Feminist Theory

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figurations of the Bio/logical Body (1998: 12); and Kathy Davis in Embod- ied Practices: Feminist Perspectives on the Body refers to embodied theory: Embodied ...
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Thinking through breasts: writing maternity Alison Bartlett Feminist Theory 2000; 1; 173 DOI: 10.1177/14647000022229146 The online version of this article can be found at: http://fty.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/1/2/173

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Thinking through breasts Writing maternity

Alison Bartlett University of Southern Queensland, Australia

Feminist Theory Copyright ©2000 SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks,ca and New Delhi) vol. 1(2): 173-188. [1464-7001 (200008) 1:2; 173–188; 014430]

Abstract Th is article begin s by w on d erin g h ow th e w riter’s tran sform ation in to m oth erh ood affects h er p ractice of read in g, w ritin g an d research : h ow m atern ities are m ad e acad em ic. Sp ecifically, th is article is in terested in th in kin g th rou gh lactatin g breasts, as a p articu larly com p lex an d p oten tially su bversive ‘p erform an ce’ of m atern ity. In ad d ition , th is article refram es ‘m atern al th in kin g’ th rou gh 1990s th eories of em bod im en t an d corp oreality, an d asks h ow em bod ied p ractices like breastfeed in g m igh t be th eorized , as w ell as h ow ‘em bod ied th eory’ m igh t be p ractised . In lookin g at variou s cu ltu ral texts abou t breasts an d breastfeed in g, th e article is scrip ted in to a series of con n ective an d reflexive scen es arou n d p erform an ce, sp ace, lan gu age an d kn ow led ge, com in g to rest in th e im agin ative p roject of an ep istem ology of breasts. It sets reflexive accou n ts of lived exp erien ce alon gsid e th eoretical reflection s to create a d yn am ic an d th ou gh tfu l read in g of breasts, en tw in in g p erson al an d p u blic d iscou rses, m atern al an d acad em ic w ritin g, th eorizin g an d cu ltu ral p ractices. keywords breastfeed in g, corp oreality, em bod im en t, fem in ism , p erform an ce

The new mother thinks Sin ce th e birth of m y d au gh ter, I often get con fu sed w h en I read abou t rep resen tin g th e m oth er. I keep th in kin g abou t m y ow n m oth er. It’s d ifficu lt for m e to rem em ber th at I am n ow a m oth er also, th at it m ay be m e bein g referred to, th at m aybe I cou ld be affected by th e m ean in gs of m atern ity. I ju st h ave to get u sed to a d ifferen t w ay of read in g. Read in g as a m oth er. Bu t also w ritin g as a m oth er. How d oes bein g a m oth er fit in to m y acad em ic w ritin g p ractices? How d oes acad em ic w ritin g fit in to m y version of m oth erh ood ? Mu st m oth erin g an d th eorizin g rem ain con trad ictory im p u lses? (Were th ey ever?) How d o w e im p licate ou r m atern ities in to ou r research an d w ritin g p ractices?

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Representing maternity In ‘Stabat Mater’, Ju lia Kristeva traces th e religiou s im agery th at p lays a m ajor role in con stitu tin g th e sym bolic m ean in gs of m atern ity an d , in d eed , fem in in ity, an d sh e also tries to m ake sp ace for th e w ritin g of an oth er version of m oth erh ood w h ich is m ore su bjective, w h ich p rocesses m ean in gs th rou gh exp erien ce. An d yet in th is latter p roject sh e fin d s ‘Word s alw ays too rem ote, too abstract to cap tu re th e su bterran ean sw arm of secon d s, in sin u atin g th em selves in to u n im agin able p laces. Writin g th em d ow n tests an argu m en t, as d oes love’ (1985: 100). Sim ilarly, in an extraord in arily (bu t p erh ap s u n su rp risin gly) p op u lar collection of stories called Moth er Love, Debra Ad elaid e n otes in h er in trod u ction ‘th e belief th at at th e h eart of th e birth exp erien ce lies th e in effable: th at th ere is n o word for it’ (1996: 5). Wh ile I w as in terview in g th e w riter Su e Woolfe, sh e com p lain ed , ‘th ere are n o stories abou t u s . . . w h en you th in k: “Wh at’s it like to be a m oth er? I’ll p op to th e library an d get a few books abou t m oth ers.” I d on ’t m ean , h ow to m oth er, I m ean th e im agin ative exp erien ce of m oth erin g. Th ere aren ’t stories abou t th is’ (in Bartlett, 1998: 236). Can th is be so? Are th ere so few w ord s w ritten abou t m oth erin g? Th e Moth er Love collection h ad su ch an overw h elm in g resp on se th at a sequ el w as p u blish ed th e follow in g year. An d Su e Woolfe’s n ovel, Lean in g Toward In fi n ity (1996), w rites h er d esire to read an im agin ative exp erien ce of m oth erin g an d also of m ath em atics, of gen eration s of th in kin g m oth ers.

Not only breasts In Lean in g Toward s In fi n ity, in fin ity is th e sh ap e th e assistan t in th e lin gerie sh op attribu tes to Fran ces’s m oth er. It is 1963, ‘th e age of breasts’ (1996: 54), w h en Fran ces’s m oth er takes a lover, w h en sh e goes in to tow n to bu y a n ew w h ite lacy bra an d a silky blu e p u llover ‘to sh ow off th e lin e of th e bra’. Sh op p in g later in tow n , every m an ’s eyes are d raw n to th e figu re accen tu ated by h er n ew bra, m esm erized by h er breasts w h ile sh e is com p letely u n aw are of th em . Wh ile Fran ces observes th is, sh e is m ore con cern ed by th e sh op assistan t w h o h ad ‘m ad e m y m oth er’s bod y sou n d like a n u m ber. . . . My m oth er, th e sh ap e of in fin ity’ (1996: 56). Fran ces’s m oth er is secretly a m ath em atician , as Fran ces is also, in a text th at seeks to m ake con n ection s betw een m ath em atics an d m oth erin g. Mu ch later in th is n on -lin ear story, th ere is a section en titled ‘Not on ly breasts’ w h ich , w h ile obviou sly referrin g to th e p reviou s rep resen tation of Fran ces’s m oth er as w ell breasted , n ow m akes th e p oin t th at sh e is an ep istem op h iliac: in love w ith th in kin g. Th e scen e is d om estic – th e kitch en – w ith Fran ces’s m oth er talkin g to h er son , Matti, abou t h er love of learn in g, h er joy in recitin g tables like a h ym n , in an effort to sp u r Matti on to th e m ath em atical w ork w h ich is h er p assion : ‘I’m in love w ith th in kin g. I d on ’t m ean th in kin g th in gs th rou gh or th in kin g th in gs over or th in kin g th in gs ou t, sh e said . . . . Th in kin g itself’ (1996: 122–3). Matti is sin gu larly u n im p ressed , as (sign ifican tly) th e m ilk boils over an d h e com p lain s, w h ile Fran ces is m esm erized by h er m oth er’s th in kin g. Th e son w an ts th e m oth er’s m ilk; th e d au gh ter is in love w ith h er th in kin g. In th e bod y of th e Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts m oth er, h ow ever, th in kin g an d breasts are yoked togeth er, as are m ath em atics an d m oth erin g. Wh en m y baby w as on ly a few w eeks old , a frien d sen t m e an extract p u blish ed in th e Syd n ey Morn in g Herald from Su san Mau sh art’s book, T h e Mask of Moth erh ood (1997). To h er su rp rise I resp on d ed im m ed iately. ‘At last’, I th ou gh t, ‘I can w rite to som eon e abou t th e in telligen ces of m oth erin g th at keep bu bblin g u p in m y th ou gh ts.’ Mau sh art’s th esis is also th at th ere is a con sp iracy of silen ce arou n d m oth erin g stories. Like cartoon ch aracters, I fin d bu bbles of th ou gh ts, of th eory, eru p tin g th rou gh th e su bterran ean sw arm of secon d s d u rin g m y m atern ity leave. Word s aren ’t rem ote, th ey’re tu m blin g over each oth er, ju st n ot very system atically. Th is esp ecially h ap p en s w h ile I am breastfeed in g, w h ile I am seated for h ou rs, rockin g, m y d au gh ter su cklin g an d sleep in g in m y arm s, m y m in d w an d erin g betw een th e p rofou n d an d th e trivial w h ile en gaged in th is m ost p rofou n d an d trivial of activities, th is m ost corp oreal of activities th at in sin u ates itself in to th e m ost u n im agin able p laces in m y th in kin g. An d so I take it to w ork . . .

