“Trees without Fruits”: The Social Construction of Infertility, Social Stigma, and Fertility-Seeking Behavior in Rural Bangladesh
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Abstract
Apart from its medical concern, infertility bears significant socio-cultural consequences. This paper examines the social sufferings of infertile women, their fertility-seeking behavior, and the strategies adopted to cope-up with everyday social discrimination and stigmatization due to infertility. Drawing on ethnographic examples and qualitative research methods, this study has been conducted in three villages of Jessore and Satkhira districts of Southwestern Bangladesh. Findings of the study reveal that infertile women have various social sufferings, including but not limited to isolation, loneliness, fear of getting divorced, stigma, and domestic violence. Many infertile women live with their shotin, which is sometimes more difficult to adjust. Their everyday life becomes unbearable when in-laws and neighbors psychologically and physically abuse them. Infertility becomes a subject of social gossip, and infertile women are stereotypically identified as bajha, haatkhuri, and inauspicious. The social construction of fate or kopalis believed to be unavoidable in the context of explaining infertility. Their fertility-seeking behavior is mostly guided by the options available to them, such as pervasive use of kabiraji, homeopathy, and traditional healers. They, however, use their agency to overcome their stereotypical and stigmatized identities with their own efforts as well as supports from natal family members.
How to Cite
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fertility-seeking behavior; infertility; social sufferings of women; stigma; rural Bangladesh
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