Making of men in the military: Perspectives from mothers

Abstract

This paper, addressed to those of us who are concerned about both feminist issues and U.S. military build-up, is about the many tired, frustrated or otherwise overwhelmed mothers of sons who encourage these sons to join the military because they believe there is no place else for them to turn. The focus is on the awesome, for many almost impossible, responsibility for the welfare of their sons. There are two additional themes: our military recruiters are very much aware of these supporters and we feminists are not because we have not been listening to these mothers. From the four portraits of mothers based on edited oral history transcripts (part of the research for a larger study of the mother-son relationship from mothers' perspectives) the reader will come to understand that women who encourage their sons to sign-up must be listened to, not castigated. These women want their sons to have self-discipline, maturity, training and skills, an education, a job. It is their perception that there is no place else for them to turn but the military.