Wasteland Motherhood

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Recommended: Nature versus nurture in child development

Motherhood is at times an extremely complicated process that a multitude of mothers go through when taking on the choice to raise a child. Based on the individual, this process can be one that is natural or extremely difficult to execute. Within this process, there are new issues and mindsets that emerge in the threshold of motherhood that creates intense struggles. In the texts Waste Land (Walker, 2010) by Lucy Walker and “Morning Song” by Sylvia Plath the director and poet display these issues and struggles within these two different mediums that eventually arise in the never-ending process. These texts connect to one another by demonstrating and including the struggles of urges to provide, emotions of detachment, and improving mindsets …show more content…

Towards the end of the eye opening film, Suelem is filmed pregnant with her third child juxtaposed to the picture she made with Vik Muniz and the other pickers (1:26:54-1:27:05). This picture represents a new mentality for Suelem and her children. This new mental understanding was one that included a better future and a way of living for the mother and children. This frame makes a connection between new motherhood and fresh mindsets. This scene’s juxtaposition of Suelem pregnant next to the picture provided the implication of the symbolization of a new way of life or mentality for her execution of motherhood. The audience can make the assumption that Suelem’s way of thinking about motherhood has changed and improved. In this moment she is the definition of clarity, focus, and has become the manifestation or embodiment of the representative art she is standing next …show more content…

The speaker says the words “I wake to listen” when describing the night of her child’s birth (line 11). Here the reader can pick up on a shift in her tone. Much of the beginning of the poem is implying the mother’s share of postpartum depression. When she speaks those words “I wake to listen”, the audience can see that her mentality has shifted. Her mentality has morphed from one that was disconnected and distant to one that is dutiful and alert. The shift implies that the child is now viewed as a human and not something previously mentioned that is not human such as a “statue”. This shift accordingly demonstrates that she now views the child as her responsibility; she is connecting, and is coming around to the idea of what being a mother means. Though the morphing of Suelem’s mentality dealt more with the restructuring of an old way of motherhood, both women changed and improved their mindsets for the

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