Sharing Milk
Intimacy, Materiality and Bio-Communities of Practice
By Shannon K. Carter and Beatriz M. Reyes-Foster
ISBN
978-1529202083Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressISBN
978-1529202113Imprint
Bristol University PressISBN
978-1529202113Imprint
Bristol University Press
Sharing Milk
In the media
'How Mothers Make Meaning and Value through Milk Sharing' in Discover Society
The feeding of human milk to socially and biologically unrelated infants is not a new phenomenon, but the Euroamerican values of individualism have generated expectations that mothers are individually responsible for feeding their own infants.
Using a bio-communities of practice framework, this dynamic new analysis explores the emotional and material dimensions of the growing milk sharing practice in the Global North and its implications for contemporary understandings of infant feeding in the US.
Ranging widely across themes of motherhood, gender and sociology, this is a compelling empirical account of infant feeding that stimulates new thinking about a contentious practice.
“This is a fascinating, timely and creative account of parenting in neoliberal America. The authors expertly develop an ethnographic analysis of breastmilk sharing within bio-communities of practice, highlighting the significant roles of intimacy, affect, value and power in the context of gifted bio-fluids.” Susan Falls, Savannah College of Art and Design
“This book deftly synthesises conversations from anthropology, gender and women’s studies, health policy, and sociology. It provides a fresh, timely and important contribution to discussions around human milk sharing.” Rhonda M. Shaw, Victoria University of Wellington
"This engaging ethnography of peer milk sharing in an American town uses consistent theoretical framing and explicit methods to spotlight the stories of mothers and babies, connected through the emotion-laden intimate exchange of human milk." Penny Van Esterik, York University
Shannon K. Carter is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Central Florida. Her primary research areas are sociology of reproduction, social inequalities and sociology of health and medicine.
Beatriz M. Reyes-Foster is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida. Her research interests focus on medical anthropology, medical interactions, and coloniality.
1. Introduction: Sharing Milk
2. Theorizing Milk Sharing
3. Entering Bio-Communities of Practice
4. Milk-Sharing Practices
5. The Milk-Sharing Network
6. Conclusion