Breast matters Breasts h ave trad ition ally m attered in p op u lar an d sym bolic lan gu age as sign ifiers of eith er sexu ality or m atern ity. Rarely are th ey (alon g w ith w om en ’s sexu ality an d m atern ity) associated w ith th in kin g. In lookin g for excep tion s, I fin d Kay Torn ey regard s breasts as p ossible bearers of stories w h en sh e n otes th at, ‘Th e breast is n ot u su ally rep resen ted as a gen erative or storied organ : p en s/ p en ises, an d even , for th e con sciou sn ess-raised , u teri, are m ore u su ally im agin ed as th e tools of literary an d cu ltu ral p rod u ction ’ (Torn ey, 1995: 20). Kate Llew ellyn ’s p oem ‘Breasts’ is m ore am bigu ou s abou t th e w om an ’s relation to h er breasts, bu t th rou gh ou t th e p oem breasts are p erson ified as read ers an d as kn ow ers: As I lean over to w rite on e breast w arm as a breast from th e su n h an gs over as if to read w h at I’m w ritin g th ese breasts alw ays w an t to kn ow everyth in g som etim es exp lorin g th e in sid e cu rve of m y elbow som etim es m easu rin g a m an ’s h an d lyin g still as a p on d u n til h e can n ot feel h e is h old in g an yth in g bu t w ater th en h e d ream s h e is floatin g in th e m orn in g m y breast is refresh ed an d w an ts to kn ow som eth in g n ew. (Llew ellyn , 1986: 158)1

Wh at can breasts kn ow, an d h ow d o w e kn ow th em ? Wh at can breasts read , an d h ow d o w e read th em ? Th ese are m atters th at h ave com e to occu p y m y th in kin g an d m y read in g, an d n ow m y w ritin g. Bu t h ow to w rite abou t th ese slip p ery in klin gs of read kn ow led ge an d lived exp erien ce is an oth er m atter. Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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Representing corporeality As fem in ists, w e are u sed to valu in g exp erien ce, of u sin g it as th e raw m aterial of social critiqu e. An d if th is p ractice becam e u n fash ion able in th e h igh th eory d ays of th e1980s, th en it gain ed a ren ew ed resp ectability in th e 1990s th rou gh p oststru ctu ralist form u lation s of su bjectivity an d d isp lacem en ts of Western p h ilosop h y’s m in d -bod y d u alism by fem in ist p h ilosop h ers. Elizabeth Grosz’s corp oreal fem in ism establish ed ‘a refigu rin g of th e bod y so th at it m oves from th e p erip h ery to th e cen ter of an alysis, so th at it can n ow be u n d erstood as th e very “stu ff” of su bjectivity’ (1994: ix). Sh e goes on to say th at Th is reth in kin g of th e bod y h as im p lication s w ell beyon d th e d iscip lin ary in terests of p h ilosop h y: it im p lies th at th e w ays in w h ich w e u n d erstan d su bjectivity, an d its co-im p licated term s – sp ace an d tim e, m ateriality, exch an ge, kn ow led ge, p ow er, p leasu re, social an d cu ltu ral p rod u ction – m u st th em selves be tran sform ed . (1995: 2)

Som e of th ose im p lication s h ave been taken u p in sp ecial issu es of jou rn als focu sin g on fem in ism an d th e bod y w h ich ap p eared th rou gh ou t th e 1990s (in Hyp atia, A u stralian Fem in ist S tu d ies, Eu rop ean Jou rn al of Wom en ’s S tu d ies, to n am e a few ), often lead in g to ed ited collection s of essays as w ell as sole au th ored texts. A read er, Fem in ist T h eory an d th e Bod y ed ited by Margrit Sh ild rick an d Jan et Price, ap p eared in 1999, sign ifyin g th e accu m u lation an d recogn ition of a critical m ass of w ork in th e area. Qu ite often , th is w ork is in d ebted to th e ‘Fren ch ’ fem in ism s, esp ecially Irigaray’s an d Cixou s’s exh ortation s to w rite you r bod y. Rath er th an p layin g on th e rich m etap h oricity an d lin gu istic slip p age favou red by th e Fren ch , th ou gh , th is n ew w ork claim s to ad d ress th e lived , exp erien cin g bod y. Pau l Kom esaroff sp eaks of ‘Em bod ied exp erien ce gen erat[in g] m ean in gs an d valu es’ in th e in trod u ction to Trou bled Bod ies (1995: 15); Sh ild rick an d Price stress th e relevan ce of ‘th e relation sh ip betw een bod ies an d w ritin g’ in th eir in trod u ction to Vital S ign s: Fem in ist Recon fi gu ration s of th e Bio/ logical Bod y (1998: 12); an d Kath y Davis in Em bod ied Practices: Fem in ist Persp ectives on th e Bod y refers to em bod ied th eory: Em bod ied th eory requ ires in teraction betw een th eories abou t th e bod y an d an alyses of th e p articu larities of em bod ied exp erien ces an d p ractices. It n eed s to exp licitly tackle th e relation sh ip betw een th e sym bolic an d th e m aterial, betw een rep resen tation s of th e bod y an d em bod im en t as exp erien ce or social p ractice in con crete social, cu ltu ral an d h istorical con texts. (1997: 15)

An d yet w ith very few excep tion s, th e bod y of th e w riter, of th e research er, still rem ain s acad em ic. Wh at Cath erin e Wald by calls ‘th e fiction of th e d isem bod ied sch olar’ (1995: 17) is m ain tain ed , even in m u ch ‘em bod ied th eory’. Bu t w h at exactly is it th at I im agin e em bod ied th eory to be? Wh at d o I w an t of its w riters? How can it be p ractised ? An d h ow can I brin g it to m y th in kin g th rou gh breasts? How w ou ld th eir m ater/ iality be w ritten ? Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts

