The Birth as a Rite of Passage from Man to Father

Abstract

The article shows that the birth of a child is not just a physical, but also a social and cultural event. It might be considered as a rite of passage that turns women into mothers and men into fathers, and both into parents. For men, the birth of a child is a significant change in life that is commonly taken for granted. As a result, life for most men changes fundamentally with the birth of a child. In addition, many fathers see the pregnancy, birth and the months thereafter as an extremely important time in their lives, during which they turn from a man into a father. Simultaneously, many of them embrace the fact of what an enrichment the children are for their own personal development. In these months the fathers are undergoing consequent transformation processes which demand certain efforts and are sometimes painful. In the process, they train new practices of fatherhood in the familiar living together.