Maternal mortality in fiction

Last updated

Maternal death in fiction is a common theme encountered in literature, movies, and other media.

Contents

The death of a mother during pregnancy, childbirth or immediately afterwards is a tragic event. The chances of a child surviving such an extreme birth are compromised. [1] In literature, the death of a new mother is a powerful device: it removes one character and places the surviving child into an often hostile environment which has to be overcome.

Literature

11th century

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

Film

20th century

21st century

Other media

Anime, comics, and video games

Live-action television

Cartoons and animated films

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Poldark</i> Historical novel series by Winston Graham

Poldark is a series of historical novels by Winston Graham, initially published from 1945 to 1953 and continuing from 1973 to 2002. The first novel, Ross Poldark, was named for the protagonist of the series. The novel series was adapted for television by the BBC in 1975 and again in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skywalker family</span> Fictional family in the Star Wars series

The Skywalker family is a fictional legendary human family in the Star Wars franchise. Within the series' fictional universe, the Skywalkers are presented as a bloodline with strong inherent capabilities related to the Force and sometimes lightsaber skills. Luke Skywalker, his twin sister Princess Leia Organa, and their father Darth Vader are central characters in the original Star Wars film trilogy. Darth Vader, in his previous identity as Anakin Skywalker, is a lead character in the prequel film trilogy and so is his wife and the twins' mother Padmé Amidala; while his mother Shmi is a minor character in the first and second films respectively. Leia and Han Solo's son, Ben Solo, renamed himself Kylo Ren and is the main antagonist in the sequel film trilogy, while they and Luke serve as supporting characters. Shmi, Padmé, and Han are the only members who are not Force-sensitive. The Skywalker bloodline, alongside the Palpatine bloodline, are the two bloodlines that are the strongest with the Force.

<i>The House of the Spirits</i> Novel by Isabel Allende

The House of the Spirits is the debut novel of Isabel Allende. The novel was rejected by several Spanish-language publishers before being published in Barcelona in 1982. It became an instant best-seller, was critically acclaimed, and catapulted Allende to literary stardom. The novel was named Best Novel of the Year in Chile in 1982, and Allende received the country's Panorama Literario award. The House of the Spirits has been translated into over 20 languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mina Harker</span> Fictional character

Wilhelmina "Mina" Harker is a fictional character and the main female character in Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic horror novel Dracula.

<i>Zorro</i> (novel) 2005 novel by Isabel Allende

Zorro is a 2005 novel by Chilean author Isabel Allende. Its subject is the American pulp hero Diego de la Vega, better known as El Zorro. He first appeared as a character in Johnston McCulley's novella The Curse of Capistrano (1919). His character and adventures have also been adapted for an American TV series, other books, and cartoon series.

<i>Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister</i> 1999 novel by Gregory Maguire

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister is a 1999 fantasy novel by American writer Gregory Maguire, retelling the tale of Cinderella through the eyes of one of her "ugly stepsisters." In 2002, the book was adapted into a TV movie of the same name directed by Gavin Millar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mu Nianci</span> Fictional character

Mu Nianci is a character in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong. She is the romantic interest of the antagonist, Yang Kang, and the mother of Yang Guo, the protagonist in the sequel novel, The Return of the Condor Heroes. Jin Yong describes her appearance as "firm like a piece of jade, despite appearing weather-beaten, she is beautiful, with bright eyes and sparkling white teeth."

<i>I Loved Tiberius</i> 1959 book by Elisabeth Dored

Jeg elsket Tiberius is a 1959 romance novel by Elisabeth Dored. It was first translated into English by Naomi Walford in Great Britain by Methuen and United States by Pantheon Books in 1963 under the name I Loved Tiberius. The novel was written as a careful reappraisal of the contemporary sources, placing Julia and Tiberius in a more positive light. The novel is set in 1st century BC Rome, centred on Julia the Elder, the daughter of Augustus and her life right up until her death. The novel begins with Julia's birth and her mother being forbidden to see her. The plot is mainly focused on Julia's love life, notably her relationship with her stepbrother, Tiberius.

