstetric textbooks, advice literature, and medical journal articles, this paper will cover how the rise of the modern medical pregnancy was not something women urged, but rather was created by obstetricians, placing new expectations on both the doctor and patient and creating a new experience of pregnancy.  For the obstetrician, the modern medical pregnancy and the acceptance of its standards by the patient influenced the growth of his professional authority.  For the middle-class woman, her role during pregnancy took on a new meaning and became the focal point of obstetric medicine. This had long-lasting social consequences for all women because the expectations attached to this image – regular visits to the doctor, the purchase of proper baby items and the maternity clothing, and diet consciousness – clearly demonstrated a woman’s acceptance of her responsibility to herself and her unborn child. Anything less raised questions regarding her ability to be a good mother.

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