Saturday, March 15, 2014
Private Dining Room (Omni Shoreham)
Across Europe, the uncertainty over meeting the needs of aging populations has reignited debates about the role of kin networks and family in social welfare. In Italy, this uncertainty is notable in the lives of “women of a certain age,” who, in addition to supporting and sharing their homes with adult children, are also chronologically poised to be guardians of grandchildren, as well as care providers for elderly parents. Under the pervasive influence of the Catholic Church, Italian women have historically been the principal providers of family care. Nonetheless, women that are currently in their mid-50s to mid-60s hold a unique position in Italian history. Not only was their youth molded by cultural norms permeated with Catholic ideology, but also by a feminist movement that altered the social and civil landscape of Italian society. The first to successfully challenge the patriarchal legal system, they compelled the government to legalize divorce in 1970, and establish parity in marriage in 1975. Today many are separated de facto, if not legally, while others lead independent lives from partners, even if they remain under the same roof. For these women, essere autonoma (being autonomous) is closely linked to a personal emancipation from husbands or partners who they describe as unfaithful, controlling, or emotionally and financially absent from family life. This paper examines how these “women of certain age” came to their decisions to be donne single (single women) and how they navigate the murky waters of fulfilling familial responsibilities and prioritizing their own interests.
