Linda Layne discusses pregnancy, feminism and health

One in four recognized pregnancies ends in pregnancy loss, with the vast majority occurring during the first trimester. Middle-class American women who experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth or early infant death during the last 30 years found themselves caught between two sets of strong and contradictory cultural forces, argues Linda Layne, author of “Motherhood Lost: A Feminist Account of Pregnancy Loss in America.” She will visit U.Va. Feb. 18 and give two talks on the subject at the Health System.

Layne, a cultural anthropologist and professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., began focusing on pregnancy loss in America after she had the first of seven miscarriages. Now the mother of two sons, she will talk about conflicting views on fetal personhood, the use of technology in conventional obstetrics and the natural childbirth movement, and her feminist ideas for improving the care of pregnant women.

Her lectures are sponsored by the Humanities in Medicine Program, the History of the Health Sciences Lecture Series and the Engineering School’s Technology, Culture and Communication division.