Thinking breasts In m y effort tow ard s em bod ied th eory, I w an t to en tw in e p erson al an d p u blic d iscou rses, m atern al an d acad em ic w ritin g, th eorizin g an d cu ltu ral p ractices. As you m igh t h ave alread y gu essed , I am sp ecifically in terested in breasts. I am in terested in breasts as th e su bject of th ou gh t – in th in kin g breasts: in th e w ays in w h ich breasts sign ify m atern ity or th e m atern al self; h ow th ey are (an d m igh t be) rep resen ted , sp oken abou t, sp oken to, h ow th ey m igh t sp eak; as sites of rep resen tation an d of kn ow led ge; as m atterin g in th e w ay th at Ju d ith Bu tler u ses m atter to talk abou t th e bod y as in telligible: ‘to kn ow h ow an d w h y it m atters, w h ere “to m atter” m ean s at on ce “to m aterialize” an d “to m ean ” ’ (1993: 32). Most im p ortan tly, th ou gh , I am in terested in breasts as th ou gh t-fu ll su bjects. In m y th in kin g th rou gh breasts, I m obilize p oetry, an ecd ote an d jou rn al en tries, Fren ch fem in ist th eory, p h en om en ology an d critical th eory, storyin g, jou rn alism an d m u sin g as m od es of in qu iry, to be su ggestive rath er th an au th oritative. I aim to set reflexive accou n ts of lived exp erien ce alon gsid e th eoretical reflection s to create a d yn am ic betw een th em , an d I on ly u se th ose th eories th at h ave sp arked con n ection s w ith m y exp erien ce, rath er th an exh au stively coverin g all p reviou s w ritin g. In lookin g at variou s cu ltu ral texts abou t breasts an d breastfeed in g, I h ave scrip ted th e rest of th is article in to a series of con n ective an d reflexive scen es arou n d p erform an ce, sp ace, lan gu age an d kn ow led ge.

Performing breasts Theatre scenes I go to th e th eatre w ith a n ew born baby. Th e th eatre is at th e Un iversity. It is th e first n igh t. Th e Vice Ch an cellor is th ere, alon g w ith oth er im p ortan t gu ests. I sit in a seat n ear th e aisle so I can escap e qu ickly if m y baby starts cryin g w h en sh e w akes. Sh e w akes, an d I offer h er a breast. Sh e h ap p ily su ckles for th e rest of th e p lay. I sit in th e h alf ligh t w ith m y h u ge breast ou t, m y d au gh ter latch ed on . It feels cu riou sly su bversive. For w h at oth er reason cou ld I sit in a th eatre w ith on e breast ‘exp osed ’, u n less p erform in g m atern ity? It m ean s m oth er an d baby d o n ot d isru p t th e ‘real’ p erform an ce, an d yet som e oth er m ean in g is bein g d isru p ted , som eth in g to d o w ith th e w ay I h ave been train ed to ‘beh ave’ in p u blic. In a th eatre off-off-Broad w ay seven w om en in th e fin al w eeks of th eir p regn an cy are m akin g a sh ow of th eir m atern al bod ies. Th ey are ‘d an cin g vigorou sly’ in a p erform an ce called Ex p ectan t Tan go, an d Ram on a Koval w rites w ith p leasu re abou t h er exp erien ce of su ch a scen e: Th e first th in g you see are th e gloriou s bellies, each its ow n sh ap e, som e carryin g h igh , oth ers low, all rip e to bu rstin g. Th eir p rotru d in g n avels are visible th rou gh th e sh eer red jersey, as are th eir n ip p les, bath ed in h orm on es. Th ey d an ce som etim es alon e, in p airs an d in a lin e of exu beran t m atern ity cu p p in g th eir breasts an d th eir bellies in a sexy tan go. (1998: 28)

A sexy tan go of m atern al bod ies. Even in th e p erform an ce sp ace of th e th eatre, seein g bod ies like th ese is excep tion al, as Koval n otes: ‘you ’re Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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Feminist Theory 1(2) su p p osed to be barefoot an d p regn an t at h om e, n ot tread in g th e board s w ith you r n am e an d n avel in ligh ts’ (1998: 28).

Public scenes A recen t w eeken d ed ition (27–28 Novem ber 1999) of Au stralia’s on ly n ation al n ew sp ap er featu red on th e cover of its m agazin e su p p lem en t a fu ll-p age colou r p h oto taken by An n ie Leibovitz of Jerry Hall breastfeed in g h er son , Gabriel Jagger (Leibovitz an d Son tag, 1999). It is qu ite obviou sly a staged p h oto. Th e m od el is w earin g a little black d ress w ith a tiger strip ed fu r coat over it. Sh e is fu lly m ad e-u p , w earin g brigh t red lip stick, h er lon g blon d e h air loosely cascad in g over th e fu r. Sh e is sittin g cross legged in a p lu sh red u p h olstered ch air, h er bod y sligh tly sid e on , an d w e follow h er lon g legs d ow n to see gold stilettos, a gold ch ain attach ed w ith a h eart arou n d h er beau tifu lly cu rved an kle. Th e in terior of th e room is rich ly fu rn ish ed in red , black an d gold . It is a settin g an d a p ortrait p osition in w h ich w e m igh t be u sed to seein g Jerry Hall p laced , bu t th e big n aked baby in th e very cen tre of th e p h otograp h , su cklin g on a breast d raw n ou t over th e top of th e d ress, takes u s by su rp rise. Th e baby is cu rled on h er lap , on e arm reach in g u p to th e oth er breast, an d looks across th e m oth er’s bod y. Hall h as on e arm arou n d th e baby’s bod y, p rotectively, su p p ortin g h im , th e oth er on th e ch air arm strokin g h is foot. Sh e looks d irectly at th e cam era, seriou sly, alm ost su rly, d arin g u s to ch allen ge h er. Pred ictably, th e p h otograp h of Hall p rovoked a n u m ber of letters to th e ed itor th e follow in g w eeken d , both p raisin g th e d ep iction of Jerry Hall (‘d esp ite everyth in g sh e h as been th rou gh ’), p raisin g th e d ep iction of breastfeed in g, an d beratin g th e rom an ticizin g of breastfeed in g. All th e letters assu m ed th e realism of th e p h otograp h , d esp ite its qu ite obviou s stagin g an d con fu sion of m arkers. To w h at exten t th en , can w e regard breastfeed in g as p erform an ce, as a stagin g of gen d er? In a stu d y of w om en ’s attitu d es to breastfeed in g in p u blic, Cin d y Stearn s fou n d th at m ost w om en ‘p roceed ed w ith th eir breastfeed in g as th ou gh it w ere d evian t beh aviou r . . . bein g an in visible breastfeed in g m oth er w as th e goal for m an y w om en ’ (1999: 312, 313). Th is w as attribu ted to cu ltu ral an d , in p arts of th e Un ited States, legislative taboos p roh ibitin g breastfeed in g in p u blic. Bu t Stearn s fram es h er d iscu ssion in term s of w om en ‘m an agin g’ or ‘d oin g breastfeed in g’, to ‘th e p ossibilities for p u blic p erform an ce’ (1999: 311).

Symbolic scenes Th e p h otograp h d eliberately m ixes its visu al cu es: th e rich ly d ecorated settin g an d m od el are cu stom arily associated w ith glam ou r an d sexu ality rath er th an th e m ore m u n d an e an d com m on p lace activity of breastfeed in g a baby. Not on ly d oes th is u p set con ven tion s of p ortraitu re on a rep resen tation al level (for exam p le, con ven tion s of p ortrayin g Jerry Hall, con ven tion s of p ortrayin g breastfeed in g), it also tran sgresses con ven tion on a m ore d eep ly sym bolic level. Hop elessly u n realistic, n aïve an d ou td ated as it is, th e icon ograp h y of m oth er an d baby as it h as been rep rod u ced th rou gh Ch ristian trad ition is still p ortrayed as virgin al, sacrificial an d even Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts asexu al. Breastfeed in g in h erits th is sym bolic trad ition , as Marin a Warn er n otes (1976), th rou gh th e Virgin Mary bein g p ortrayed breastfeed in g h er son – th e on ly corp oreal activity associated w ith rep rod u ction / m atern ity actu ally p erm itted of h er. Wh ile m an y w om en m igh t esch ew su ch trad ition s n ow, rem n an ts of it rem ain stron gly em bed d ed in ou r cu ltu ral p ractices, often in u n com fortable com bin ation w ith th e sexu alization of w om en ’s bod ies, ren d erin g breastfeed in g som eth in g con fu sin gly sacred an d sexu al. Leibovitz’s p h otograp h of Hall in sin u ates itself in sid e su ch trad ition s an d rein scribes th ose sym bolic m ean in gs. In th e qu ite con servative region al tow n in w h ich I live, a n u m ber of w om en fram ed an d h u n g th e m agazin e cover on th eir w alls. Th e lack of rep resen tation al m aterial con trary to th e d om in an t p arad igm ren d ered th is p h otograp h an im p ortan t affirm ation in m akin g m ean in g of breastfeed in g for th ose p articu lar w om en .

