Having children, with whom? Between families and anthropo-poiesis

Abstract

The analysis of the common expression “bear children” and the examination of some ethnographic cases allow the author to focus on the notion of “bearing”, not only as a biological process, but also as a cultural and social one. In particular, on the one hand it retrieves the concept of filiation and complementary filiation, on the other it makes use of the anthropo-poietic perspective. This perspective shows, above all, how many societies dwell on the difficult task of “bearing children”, a task which is entrusted, in the various ethnographic cases, not to the conjugal family of origin, but to mothers and fathers who are not the biological ones: a social sharing that can even involve one’s enemies.