Dorota Wójciak
Biographic Data
| ID | 1087531 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Dorota Wójciak |
| GIVEN NAMES | Dorota |
| FAMILY NAME | Wójciak |
| SIGNATURE | WÓJCIAK D |
| AFFILIATIONS | Jagiellonian University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9114-9331 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 8 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 5 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 8 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Negotiating ideals
In this article, we explore two partially overlapping set of ideas on appropriate mothering that shape the experiences of contemporary Polish mothers. One is rooted in Catholicism, while the other aligns with the ideology of intensive mothering. In the first part of the article, we reconstruct the gendered concept of the ‘good mother’ foregrounded by these ideologies. In the second part, based on analysis of in-depth interviews with 46 mothers an…
Poświęcenie, powołanie i cud w narracjach młodych katolickich matek o własnym macierzyństwie
Narrative plays a key role in understanding and communicating individual experiences, as well as in the process of identity formation. The transition to motherhood is often seen as a crisis that requires the creation of a new identity. The traditional Catholic narrative, together with the enduring matka Polka (Polish mother) myth in the Polish socio-cultural context, promotes an image of motherhood as a woman’s “vocation” and as a role defined by…
From a periphery to the Muslim centre. Raising children in religion in the experiences of Polish women converts to Islam
This article explores the experiences of Polish mothers who have converted to Islam and are raising their children in the faith. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 20 Polish converts, we analyse how maternal and religious identities are co-constructed through everyday practices of child-rearing. Using the spatial metaphor of centre and periphery, we demonstrate how convert mothers navigate their position of limited inclusion within Islam and mov…
Maternal Knowledge and Care Ethics in Navigating the Stances on Abortion Taken by Young Catholic Mothers in Poland
In this paper, we explore young Polish Catholic mothers' moral reasoning on abortion. We draw on the concept of maternal knowledge and theoretical insights developed within the ethics of care to shed light on the complexities and contradictions experienced by Catholic mothers in the context of reproductive choices. The narratives we gathered through in‐depth interviews illustrate how mothers evoke embodied, experience‐based maternal knowledge to …
Varieties and transformations in emic interpretations of Catholic rituals in contemporary Podhale
In this paper, I examine intergenerational differences in emic interpretations of various types of ritual references in the religious culture of the Podhale region (Poland), which is known for its lavish celebrations of Catholic holidays and rites of passage. Drawing on Roy Rappaport’s theory of ritual communication, particularly the distinction between self-referential and canonical messages, I analyze Podhale highlanders’ attitudes toward the s…
The Virgin Mary in the narratives of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland
In this paper, we demonstrate how the figure of the Virgin Mary functions as an important element of the lived religion of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland. Based on the analysis of in-depth interviews and observational data we argue that the figure of Mary is recognized as a religious ideal and a role model by mothers identifying with both religions. We trace similarities and differences between Catholic and Muslim mothers in t…
The Battle for Symbolic Power
In academic and popular discourses, Poland has been consistently described as a "Catholic country". However, the level of identification with the Catholic Church in Poland has been gradually declining in the last three decades. In this paper, we explore the recent wave of civil protests which began in October 2020 as a reaction to the new restrictions on legal access to abortion. Thousands of people took to the streets to participate in what beca…
Skirting heaven, skirting hell’
In this paper we explore how young Polish Catholic mothers navigate the dominant discourses on abortion in light of the recent tightening of legislation in Poland. We draw on theoretical considerations about the relationships between norms, subjectivity, agency and resistance and propose ‘maternal knowledge’ as a central concept for our analysis. Our data consists of twenty-eight in-depth interviews conducted with mothers who self-identify as Cat…
The Battle for Symbolic Power
In academic and popular discourses, Poland has been consistently described as a "Catholic country". However, the level of identification with the Catholic Church in Poland has been gradually declining in the last three decades. In this paper, we explore the recent wave of civil protests which began in October 2020 as a reaction to the new restrictions on legal access to abortion. Thousands of people took to the streets to participate in what beca…
