The nature-culture debate in the conflictive relationship between motherhood and feminism

The nature-culture dichotomy has been controversial within feminist analysis to explain a supposed universal subordination of women. From the social sciences, its use has been debated and criticized, due to the ethnocentrism and anthropocentrism from which this division operates, to which other dichotomous pairs such as public-private are added. It is necessary to know the reasons for the allocation of places (women to nature, men to culture) and also the hierarchical relationship between them. Based on decolonial feminisms, we can identify the subjugation of nature and women as internal colonies within a world system, and in turn, guarantee a situated gaze that breaks with universals established from the West. When carrying out this analysis, we discovered the value that is given to the activities carried out by women, among which is motherhood. In this way we return to the conflictive relationship of some feminist currents with motherhood, by maintaining dichotomies and therefore, associating the maternal with nature, the private and domestic sphere and also by homogenizing the processes of men and women. The disagreement between motherhood and Western feminism has given rise to different interpretations of breastfeeding or attachment parenting. At the same time, it is necessary to criticize the salvationist character of hegemonic Eurocentric feminism, where many mothers are considered victims of "the law of the father" due to their choice of a specific parenting style. To these debates it is important to add the family as a space of oppression or resistance, where the agency capacity of mothers is taken into account. And finally, as part of the nature-culture debate, we will enter the controversy over maternal instinct and desire, confronting two feminist perspectives: on the one hand, maternal love and mothering are seen as elements of submission and on the other hand, as elements of subversive. Thus, the need to apply biocultural perspectives in motherhood and upbringing is observed, where the voice of mothers is counted on their own processes and meanings and with the needs of childhood within political and feminist agendas.