Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2014 Conceived in Modernism: The Aesthetics and Politics of Birth Control Aimee Armande Wilson Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES CONCEIVED IN MODERNISM: THE AESTHETICS AND POLITICS OF BIRTH CONTROL By AIMEE ARMANDE WILSON A Dissertatio submitted to the Departme t of E glish i partial fulfillme t of the requireme ts for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree A,arded: Spri g Semester, .011 Aimee Arma de Wilso defe ded this dissertatio o February .2, .011. The members of the supervisory committee ,ere: Robi Truth Goodma Professor Directi g Dissertatio Ali e 5albia U iversity Represe tative A dre, Epstei Committee Member Barry 6. Faul7 Committee Member The Graduate School has verified a d approved the above8 amed committee members, a d certifies that the dissertatio has bee approved i accorda ce ,ith u iversity requireme ts. ii AC5NOWLEDGMENTS This dissertatio o,es much to the selfless a d sage assista ce of ma y people, chief amo g them bei g: Robi , for as7i g the tough questio s9 Caitli , for helpi g me pu::le out a s,ers to those tough questio s9 Mom a d Dad, for ma7i g me gritty9 Bria , for bei g the best of e emies ,he I eeded it, a d the best of frie ds at all other times9 A d 6osh, for remi di g me to breathe. Note: Chapter ., ;Moder ism, Mo sters, a d Margaret Sa ger,“ first appeared i Modern Fiction Studies, 59.. (.013A: 110820. Chapter 5, ;Souther Mother, Lethal Fetus9 Or Ho, Birth Co trol Ma7es a Moder ist Out Of Fla ery OBCo or,“ is forthcomi g i Genre: Forms of Discourse and Culture. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ..................................................................................................................................v Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... vi Chapter 1: I troductio ....................................................................................................................1 Chapter .: Moder ism, Mo sters, a d Margaret Sa ger ...............................................................1C Chapter 3: ;Se te ces S,elled, AdDectives Multiplied“: Orlando, Co traceptio , a d the Life of the Mi d .........................................................................................................................................19 Chapter 1: ;God Spo7e With Me To8Day“: Prophecy, The Waste Land, a d Marie Stopes ........EC Chapter 5: Souther Mother, Lethal Fetus9 Or Ho, Birth Co trol Ma7es a Moder ist Out Of Fla ery OBCo or ......................................................................................................................101 Chapter 2: Coda ...........................................................................................................................130 Wor7s Cited .................................................................................................................................13E Biographical S7etch .....................................................................................................................119 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: ;The Need of Child Labor“ from the Birth Control Review, 6a . 19.0 .........................10 Figure .: ;Blac7 Childre Are A E da gered Species“ (Gallo,ayA .........................................133 v ABSTRACT This dissertatio argues that the rhetoric of the tra satla tic birth co trol moveme t has roots i the aesthetics of literary moder ism. Not o ly did A glo8America moder ism a d the birth co trol moveme t come of age at the same mome t a d i ma y of the same cities (particularly Lo do a d Ne, Yor7A9 the politics of birth co trol ofte attracted the i terest of moder ist artists, a d ma y birth co trol activists moved i literary circles. The small but gro,i g body of scholarship ac7 o,ledgi g the i tersectio of these moveme ts typically treats them as parallel rather tha mutually i flue ci g developme ts. This is a oversight of o small mag itude because ,e ca arrive at a better u dersta di g of the sta7es of curre t birth co trol debates if ,e u cover the various discursive traces i the moveme tBs rhetoric. My proDect begi s to fill this gap i our scholarship by sho,i g that moder ismBs co cer s a d eFperime ts eFerted a lasti g i flue ce o the birth co trol moveme tBs arrative co structio s arou d race, ge der, religio , a d the body. Usi g u der8studied primary sources G such as Margaret Sa gerBs Birth Control Review G as ,ell as more traditio ally8recog i:ed moder ist teFts, I treat ma y of these arrative co