The Virgin Mary in the narratives of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland
In this paper, we demonstrate how the figure of the Virgin Mary functions as an important element of the lived religion of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland. Based on the analysis of in-depth interviews and observational data we argue that the figure of Mary is recognized as a religious ideal and a role model by mothers identifying with both religions. We trace similarities and differences between Catholic and Muslim mothers in t…
Skirting heaven, skirting hell’
In this paper we explore how young Polish Catholic mothers navigate the dominant discourses on abortion in light of the recent tightening of legislation in Poland. We draw on theoretical considerations about the relationships between norms, subjectivity, agency and resistance and propose ‘maternal knowledge’ as a central concept for our analysis. Our data consists of twenty-eight in-depth interviews conducted with mothers who self-identify as Cat…
The Battle for Symbolic Power
In academic and popular discourses, Poland has been consistently described as a "Catholic country". However, the level of identification with the Catholic Church in Poland has been gradually declining in the last three decades. In this paper, we explore the recent wave of civil protests which began in October 2020 as a reaction to the new restrictions on legal access to abortion. Thousands of people took to the streets to participate in what beca…
The Virgin Mary in the narratives of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland
In this paper, we demonstrate how the figure of the Virgin Mary functions as an important element of the lived religion of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland. Based on the analysis of in-depth interviews and observational data we argue that the figure of Mary is recognized as a religious ideal and a role model by mothers identifying with both religions. We trace similarities and differences between Catholic and Muslim mothers in t…
Maternal Knowledge and Care Ethics in Navigating the Stances on Abortion Taken by Young Catholic Mothers in Poland
In this paper, we explore young Polish Catholic mothers' moral reasoning on abortion. We draw on the concept of maternal knowledge and theoretical insights developed within the ethics of care to shed light on the complexities and contradictions experienced by Catholic mothers in the context of reproductive choices. The narratives we gathered through in‐depth interviews illustrate how mothers evoke embodied, experience‐based maternal knowledge to …
Varieties and transformations in emic interpretations of Catholic rituals in contemporary Podhale
In this paper, I examine intergenerational differences in emic interpretations of various types of ritual references in the religious culture of the Podhale region (Poland), which is known for its lavish celebrations of Catholic holidays and rites of passage. Drawing on Roy Rappaport’s theory of ritual communication, particularly the distinction between self-referential and canonical messages, I analyze Podhale highlanders’ attitudes toward the s…
Poświęcenie, powołanie i cud w narracjach młodych katolickich matek o własnym macierzyństwie
Narrative plays a key role in understanding and communicating individual experiences, as well as in the process of identity formation. The transition to motherhood is often seen as a crisis that requires the creation of a new identity. The traditional Catholic narrative, together with the enduring matka Polka (Polish mother) myth in the Polish socio-cultural context, promotes an image of motherhood as a woman’s “vocation” and as a role defined by…
From a periphery to the Muslim centre. Raising children in religion in the experiences of Polish women converts to Islam
This article explores the experiences of Polish mothers who have converted to Islam and are raising their children in the faith. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 20 Polish converts, we analyse how maternal and religious identities are co-constructed through everyday practices of child-rearing. Using the spatial metaphor of centre and periphery, we demonstrate how convert mothers navigate their position of limited inclusion within Islam and mov…
Negotiating ideals
In this article, we explore two partially overlapping set of ideas on appropriate mothering that shape the experiences of contemporary Polish mothers. One is rooted in Catholicism, while the other aligns with the ideology of intensive mothering. In the first part of the article, we reconstruct the gendered concept of the ‘good mother’ foregrounded by these ideologies. In the second part, based on analysis of in-depth interviews with 46 mothers an…
Sociology (5 works) · Gender Studies (4 works) · Law (4 works) · Political science (4 works) · Art (3 works) · Epistemology (3 works) · Gender Studies (3 works) · Law (3 works) · Philosophy (3 works) · Abortion (2 works)