Extra Credit Assignment

One of the biggest differences that struck me between the movie and the television show was the lack of intimacy and, to some degree, respect for the mother by the ones facilitating the births. What I mean by that is in The Business of Being Born the parents who chose to have a homebirth with a midwife seemed to have a higher level of respect, not only from the person delivering her baby, but from the people who were present for the birth as well. It also appeared to be a more pleasant, personal experience for the mother. The homebirth mothers had the same midwife throughout the pregnancy and the birth—a constant that I imagine made the whole ordeal slightly more comforting. In the television show, however, there are multiple instances of nurses switching shifts, occasionally without even informing the expecting family that they were doing so.

It was obvious in the television show that the women giving birth were not viewed as being terribly knowledgeable about their situation. The doctors and nurses were shown coming in and adjusting medication or running tests without always informing the mother of what they were doing or telling her after the fact. The nurses were also usually talking amongst themselves instead of spending any more time than needed with the mother. In the movie, however, the midwives all seemed to have a deep connection to and involvement with the whole process. They spent every moment of the labor with the mother and always appeared to be just as overcome with joy as the new parents once the baby was born. So I guess, for me, the most obvious contrast came from the treatment of the patients. Not to say that the hospital mothers were treated at all negatively, just that their experiences seemed to be lacking a personal touch.

One similarity that I noticed was that all of the women were viewed by at least one person—be it their doctor, nurse, midwife or partner—as strong. There were many examples in both the movie and the television show of the father of the child speaking about how strong the mother was for giving birth, especially the ones who had wives or partners who had had a difficult delivery with a previous child. Whether the mother gave birth at home or in a hospital, the baby’s father always spoke with obvious respect and pride at the woman’s strength and seemed more than willing to take a backseat and let her prove what she is capable of.

Both the movie and the show seemed to portray birth in a positive light and as something that can be a struggle and occasionally very scary and painful, but ultimately worth it in the end. The movie did more to shed light on the fact that every birthing process is unique to the mother. This was also evident in the show but to a lesser degree, in my opinion.

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