A Changing Landscape of Intimacy: The Case of a Single Mother by Choice

Abstract

American women who purposely undertake motherhood without the involvement of a male partner tend to be beneficiaries of second-wave feminist achievements in the areas of expanded educational and employment opportunities. I draw on an in-depth, longitudinal case study of one such Single Mother by Choice (SMC) to explore how the opportunities she has enjoyed and professional achievements she has attained have shaped her ‘intimate landscape.’ Intimacy means ‘innermost,’ and refers to a spatial relationship, whether physical and or metaphorical. ‘Landscape’ refers to ‘all the visible features of an area’ and ‘the distinctive features of a particular situation or intellectual activity.’ Together Carmen and I engaged in topography, producing a detailed description of the arrangement of the features of this area of her life—the intimate physical and emotional relations with her children, her dog, her mother, and close emotional relationships with her siblings and their families, some friends, and members of her church.

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