Performing gender I read Ju d ith Bu tler: ‘Gen d er is w h at is p u t on , in variably, u n d er con strain t, d aily an d in cessan tly, w ith an xiety an d p leasu re’, sh e su ggests in h er essay, ‘Perform ative Acts an d Gen d er Con stitu tion ’ (1990: 282). Sh e con ten d s th at ‘th e acts by w h ich gen d er is con stitu ted bear sim ilarities to p erform ative acts w ith in th eatrical con texts’ (1990: 272). Breastfeed in g, I h ave d iscovered , is a gen d ered act. It is gen erally accep ted as an activity corp oreally restricted to w om en , bu t m ed ical d iscou rses (th rou gh case h istories) d isp lace th e fixity of breastfeed in g as gen d ered . Most m en ap p aren tly h ave th e sam e p h ysiological cap acity to lactate, alth ou gh it is u n d erd evelop ed , an d th ere are m an y cases of sp on tan eou s m ale lactation , u su ally u n d er con d ition s of d u ress (see Diam on d , 1995). Man y w om en w ou ld be ap p alled at th e th ou gh t of m en takin g on th e role of breastfeed in g, bu t p h ysiologically, it seem s, lactation is n ot an activity restricted to w om en . As lactation is cu ltu rally p ractised as ‘breastfeed in g’, h ow ever, it is gen d ered . Bu tler seem s ap p licable h ere th en , in th in kin g th rou gh breastfeed in g as a p erform an ce of gen d er, as ‘an act th at on e d oes’ (1990: 277). How an d w h ere on e d oes it is an in tegral p art of th at p erform an ce. Bu tler also offers th e in evitability of ch an gin g cu ltu ral scrip ts over tim e: If th e grou n d of gen d er id en tity is th e stylized rep etition of acts th rou gh tim e, an d n ot a seem in gly seam less id en tity, th en th e p ossibilities of gen d er tran sform ation are to be fou n d in th e arbitrary relation betw een su ch acts, in th e p ossibility of a d ifferen t sort of rep eatin g, in th e breakin g or su bversive rep etition of th at style. (1990: 271)

An n ie Leibovitz’s p h otograp h of Jerry Hall is certain ly stylized , an d m igh t be seen as su bversively rep eatin g th e acts of Stearn s’ w om en , breakin g th e style of trad ition al rep resen tation s an d of th eir con tem p orary p ractices. Wh ile Bu tler in sists th at ‘gen d er is a basically in n ovative affair’, sh e ad d s h ow ever th at ‘it is qu ite clear th at th ere are strict p u n ish m en ts for con testin g th e scrip t by p erform in g ou t of tu rn or th rou gh u n w arran ted im p rovisation s’ (1990: 282). So w h at im p rovisation s are w arran ted an d w h ich are ‘u n w arran ted ’? Maybe it d ep en d s on th e kin d of ‘th eatre’ in w h ich w e breastfeed . Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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Making scenes ‘Breasts are a scan d al for p atriarch y becau se th ey d isru p t th e bord er betw een m oth erh ood an d sexu ality’, w rites Iris Marion You n g (1990: 190). An d if I in sert Rosalyn Dip rose’s d efin ition of sexu ality h ere, ‘to m ean th e u se (in th e sen se of both cap acity an d p ractice) of p leasu re an d p ain ’ (1998: 31), th en m ore scan d als em erge. I rem em ber (an oth er scen e) n igh ts sittin g u p in th e d ark breastfeed in g th rou gh th e p ain of – bad p osition in g? u n fam iliarity? soft n ip p les? – ch an tin g to m yself ‘big stron g n ip p le, big stron g n ip p le’ w ith tears qu ietly stream in g d ow n m y ch eeks, th in kin g ‘th is is th e p its. It can n ot get an y w orse’. As th e p ain becom es m ore in ten se th rou gh th e n igh t, I d ecid e n ot to rem ain qu iet bu t to vocalize th e p ain on each breath , m akin g p rim itive an im al-like groan s w h ile m y d au gh ter d row sily attach es an d m y p artn er sleep s on n oisily besid e m e. At som e stage m y babe d iscovers th at I h ave tw o breasts, an d w h ile sh e su ckles on on e sh e stretch es ou t h er tin y h an d to locate th e oth er on e, softly caressin g th e cu rve of m y breast, bru sh in g p ast th e n ip p le an d th en lin gerin g on it, fon d lin g th e n ip p le an d feelin g it grow in h er fin gers. Like a lover bu t m ore ten d er, softer, sm aller h an d s, bu t th en rou gh er as sh e squ eezes th e n ip p le an d I h ave to u n cu rl h er fin gers lau gh in gly squ irm in g. Listen in g to a w om en ’s rad io p rogram m e abou t breastfeed in g I h ear som e w om en say th ey orgasm w h ile breastfeed in g th eir baby. Wow !

Breastspace My breasts take u p sp ace. Th ey stick ou t fu rth er th an ever before. Th ey d rift d ow n m ore th an ever before, gen tly n u d gin g m y w aist w h en I lean over, as if sad d en ed som eh ow. Th ey sw in g in a w ay th ey n ever u sed to. Frien d s tell m e th ey w ill ‘settle d ow n ’ (as if th ey are excited ) after a w h ile. I start to n otice th e w ay big-breasted w om en carry th eir breasts, w h at kin d s of cloth es th ey ch oose, th eir attitu d e in th eir p ostu re, th e am ou n t of sp ace th ey take u p an d th e w ays th ey m ove th rou gh it.

Shopping space I d iscover a n ew sp ace for m y breasts: th e p aren ts’ room . At every sh op p in g cen tre an d d ep artm en t store, th ese room s are com p etitively equ ip p ed w ith softly colou red fu rn ish in gs an d d écor, ch an ge tables, d isp osable tow els, som e h ave toilets, oth ers h ave m icrow aves, boilin g w ater on tap , m ost h ave som e toys or a p lay-p en . Th ey are like a h om e aw ay from h om e. Th ey are so com fortable you can forget abou t th e sh op p in g cen tre ou tsid e. Alm ost. Th ey are u su ally located righ t in th e cen tre of th e cen tre. In fact, if th e sh op p in g cen tre can be liken ed to an organ ism , th e p aren ts’ room is located in its bow els, d eep in sid e a labyrin th of p ath w ays betw een en tran ce an d exit (see also Sofou lis, 1996). Th ese secret in sid e p assages con ceal th e activities of m an agem en t, clean ers, d efecation an d breastfeed in g. Meagh an Morris talks abou t th e w ay sh op p in g cen tres are d esign ed to be sed u ctive, to lu re you in to p laces you h ad n ot p lan n ed on goin g, to tem p t you to bu y (1988: 195). Breastfeed in g m oth ers are n ow accom m od ated aw ay from th e Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts sed u ction of sh op p in g. Stearn s’ w om en w ou ld n o d ou bt be gratefu l for su ch con sid eration , saved from th e h ostile p u blic gaze. Bu t I feel in su lted , bein g locked aw ay ou t of sigh t. I sit in th e café in th e m id d le of th e sh op p in g m all to feed m y baby.

