State of Wonder by Ann Patchett: A Need to Reproduce Forever

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A Need to Reproduce Forever Reproducing is a decision that is irreversible and produces masses of major responsibilities and changes. However large the decision may be, there are many women who decide that they are ready too late in their lives. The delay in becoming pregnant may occur for a variety of reasons, many of which include financial or career stability, mental stability, or pregnancy through outside means, such as in vitro fertilization. Women are expected a stop in the ability to become impregnated with the arrival of menopause. In the book State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett, a woman named Marina Singh travels deep inside the Amazon jungle in the hopes to find Dr. Annick Swenson, a doctor who is developing a drug for pregnancy in post-menopausal women. Dr. Swenson herself has become the first non-native test subject. Marina struggles with the ethical and moral aspects of the activities that are being done on the native cultures. She soon learns that although there are cultural practices that may lead to optimistic advances into post-menopausal pregnancies, there may be no use bringing them back into modern society. Women should not be allowed to reproduce when they have passed natural menopause and the stop in ovulation. Dr. Swenson studies the Lakashi tribe and lives among them, slowly gaining their trust. The women of the tribe eat the bark of the Martin tree and the hallucinogenic mushrooms called Rapps named after the researcher Martin Rapp, which give them the abilities to reproduce well into their old ages. She makes the inference that the local moths found milling around these forests produces a response that give those who eat it protection against malaria. She soon found their key to being fertile until death... ... middle of paper ... ... rest of their life from the onset of puberty. There are also many complications a woman may face for both conceiving and giving birth to children in their fifties and even forties. The mother and the baby can both be harmed in the long run. Although there are women who may have lost their chances at having children in their younger ages, there are many children who are waiting to be adopted. There is no need for medical science to develop this possibility, as women are not in a society where conceiving children is the highest priority. Works Cited Dahlan, Hannah. "Older Mothers: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly!" Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. Patchett, Ann. State of Wonder. New York: Harper, 2011. Print. Eden, Elizabeth. "HowStuffWorks "Pregnancy Complications in Older Mothers" HowStuffWorks. N.p., 16 Nov. 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2014.

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