Conception narratives and third party reproduction in lesbian-parented families in France

Bibliographic Data

ID4388937
AuthorsMartine Gro (0000-0001-8687-0450, Césor (CNRS, EHESS, France), corresponding author), Sophie Richardot (0000-0002-0237-4255, University of Picardie‐Jules Verne in Amiens (France), corresponding author)
Year2020
Volume70
Issue235-236
Pages13-23
Publication date2020-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Social Science Journal (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0020-8701 • E-ISSN: 1468-2451
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/issj.12218
OpenAlexW2993212073
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited27

Lesbian mothers and gay fathers cannot conceal the existence of a third party for reproduction purposes: a sperm donor, an egg cell donor or a surrogate mother, all of whom have contributed, without being a parent as such, to the birth of their child. This article focuses on what is said about these third parties and what the child is told about his or her conception, by lesbian mothers who used sperm donation, either through the means of MAP or with the help of a known donor, outside the medical field. The inquiry, both qualitative and quantitative, uses a sample of 118 female couples to whom a child was born in France between 2011 and 2013. Analysis shows that the mothers employ different terms by which they wish to be known by their child and by which to refer to a donor according to whether he is known or not. The study exposes not only a common structure to most of the conception stories but also certain variations revealing four types of narratives. The narratives produced by couples who have used a known donor insist less on the love story between the two mothers. The entirety of these narratives, however, offer the chance to reconcile a transgressive family model with society: to normalise and valorise the family set-up

Biology · Donation · Egg donation · Lesbian · Literature · Narrative · Political science · Reproduction · Sociology · Sperm · Sperm donation · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · Gender Studies · Genetics · Law · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Psychology · Reproductive Health and Technologies · Social Psychology

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