Italy is known for its devoted mammas. Emperor Nero¡¯s maneuvered him into the line of succession. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi brought his on the campaign trail. Footballer Christian Vieri called his five times a day.
Yet refusing to buy into the cult of maternity are Italian women themselves, who are having fewer children ¡ª with some eschewing motherhood altogether.
It¡¯s not just about the cost of childcare, or the country¡¯s anemic economy ¡ª though women say both these issues come into play. What¡¯s turning them off may be precisely the burden of the myth: ¡°Mothers are required to give these children their absolute and total attention,¡± said Valeria Merlini, a restorer of Renaissance paintings in her late 50s who lives in Rome. ¡°If you think too hard about having kids you may simply give up.¡±
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