structio s, from Sa gerBs depictio of the gothic body i perpetual ge eratio to forms of artistic ge eratio that compete ,ith the physical birthi g body i Virgi ia WoolfBs Orlando. The flo, of i flue ce ,as ot, of course, o e8 directio al9 the birth co trol moveme t also had a profou d impact o A glo8America ,riters. This dissertatio recovers the role of birth co trol i the developme t of some of moder ismBs most i ovative aesthetic co cepts by demo strati g that the prese ce of birth co trol i ,ritersB lives as ,ell as i the lives of their characters bri gs about a moder ist subDectivity. By readi g the begi i gs of the birth co trol moveme t agai st moder ism, I situate this literary moveme t ,ithi larger co versatio s about reproductive tech ologies, subDectivity, a d civil rights. vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Conceived in Modernism: The Aesthetics and Politics of Birth Control is co cer ed ,ith the ,ays moder ist aesthetics impacted the birth co trol moveme t i E gla d a d the U ited States from the early t,e tieth ce tury o , as ,ell as the role of birth co trol rhetoric i the developme t of literary moder ism. The questio s a d eFperime ts that moder ist artists grappled ,ith eFerted a treme dous i flue ce o the ,ay activists framed the emergi g politics of birth co trol. Si ce these frames still operate i todayBs political rhetoric, ,e ca better u dersta d the sta7es of curre t debates if ,e eFami e the rhetoric of birth co trol agai st moder ismBs goals a d aesthetic preoccupatio s. By loo7i g bac7 to the begi i gs of the A glo8America birth co trol moveme t, this proDect co teFtuali:es discourses of reproductive tech ology that, the as o,, bear most heavily o poor ,ome a d ,ome of color. Abortio ot,ithsta di g, curre t debates over reproductive co trol ca be surprisi gly volatile. Co sider the fact that i ety8 i e perce t of America ,ome ,ho are at ris7 of getti g preg a t have said they used co traceptio at some poi t i their lives (Da iels 1A.1 Amo g a similar populatio of British ,ome , seve ty8five perce t admit to curre tly usi g some form of co traceptio (Lader 19A. O the basis of these statistics, o e might reaso ably assume that argume ts over access to a d use of co traceptio ,ould be relatively rare a d quiet, affairs more a7i to debate over be efits for vetera s tha abortio . Yet i these early years of the t,e ty8first ce tury, co traceptio has spar7ed i te se debate, sho,i g us that, o this subDect at least, public rhetoric co trasts sharply ,ith private actio . I the U ited States, tha 7s i large part to the Obama admi istratio Bs ;co traceptio ma date,“ divisive argume ts over access to 1 ;At ris7 for preg a cy“ refers to ,ome ,ho are seFually eFperie ced a d of child8beari g age (Da iels 1A. 1 birth co trol flared up throughout the summer of .01.. The co traceptio ma date is a 7ey aspect of the Affordable Care Act (ACAA, sig ed i to la, i .010 i efforts to provide comprehe sive health care to every America . A provisio of the ACA classifies birth co trol as a basic, preve tative health care measure, similar to ,ell8care visits or mammograms. This classificatio mea s that all i sura ce pla s must cover co traceptives ,ith o co8pay, coi sura ce, or deductible (;Wome Bs“A. Do:e s of orga i:atio s have filed suit agai st the Obama admi istratio o the grou ds that the ma date is a violatio of religious freedom, a d these cases are slo,ly ,or7i g their ,ay up the courts. Without questio , the decisio s i these cases ,ill have sig ifica t ramificatio s ,ith regard to access to birth co trol i the U ited States, a d promise to 7eep debate about co traceptio afloat i public discussio ,ell i to the future. The miF of fury a d eFciteme t over the co traceptio ma date made the issue particularly salie t i A glopho e e,s media, yet E gla d has see its share of debates over gover me t cha ges to birth co trol access. I .00C, E gla dBs Natio al Health Service (NHSA piloted a program allo,i g females at least 12 years of age to purchase oral co traceptive pills at a ha dful of pharmacies ,ithout a prescriptio . Criticism of the program from religious orga i:atio s ,as loud a d freque t. Mar7 Haughto of the Christia Medical Fello,ship, for o e, claimed that such a program ;may be pouri g petrol o the flames“ by allo,i g tee agers to have ;seF ,ithout respo sibility“ (qtd. i 6effreysA. Nevertheless, the program ,e t for,ard a d, i .01., a NHS report recomme ded eFpa di g the program to additio al locatio s a d suggested that eFperts co sider lo,eri g the mi imum age to 13 (;Wide “A.