Title: Role of media in motivating career-oriented females in challenging the norms of patriarchy

Authors: Priya Gupta; Mili Sharma

Addresses: Amity School of Fine Arts, Amity University, Lucknow Campus, Uttar Pradesh – 226010, India ' Amity School of Communication, Amity University, Lucknow Campus, Uttar Pradesh – 226010, India

Abstract: The present study begins with a pertinent question. Do women have a choice on whether they want to embrace motherhood, or are they socialised so effectively into the role almost from their own birth that they do not recognise it as one? If marriage is near universal in India, so is motherhood - there is little scope for choice here. Now the major problem arises that "Is it necessary for career-oriented women to get married and sacrifice their career for the sake of family and motherhood?" or why cannot a career-oriented woman pursue her career and enjoy motherhood without involving herself in the intricacies of marriage? The study, with the help of focus group discussions, spread across four stratums aims to provide answers to these questions. It tries to make a case for surrogacy and in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). It introduces the concept of 'single mothers by choice' or 'choice moms' and tries to understand the mindset of Indian women by analysing its advantages, disadvantages and consequences.

Keywords: patriarchy; strata; choice moms; career-oriented females; working; non-working; married; unmarried.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGSDS.2020.104605

International Journal of Gender Studies in Developing Societies, 2020 Vol.3 No.3, pp.243 - 255

Received: 30 May 2018
Accepted: 30 May 2019
Published online: 23 Jan 2020 *

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