<i>La Terre</i> 1887 novel by Émile Zola

La Terre is a novel by Émile Zola, published in 1887. It is the fifteenth novel in Zola's Rougon-Macquart series. The action takes place in a rural community in the Beauce, an area in central France west of Paris. The novel is connected to others in the series by the protagonist, Jean Macquart, whose childhood in the south of France was recounted in La Fortune des Rougon, and who goes on to feature prominently in the later novel La Débâcle.

<i>Embraced by the Moonlight</i> Japanese manga series

Embraced by the Moonlight is a science fiction manga series by Saki Hiwatari. It was published by Hakusensha in the monthly manga magazine Bessatsu Hana to Yume from its November 2003 issue to its January 2015 one. It is a sequel to Please Save My Earth, one of Hiwatari's previous works and the short story Things Accidentally Left Behind featured in the anthology manga Vivid Memories II. The series features the two focus characters of that series, Alice Sakaguchi and Rin Kobayashi. They are married, and their child, seven-year-old Ren, is the main character of the series. Many of the characters from Please Save My Earth reappear in this one. It also reprises a lot of the ESP-related themes that the original series dealt with. The series was collected into 15 volumes. A sequel titled I Sing with the Earth has been running in Melody since 2015.

<i>Darkest Hour</i> (Andrews novel) Novel by V. C. Andrews

Darkest Hour is the fifth and final novel in a series of books about the Cutler family attributed to V. C. Andrews and published in 1993. It is allegedly based on the original ideas of Andrews but was written by ghostwriter Andrew Neiderman. Andrews is the credited author.

<i>A Thousand Splendid Suns</i> 2007 novel by Khalid Hosseini

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a 2007 novel by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini, following the huge success of his bestselling 2003 debut The Kite Runner. Mariam, an illegitimate teenager from Herat, is forced to marry a shoemaker from Kabul after a family tragedy. Laila, born a generation later, lives a relatively privileged life, but her life intersects with Mariam's when a similar tragedy forces her to accept a marriage proposal from Mariam's husband.

<i>Clannad</i> (film) 2007 Japanese anime drama film

Clannad is a 2007 Japanese animated drama film directed by Osamu Dezaki and based on the visual novel of the same name developed by Key. Toei Animation announced at the Tokyo Anime Fair on March 23, 2006 that an animated film would be produced, and was released theatrically by Toei Company on September 15, 2007. The film is a reinterpretation of the Clannad storyline which centers on the story arc of the female lead Nagisa Furukawa. It was the final film directed by Dezaki before his death in April 2011.

This is a list of fictional stories in which illegitimacy features as an important plot element. Passing mentions are omitted from this article. Many of these stories explore the social pain and exclusion felt by illegitimate "natural children".

Ismihan Kaya Sultan was an Ottoman princess. She was the daughter of Ottoman sultan Murad IV. The famed Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi noted a specific encounter with Kaya Sultan in his Book of Travels. An entire chapter of the book is dedicated to Kaya Sultan, from her pregnancy to her death. She was the most famous child of Murad IV and the favorite granddaughter of Kösem Sultan.

<i>O Beijo do Vampiro</i> Brazilian telenovela

O Beijo do Vampiro is a Brazilian telenovela that was produced and aired by Rede Globo from August 26, 2002 to May 3, 2003, totaling 215 chapters, substituting Desejos de Mulher and preceding Kubanacan.

Alex Cross is a crime, mystery, and thriller novel series written by James Patterson. The protagonist of the series is Alex Cross, an African-American Metropolitan Police Department detective and father who counters threats to his family and to the city of Washington, D.C. Supporting characters include two of Cross's children, Damon and Janelle, as well as his grandmother Nana Mama. The series is usually narrated in first-person perspective by Alex Cross, and occasionally from the villains' point of view in third-person.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Osman Bey (fictional character)</span> Main protagonist in a Turkish TV series

Osman Bey is the main protagonist in the Turkish TV series, Kuruluş: Osman, portrayed by Burak Özçivit. He also appears as a supporting character in its predecessor, Diriliş: Ertuğrul, where he is played by Emre Üçtepe. The character is based on Osman I, founder of the Ottoman Empire.

References

  1. Uhler SA (November 13, 2003). "Impact of a mother's death on child health and survival in Haiti" . Retrieved August 27, 2007.