Shopping for breastspace I go to Myers d ep artm en t store to bu y a m atern ity bra. Th is is w h at I am su p p osed to d o. It is p art of th e ritu al of becom in g a m oth er. I su sp ect it is also a w ay of strap p in g m y breasts in , of con fin in g th em to th e sp ace (ou t th ere, n ot d ow n th ere) th ey are su p p osed to occu p y. We th ree (th e fam ily trin ity) stan d an d look at th e rack of en cased fram es in sen sible beige an d w ash able n ylon . Th ey look gh astly. Th ey are d istin ctly sep arated from th e lacy, satin y, black, blu e, red , sex y bras. A Myers lad y com es to h elp m e. I try on th ree p airs an d am agh ast at th e sh ap e th ey m ake m e (I feel p oin ty th e w ay Mad on n a p arod ies), th e coarsen ess of th e fabric, th e p rice, th e u tter n on -sen su ality of th e th in g. I bu y th e least u n com fortable p air on cred it an d flee. I rarely w ear th em . Som etim es if m y breasts feel h eavy an d I w an t som e assistan ce to h old th em u p , or if I go in to w ork an d feel as th ou gh I n eed p rotection , I p u t th em on , like arm ou r. Wh en I com e h om e, th ou gh , I realize th at I h aven ’t been in tou ch w ith m y breasts for qu ite som e tim e. Th e bras en case everyth in g, in clu d in g every feelin g, so th at I can n ot even tell w h en I am fu ll, w h en th e d u cts start to h ard en from en gorgem en t. I get h om e an d th ey are solid in p arts. Th e bras d isem bod y m y breasts. On e d ay I d ye th e bras p u rp le, bu t th e variou s syn th etic fabrics m ean it is several sh ad es of p u rp le an d th ey su d d en ly look old an d w orn . My bras d ied . I am rem in d ed of th e sym bolism of bra-bu rn in g in th e m yth ology of 1960s w om en ’s liberation . Wh y is bu rn in g th e bra th e u ltim ate im age of th e rad ical su bversion of th e m aled om in ated ord er? Becau se u n bou n d breasts sh ow th eir flu id an d ch an gin g sh ap e; th ey d o n ot rem ain th e firm an d stable objects th at p h allocratic fetish ism d esires. Becau se u n bou n d breasts m ake a m ockery of th e id eal of a ‘p erfect’ breast. Th e bra n orm alizes th e breasts, liftin g an d cu rvin g th e breasts to ap p roxim ate th e on e an d on ly breast id eal. (You n g, 1990: 95–6)

An d is it all th e m ore scan d alou s, I w on d er, for large h eavy lactatin g breasts to be u n bou n d ? To go w ith ou t n u rsin g p ad s? To ‘risk’ th e p ossibility of leakin g m ilk over cloth es, leavin g visible m arks of m atern ity?

14 September Sh e is eigh t w eeks old . A very d ifferen t relation I h ave to m y breasts n ow. I love to w alk arou n d w ith n oth in g on top . It is as if th ey n eed to stretch ou t an d be aired in th e op en after bein g bra’d an d p rotected an d su ckled an d squ ash ed . On Strad broke Islan d I w an d ered u p th e beach an d took off m y sh irt, stretch ed ou t u n d er th e su n on m y tow el an d it felt d eliciou s. Takin g m y breasts to th e beach . Som etim es it feels like th ey are on loan to m e, th ey look so absu rd on m y bod y. I w on d er h ow lon g th ey are h ere to stay . . . Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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The language of breasts Coming to terms Com in g to term s w ith breast ch an ges w as for m e on e of th e cen tral factors of m akin g n ew m ean in g of m yself as a m oth er. It is n ot n ecessary, th ou gh , to h ave exp erien ced m atern al breasts to be in volved in n egotiatin g breasts as a sou rce of (self) kn ow led ge. As Iris Marion You n g su ggests, ‘few w om en in ou r society escap e h avin g to take som e attitu d e tow ard th e p oten tially objectifyin g regard of th e oth er on h er breasts’ (1990: 191), an d all w om en , w h eth er m oth ers or n ot, ‘are still too often cast in th e n u rtu ran t role’ (1990: 200). Man y w om en w h o are d iagn osed w ith breast can cer feel im p elled to exam in e th e w ays in w h ich th eir su bjectivity as w om en is con n ected w ith th eir breasts. It is th e exp erien ce of m y breasts as m atern al, h ow ever, th at h as in ten sified m y relation to th em . Th ey becam e cen tral to th e w ays in w h ich I h ad to rein ven t m yself as a m oth er, in com in g to term s w ith a n ew bod y/ su bjectivity, an d h ave p rom p ted m y th in kin g th rou gh breasts. Jan e Gallop h as argu ed th at th ere is a sign ifican t d ifferen ce betw een talkin g abou t ‘th e breast’, w h ich fu n ction s sym bolically ‘like a p ain tin g in a m u seu m ’ (1993: 11), an d ‘breasts’, w h ich are u su ally p erson alized . Th e d ifferen ce, sh e argu es, ‘m igh t fu n ction like th e in fam ou s p h allu s/ p en is relation ’ (1993: 11). Th e w ays in w h ich w e (can ) talk abou t breasts, th en , affects th e m ean in gs w e are able to gen erate an d u se for ou rselves.

Scene 1: naming breasts On e of m y first d ilem m as w as w h at I w an ted to call m y breasts. Th ere w as alw ays som eon e th ere to tell m e th at: ‘Sh e w an ts som e titty’, ‘Sh e’s goin g for th e boosie’, ‘Wh ere’s th e boobie?’, ‘Tim e for breastie’, ‘Better give h er som e tit’. Th e in fan tilizin g gestu re of ad d in g a fam iliar ‘ie’ to each term u n n erved m e for w h at w ere n ow th ese am azin gly active m ilk-filled p arts of m e. Bu xom is a w ord I feel in clin ed to em p loy in m y feelin gs tow ard s w earin g th ese breasts, as w ell as m atron ly. (Wh at an am bivalen t register of p ow er th at w ord em bod ies: m atron s are in ch arge of en tire h osp itals, an d yet a m atron is gen d ered as a w om an ’s p osition . Tu rn in g th e n ou n in to an ad jective, m atron ly, is n ot u su ally u sed as a com p lim en t bu t as an in d icator of a p articu lar typ e of w om an ly bod y sh ap e. Hosp itals are n ow ru n by Execu tive Officers.)

