ABSTRACT
In this chapter we examine how in the 20th century pregnancy and birth were medicalized. The chapter starts with a brief overview of the literature on medicalization, starting with Parsons’ view of the institution of medicine as a socially stabilizing force and ending with the intersectional critical approach in biomedicalization. An examination follows of how midwifery lost its place of authority over pregnancy and birth with the advent of modern medicine and where it sits today. The chapter concludes with an analysis of the racialization and geopolitics of reproductive medicalization.
