"Middle‐aged Old Mothers" in China: Childrearing Anxiety, Humor, and the Narrative Self. (16th February 2022) - Xu, Jing
Abstract: With the rise of hyper education in contemporary China, the phrase "middle‐aged old mother" has become an important narrative identity for mothers over 30 in the urban middle class. Based on ethnographic and virtual fieldwork from 2018 to 2020, this paper weaves together interviews, observation, and social media data to examine mothers' moral experience of childrearing anxiety in Beijing. This article goes beyond the surface content of "middle‐aged old mother" narratives and instead highlights the narrative context, style, intention, and effect. It aims to understand their first‐person narratives of parenting characterized by heightened uncertainty, high stakes, self‐reflexivity, and gender inequalities. The "middle‐aged old mother" script provides a template for and becomes the "co‐author" of Chinese mothers' auto‐narratives: It blends self‐mockery, personal story, and social critique in an environment of intensifying competition and moral quandaries. The term is a deliberate act of humor and an invitation for empathy. 摘要: 随着当代中国教育竞争日趋加剧, "中年老母"一词逐渐成为城市中产阶层30+妈妈的重要叙事认同。本文基于2018‐2020线上和线下田野调查, 结合访谈、观察和社交媒体资料探讨北京妈妈们育儿焦虑的道德体验。该研究超越"中年老母"叙述的表面内容, 强调其叙述语境、风格、意图和效果。笔者试图在具体的育儿社会情境中理解妈妈们的第一人称叙述, 这一情境的特点包括高度不确定性、利害攸关性、自我反思性和性别不平等。"中年老母"脚本成为这些中国妈妈构建自我叙事的模版及"共同作者":在白热化竞争和道德困境的情势下, 该叙事将自我嘲讽、私人故事和社会批评融为一体。"中年老母"叙事是有意而为的幽默, 是对共情的召唤。