Scene 2: keeping abreast Breasts figu re cu riou sly in figu rative sp eech : m akin g a clean breast of th in gs m ean s to m ake a fu ll con fession (bu t w h at is th e m ean in g of a clean breast? An d w h at is an u n clean breast?). Keep in g som eth in g close to th e breast often m ean s close to th e h eart, as is th e left breast. I h eard th at babies often favou r a w om an ’s left breast becau se th ey are com forted by th eir closen ess to th e m oth er’s h eartbeat. Or is it becau se m ost p eop le are righ t-h an d ed ? Keep in g abreast of th in gs is to keep u p , to keep in fron t, an d m y d iction ary also u ses breast to m ean ‘to face, m eet bold ly or ad van ce again st’,

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Bartlett: Thinking through breasts m ean in gs attach ed to th e breasted p osition on th e fron t of th e bod y n o d ou bt, as Kate Llew ellyn ’s p oem , ‘Breasts’, also p lays on : as you w ill realise th ese are m y bod y’s cu riou s fru it w an tin g to kn ow everyth in g alw ays gettin g th ere first stran ge as w h ite beetroot exotic as u n icorn s I kn ow m y breast kn ow s m ore th an I d o p ryin g h an gin g over fen ces observan t as a n eigh bou r or eager as a w om an w an tin g to gossip th ey tell m e n oth in g bu t th ey say qu ite a lot abou t m e. (Llew ellyn , 1986: 158)

Scene 3: breasts for thought Llew ellyn ’s ch aracterizin g of breasts as in qu isitive, w an tin g to kn ow, an d also tellin g (‘abou t m e’) alw ays seem ed to m e to be d eligh tfu lly p erverse, a p layfu l fem in ist rein scrip tion of m ean in g, bu t th ere is a cu riou s referen ce in m y Pen gu in Macqu arie Diction ary (1986: 66) to ‘th e bosom ’ w h ich ‘is regard ed as th e seat of th ou gh ts an d feelin gs’. Im agin e th at! Th e seat of th ou gh ts. Breasts as gen erators of id eas, as p rod u cers of kn ow led ge. Wh at d ifferen ce w ou ld it m ake, th en , if you h ave a m an ly breast th at is sm ooth an d flat an d rip p lin g w ith m u scle an d m aybe even h air; or an ad olescen t girl’s breast th at is ch an gin g sh ap e, w eigh t, form d aily; or a m atern al breast th at is h eavily d roop in g an d fu ll, actively p rod u cin g m ilk an d n ou rish in g an in fan t, leakin g everyw h ere at th e th ou gh t of th e baby an d con stan tly rep len ish in g an d bein g rep len ish ed ? Wh ile every w om an w ou ld d escribe lactatin g breasts d ifferen tly, th e m etap h ors of activity an d p rod u ction , w eigh t an d size, w ou ld h ave to rem ain sign ifican t. Su d d en ly lactatin g breasts becom e fertile grou n d s of w isd om , active organ s p rod u cin g food for th e m in d as w ell as th e bod y. Wh at a d ifferen ce th is w ou ld m ake to th e w ay breasts are w orn . Am I takin g th is too far? Do th e m etap h ors sn ap w ith su ch stretch in g? I take solace in Cixou s: ‘Metap h or? Yes. No. If everyth in g is m etap h or, th en n oth in g is m etap h or’ (1991: 50).

Breasted knowledge You n g asks u s to ‘im agin e con stru ctin g th e m od el of sexu al p ow er in breasts rath er th an p en ises’ (1990: 194), bu t im agin e con stru ctin g a m od el of (sexed ) kn ow led ge arou n d th e breast rath er th an th e p h allu s. Wh at m igh t th is in volve? I d o n ot w an t to reh earse th ose old d u alism s of p rocess rath er th an clim ax, cu rvaceou s rath er th an lin ear, soft rath er th an h ard , flu id rath er th an solid , d ou blen ess rath er th an sin gu larity. Bu t w h ere else can w e go to im agin e su ch an ep istem ology? I h ave tw o su ggestion s: on e is to d o w ith m etap h or, th e oth er w ith m ateriality, bu t th ey are fairly slip p ery an d I h ave trou ble d ifferen tiatin g w h ich is w h ich .

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Writing breasts Breast m ilk is ju st on e of th e asp ects th at cou ld con stitu te p art of con cep tu alizin g th e breast as a site of kn ow led ge, or seat of th ou gh t. Hélèn e Cixou s d eligh ts in rep resen tin g th e breast as a con tin u ally rep len ish in g sou rce of creativity w h ich ackn ow led ges ‘m atern al d ebt’ – th e gift of m atern ity th at can n ever be rep aid an d w h ich th e sym bolic ord er stru ggles to ackn ow led ge. Her con troversial u se of breast-m ilk as a m ean s to w rite is u ttered in th e sam e breath as birth : Sh e gives birth . With th e force of a lion ess. Of a p lan t. Of a cosm ogon y. Of a w om an . . . . An d in th e w ake of th e ch ild , a squ all of Breath ! A lon gin g for text! Con fu sion ! Wh at’s com e over h er? A ch ild ! Pap er! In toxication s! I’m brim m in g over! My breasts are overflow in g! Milk. In k. Nu rsin g tim e. An d m e? I’m h u n gry, too. Th e m ilky taste of in k! (1991: 31)

Cixou s’s u se of breasts as sym bols of n u rtu rin g an d gen erosity is yoked w ith w ritin g an d th in kin g, so th at m oth erin g an d th eorizin g are corp oreally con stitu ted th rou gh breast-m ilk. Th is im p erative to w rite is u rgen t, an d for Cixou s, ‘w ritin g is p recisely th e very p ossibility of ch an ge’ (1976: 879) an d m u st be m arked by th e bod y w h ich w rites it, th e bod y th rou gh w h ich w ritin g is p rod u ced . So w h at w e w rite abou t (ou r) breasts is sh ap ed by ou r ‘breasted exp erien ce’ (You n g) an d w ill in tu rn affect th e m ean in gs w e can attach to th at exp erien ce. Bu t Cixou s op erates on th e level of lan gu age. I on ce tried takin g h er literally, bu t to w rite in breast-m ilk is to w rite in in visible in k.

Reading breasts I w an t to tell you abou t th e textu al relation sh ip I h ave forged w ith m y breasts. Wh ile I h ave been breastfeed in g I h ave com e to recogn ize th at m y breasts p eriod ically act as barom eters of m y h ealth an d are d riven to p ain fu l sign als w h en ‘I’ ign ore m y h ealth . Wh en I start to get ru n d ow n m y breasts register soren ess at breastfeed s, an d if I ign ore th ose sign als, th ey begin ran d om stabs of p ain d u rin g th e d ay to brin g m y atten tion to th em . ‘Help ’, ‘slow d ow n ’, ‘you ’re ru n n in g you rself in to th e grou n d ’, ‘take n otice or else’, th ey seem to say. Several tim es I h ave con tin u ed on w ith th e an xiety of d ead lin es an d lectu res an d h ad to take d ays off later to recover. If I resp on d p rom p tly an d rest, I recover qu ickly. Wh en I read back over th e first year of m oth erin g, it is alw ays th e tim es of stress an d h u rried life th at coin cid e w ith breastly d ram as. Th e last tim e it h ap p en ed m y d au gh ter w as 18 m on th s old . You w ou ld h ave th ou gh t I w ou ld h ave learn ed to listen by th en . Ad rien n e Rich ’s p h rase, th at ‘every w om an is th e p resid in g gen iu s of h er ow n bod y’ (1976: 285) m akes a m ockery of m e.

