2019 journal article
Agriculture as Carework: The Contradictions of Performing Femininity in a Male-Dominated Occupation
SOCIETY & NATURAL RESOURCES, 32(8), 875–892.
author keywords: Carework; gender; performativity; rural sociology; sociology of food; women farmers
UN Sustainable Development Goal Categories
2. Zero Hunger
(Web of Science)
Source: Web Of Science
Added: June 17, 2019
ABSTARCT Women in the US have farmed for centuries, but have infrequently had the farmer title. Rural sociologists have explored women’s on-farm roles, as well as rural conceptualizations of gender that influence who can be a farmer. As the proportion of women claiming the farmer title increases, it is important to explore women farmers’ experiences. This article focuses on sixteen farmers in Colorado across the conventional-alternative spectrum. Through engagement with feminist and rural sociological theory, and based on analysis of semi-structured interviews, we contend that women in this study expand what it means to be a farmer by performing femininity through carework within their farming practice. This study demonstrates how some women farmers adapt a variety of predominantly feminine-coded work—such as education, customer support, and feeding work—to make agriculture a space of carework, and farming a role expanded beyond a masculine ideal.