The women I return to most – Elizabeth I, her potential heir Arbella Stuart (and rival to James Charles Stuart, later King James I), Virginia Woolf, Katharine Hepburn, Debbie Harry – never had children. Their reasons were wildly different: some chose it, some were prevented, some never got the chance. The pattern raises two questions. Did their work or their position cost them their choice? And why does it seem to matter, overshadowing the legacy and achievements of great women?
Falling developed-world birth rates have prompted anxiety about the future. Politicians ask why women are having fewer children. Economists voice concerns about ageing populations. Amid this, one assumption goes unquestioned: that motherhood is the primary measure of a woman’s life.