Theories for thinking breasts Th e acad em ic in m e crin ges sligh tly at th is fan cifu l relation I h ave m ad e, betw een stress levels an d breasted exp erien ce. So I am relieved to read Elizabeth A. Wilson argu e for a ‘m u tu ally obligin g on tology of m u scles an d m em ories’ (1999: 13). ‘Mu scu lar p ain ’, sh e w rites, ‘d oes n ot sim p ly accom p an y m en tal an gu ish in a relation of ben ign coexistan ce’ (1999: 12). Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts Discu ssin g con version h ysteria (th e w ay in w h ich ‘con torted id eation al stru ctu res are th en con verted in to bod ily sym p tom s’ [1999: 9]), Wilson argu es for ‘th e biology of m u scu larity to be fu lly p sych ological. Th e n atu re an d fu n ction of th ese m u scles (an d so an y m u scle) is coterm in ou s w ith th e n atu re an d fu n ction of p sych ology’ (1999: 12; origin al em p h asis). Th e m u scles of m y breast th en , as w ell as th e fatty tissu e, n eu rological im p u lses, vascu lar an d en d ocrin e system s, are an em bod im en t of m y p h ysiological an d m y p sych ological stress levels. I see cap illaries of stress w in d in g th eir w ay arou n d m y bod y, syn ap sin g alon g w ith th e m essage to in crease m ilk p rod u ction . If m u scles d on ’t becom e bu t are h ysterical, as Wilson argu es in h er case stu d y, th en m y breasts are stressed . My breasts an d I are in sep arable, coterm in ou s. My breasts affect m y th in kin g, m y th ou gh t affects m y breasts. Can w e stretch ou r th in kin g to con tem p late th at breasts th in k? Can con cep ts of corp oreal kn ow led ge en ter ou r vocabu lary? Is th is th e sam e as ‘em bod ied th eory’? Vicki Kirby argu es for th e ‘literacy’ of bod ies in h er book, Tellin g Flesh (1997). By con sid erin g th e p ossibilities th at ‘n atu re scribbles or th at flesh read s’ (1997: 127), Kirby fin ally asserts th at ‘flesh , blood , an d bon e – literate m atter – n ever ceases to reread an d rew rite itself th rou gh en d less in carn ation s’ (1997: 148). Regard in g th e corp oreal bod y as a ‘d u m b an d p assive con tain er’ in h ibits th e p ossibilities of bod y-kn ow led ges, Kirby argu es, p referrin g to ‘gran t th at th e bod y is alread y a field of in form ation , a tissu e of scrip tu ral an d rep resen tation al com p lexity’ (1997: 148). To en d ow m atern al breasts w ith ‘a field of kn ow led ge’, as Kirby m igh t su ggest, d oes n ot h ow ever m ean th at w e are alw ays su ccessfu l in m akin g su ch kn ow led ge legible, of read in g or articu latin g su ch field s, as m y breastly d ram as illu strate. An d su ch field s of bod y-kn ow led ge are alw ays su bject to ch an ge, as Kirby n otes, in th e sam e w ay th at m y w orkload im p acted on m y exp erien ce of breastfeed in g. Bu t Kirby’s su ggestion s for a com p lex, in form ed an d kn ow led geable bod y are tan talizin gly ap p ealin g to som eon e like m yself, w h ose bod y h as grow n an d birth ed an d n ou rish ed a ch ild , w h ose cap acity to p erform m iracles of su ch m agn itu d e is aw esom e an d is rarely ackn ow led ged in a m ed ical system th at claim s au th ority an d con trol over w om en ’s bod ies. In h er article, ‘Th in kin g Em bod im en t, Practisin g th e Bod y’ (1992), Ph ilip a Roth field su ggests th at th ere are accou n ts of th e bod y th at u sefu lly d ep art from th at offered by Western m ed icin e: ‘Con sid er Ch in ese m ed icin e, acu p u n ctu re, an d sh iatsu w h ich h as a d ifferen t m ap p in g of th e bod y, elaborated in term s of en ergies, elem en ts an d m erid ian s’ (1992: 38). Su ch ‘u n orth od ox’ m ed icin es offer ‘altern ative’ d iscou rses th rou gh w h ich to con cep tu alize bod ies. Bu t Roth field also argu es th at th e p ractices in w h ich w e en gage also offer n ew p ossibilities of em bod im en t. Sh e takes th e exam p le of d an ce an d m ovem en t, w h ich can sh ift th e form of bod ies an d h ow th ey are lived . Th is m igh t easily be ap p lied also to breastfeed in g p ractices. Cin d y Stearn s relates h ow h er coh ort of w om en ‘u n iform ly em p h asized th e im p ortan ce an d / or n ecessity of learn in g to breastfeed d iscreetly. . . . Wom en w ou ld sp eak w ith p rid e abou t n o on e even kn ow in g w h at th ey w ere d oin g, w h en , in fact, th ey w ere really breastfeed in g’ (1999: 312–13). Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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Feminist Theory 1(2) ‘Man agin g’ th eir breastfeed in g m ean s h id in g it by d rap in g blan kets over th eir breast an d baby, w earin g oversized sh irts, or fin d in g obscu re corn ers to sit. In stead of regard in g th eir p ractice as ‘d evian t’ (or illegal), im agin e if breastfeed in g w as regard ed as a form of bod ily in telligen ce, if it w as p ractised w ith p rid e. Sp in es m igh t straigh ten , sh ou ld ers m ay d rop , n ecks m ay len gth en an d h ead s h eld h igh if breasts w ere to be w orn bold ly in all th eir sh iftin g an d u n p red ictable gu ises, visibly active an d even som etim es w et. If w e ad op ted Jerry Hall’s d efian t gaze to con fron t th e cam era’s len s, w h at oth er sh ifts m igh t th is p ractice em bod y?

Concluding Wh at w ou ld be th e d ifferen ce betw een ou r p ractice an d ou r p erform in g of breastfeed in g? Wou ld d efian ce be m ore en ablin g th en scan d als? An d w h at im p act d o th e w ritin g p ractices of em bod ied th eory h ave on th eir p erform an ce as th eory? For m e, breastfeed in g h as n ot yet con clu d ed an d so th e qu estion s con tin u e. As a breastfeed in g acad em ic, th in kin g th rou gh n ew w ays of brin gin g togeth er m y m atern al an d acad em ic kn ow led ges h as m ean t brin gin g th eoretical reflection s to th e m atter of m y lived exp erien ces. In th is article, I h ave sou gh t to com p licate som e cu rren t rep resen tation al lim its an d p ossibilities for breastfeed in g an d to p rovoke n ew read in gs an d w ritin gs of breastfeed in g as a p ractice/ p erform an ce of m atern ity. Wh ile th is p roject is n ot n ew, fram in g it in relation to cu rren t th eoretical w ork on corp oreality an d em bod im en t h as m ean t en gagin g w ith th e lim its an d p ossibilities of ‘em bod yin g th eory’ as w ell as th eorizin g em bod im en t. Read in g an d p ractisin g m atern ity w ill alw ays be su bject to ch an ges in p olitics, in th e sp ecificities of corp oreal circu m stan ce, bu t also to ch an ges in th e p ossibilities for d iscu rsive rep resen tation .

Note 1. Th e tw o extracts from th is p oem (cop yrigh t Kate Llew ellyn ) are qu oted by kin d p erm ission of th e au th or. I w ish to th an k h er for allow in g m e to qu ote from h er w ork.

