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  • New Philosopher

    There are no Mothers

    Apr 22, 2019 4 minutes
    by Mariana Alessandri

    Janelle Hanchett recently published a memoir about raising multiple children as a non-functioning alcoholic and drug addict. I’m Just Happy to Be Here shows the author heaving her recalcitrant body into the straitjacket of ordinary life. For years she couldn’t do it. Her kids got taken away, multiple times and for multi-year stretches, while a sodden Hanchett raged against mediocrity. Like so many mothers today, she felt destined to more than a domestic life. Except for the 72-hour benders, gross negligence, and domestic violence, her story is relatable. Mothers everywhere want to be more than just mothers. I suggest that we stop being them altogether.

    Hanchett’s life was far from balanced. She threw herself into serial identities as

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