Highly detailed and clearly written, this book is the first full-length study of the complex system of practices, beliefs and taboos which surrounded conception and childbirth in early modern Europe.

Introduction. Part I: The Rhythms of the Earth: The Mother of all Things:. 1. Man, the Earth and the Cosmos. 2. Daughter, Wife and Mother. 3. What if No Child Appears?. 4. The Cycle of Life. Part II: Pregnancy: A Time of Hope, Suffering and Anxiety:. 5. The Body in Pregnancy. 6. The Experience of Pregnancy. Part III: The Woman Giving Birth:. 7. The Society of Birth. 8. Hastening the Hour of Deliverance. Part IV: Between Mother and Child:. 9. Birth: A Double Liberation. 10. Suffering to Give Life. 11. Stages in the Delivery. 12. The Placenta: Double of the Child. 13. The Governance of Mother and Child. Part V: The Socialization of the Child:. 14. Welcoming the New Baby. 15. Socializing the Child: Giving a Name. Part VI: The Divagations of Nature:. 16. The Falling of the Flower. 17. The Unripe Fruit. 18. Unnatural Delivery. 19. Death, the Greatest Aberration. 20. Where does the Beast End and Man Begin?. Conclusion. Notes. Further Reading.