References Ad elaid e, D. (ed .) (1996) Moth erLove: S tories A bou t Birth s, Babies A n d Beyon d . Milson ’s Poin t, NSW: Ran d om Hou se. Ad elaid e, D. (ed .) (1997) Moth erLove 2: More S tories A bou t Birth s, Babies A n d Beyon d . Milson ’s Poin t, NSW: Ran d om Hou se. Bartlett, A. (1998) Jam m in g th e Mach in ery: Con tem p orary A u stralian Wom en ’s Writin g. Can berra: Association for th e Stu d y of Au stralian Literatu re (ASAL Literary Stu d ies Series). Bu tler, J. (1990) ‘Perform ative Acts an d Gen d er Con stitu tion : An Essay in Ph en om en ology an d Fem in ist Th eory’, p p . 270–82 in Su e-Ellen Case (ed .) Perform in g Fem in ism s. Baltim ore, MD: Joh n s Hop kin s Un iversity Press. Bu tler, J. (1993) Bod ies th at Matter: On th e Discu rsive Lim its of ‘S ex ’. New York: Rou tled ge. Cixou s, H. (1976) ‘Th e Lau gh of th e Med u sa’, tran s. Keith Coh en an d Pau la Coh en , S ign s 1(4): 875–93. Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

Bartlett: Thinking through breasts Cixou s, H. (1991) ‘Com in g to Writin g’ an d Oth er Essays, ed . D. Jen son , tran s. S. Corn ell, D. Jen son , A. Lid d le an d Su san Sellers. Cam brid ge, MA: Harvard Un iversity Press. Davis, K. (ed .) (1997) Em bod ied Practices: Fem in ist Persp ectives on th e Bod y. Lon d on : Sage. Diam on d , J. (1995) ‘Fath er’s Milk’, Discover 16(2): 82–7. Dip rose, R. (1998) ‘Sexu ality an d th e Clin ical En cou n ter’, p p . 30–44 in M. Sh ild rick an d J. Price (ed s) Vital S ign s: Fem in ist Recon fi gu ration s of th e Bio/ logical Bod y. Ed in bu rgh : Un iversity of Ed in bu rgh Press. Gallop , J. (1993) ‘Th e Teach er’s Breasts’, in J. Ju liu s Matth ew s (ed .) Jan e Gallop S em in ar Pap ers: Proceed in gs of th e Jan e Gallop S em in ar an d Pu blic Lectu re ‘T h e Teach er’s Breasts’. Can berra: Hu m an ities Research Cen tre. Grosz, E. (1994) Volatile Bod ies: Toward a Corp oreal Fem in ism . St Leon ard s: Allen & Un w in . Grosz, E. (1995) S p ace, Tim e an d Perversion : T h e Politics of Bod ies. St Leon ard s: Allen & Un w in . Kirby, V. (1997) Tellin g Flesh : T h e S u bstan ce of th e Corp oreal. New York: Rou tled ge. Kom esaroff, P.A. (ed .) (1995) Trou bled Bod ies: Critical Persp ectives on Postm od ern ism , Med ical Eth ics, an d th e Bod y. Melbou rn e: Melbou rn e Un iversity Press. Koval, R. (1998) ‘A Pregn an t Pau se’, Week en d A u stralian 24–25 Jan u ary: 28. Kristeva, J. (1985) ‘Stabat Mater’, p p . 99–118 in S. Ru bin Su leim an (ed .) T h e Fem ale Bod y in Western Cu ltu re: Con tem p orary Persp ectives. Cam brid ge, MA: Harvard Un iversity Press. Liebovitz, A. an d S. Son tag (1999) Wom en . New York: Ran d om Hou se. Llew ellyn , K. (1986) ‘Breasts’, p . 158 in S. Ham p ton an d K. Llew ellyn (ed s) T h e Pen gu in Book of A u stralian Wom en ’s Poetry. Rin gw ood : Pen gu in . Mau sh art, S. (1997) T h e Mask of Moth erh ood : How Moth erin g Ch an ges Everyth in g A n d W h y We Preten d It Doesn ’t. Milson ’s Poin t: Ran d om Hou se. Morris, M. (1988) ‘Th in gs To Do With Sh op p in g Cen tres’, p p . 193–225 in S. Sh erid an (ed .) Grafts: Fem in ist Cu ltu ral Criticism . Lon d on : Verso. Pen gu in Macqu arie Diction ary (1986) Rin gw ood : Pen gu in . Rich , A. (1976) Of Wom an Born : Moth erh ood as Ex p erien ce an d In stitu tion . New York: Norton . Roth field , P. (1992) ‘Th in kin g Em bod im en t, Practisin g th e Bod y: Med ical Eth ics, Fou cau lt an d Fem in ism ’, Merid ian 11(2): 37–47. Sh ild rick, M. an d J. Price (ed s) (1998) Vital S ign s: Fem in ist Recon fi gu ration s of th e Bio/ logical Bod y. Ed in bu rgh : Ed in bu rgh Un iversity Press. Sh ild rick, M. an d J. Price (ed s) (1999) Fem in ist T h eory an d th e Bod y. Ed in bu rgh : Ed in bu rgh Un iversity Press. Sofou lis, Z. (1996) ‘Sp acin g Ou t in th e Moth er Sh op ’, p p . 120–8 in S. Holt an d M. Lyn ch (ed s) Moth erlod e. Melbou rn e: Sybylla. Stearn s, C.A. (1999) ‘Breastfeed in g an d th e Good Matern al Bod y’, Gen d er & S ociety 13(3): 308–25. Torn ey, K. (1995) ‘Th e Bu rn in g Bosom : Rep resen tin g Matern al Desire’, Hysteric 1: 20–32. Waldby, C. (1995) ‘Feminism and Method’, pp. 15–28 in B. Caine and R. Pringle (eds) Transitions: New A ustralian Fem inism s. St Leonards: Allen & Unwin. Downloaded from http://fty.sagepub.com at UNIV OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA on November 4, 2007 © 2000 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.

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Feminist Theory 1(2) Warn er, Marin a. (1976) A lon e of A ll Her S ex : T h e Myth an d th e Cu lt of th e Virgin Mary. Lon d on : Weid en feld & Nicolson . Wilson , E.A. (1999) ‘In trod u ction : Som atic Com p lian ce – Fem in ism , Biology an d Scien ce’, A u stralian Fem in ist S tu d ies 14(29): 7–18. Woolfe, S. (1996) Lean in g Toward s In fi n ity. Milson ’s Poin t: Ran d om Hou se. You n g, I.M. (1990) ‘Breasted Exp erien ce’, p p . 189–209 in T h rowin g Lik e a Girl an d Oth er Essays in Fem in ist Ph ilosop h y an d S ocial T h eory. Bloom in gton : In d ian a Un iversity Press. Alison Bartlett is a fem in ist lectu rer in literatu re at th e Un iversity of Sou th ern Qu een slan d , Au stralia, an d h as p u blish ed w id ely on Au stralian literatu re an d fem in ist p ed agogy. Her in terest in w ritin g an d th eorizin g th e bod y h as so far in volved breastfeed in g bod ies, bod ies of stu d en ts an d su p ervisors, to be p u blish ed in Postgrad u ate Research S u p ervision : Tran sform in g Relation s, ed ited w ith Gin a Mercer (Peter Lan g, forth com in g), an d w om en ’s bod ies in con tem p orary Au stralian literatu re, p u blish ed in Jam m in g th e Mach in ery: Con tem p orary A u stralian Wom en ’s Writin g (1998). Sh e h as a tw o-year-old d au gh ter, Isobel, w h o sh e likes to take to w ork from tim e to tim e. Address: Dep artm en t of Hu m an ities an d In tern ation al Stu d ies, Facu lty of Arts, Un iversity of Sou th ern Qu een slan d , Toow oom ba, Qu een slan d 4350, Au stralia. Em ail: bartlett@u sq.ed u .au

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