Midwifery
Abbie W.
English 101
February 20, 2014
Midwifery
“Birth, what a wonderful and beautiful moment.” Everything about this quote is so true. Not counting the 9 months of being pregnant and the insane hours of labor, birth is an amazing thing. Bringing another human being into the world is such an amazing and exciting thought! Without the help of doctors, nurses, and midwives, birth would be even harder than it already is. They make sure that you are as comfortable as possible and make sure that everything goes the way it is supposed to. The term “midwife” derived from the Middle English word “midwyf” which literally means “with woman”. “The woman with (the mother at birth), the woman assisting.” It also comes from the Latin word “obstetrix” which means “to stand before”. That meaning would make sense because a midwife stand before the mother while delivering her child. One of the earliest times that midwifery is ever used is during Biblical times. In the Bible, in the book of Exodus, there is a story about the Pharaoh of Egypt and two Hebrew midwives. The children of Israel, which were called Hebrews, were enslaved in Egypt and were greatly multiplying in number. They Egyptians feared the power that could possibly come from the many Hebrews in the land. Pharaoh ordered the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, to kill all male babies delivered to the Hebrew women. “The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the King of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.” (Exodus 1:17) The midwives told Pharaoh that the Hebrew women have easier labor than the Egyptian women do, and the Hebrew women delivered their babies before making it to the midwives. “So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more in number.” (Exodus 1:20) Although midwifery has been around for thousands of years, it has only been in the United States since the 1920’s. The profession started in the United States because of the large rate of infant
English 101
February 20, 2014
Midwifery
“Birth, what a wonderful and beautiful moment.” Everything about this quote is so true. Not counting the 9 months of being pregnant and the insane hours of labor, birth is an amazing thing. Bringing another human being into the world is such an amazing and exciting thought! Without the help of doctors, nurses, and midwives, birth would be even harder than it already is. They make sure that you are as comfortable as possible and make sure that everything goes the way it is supposed to. The term “midwife” derived from the Middle English word “midwyf” which literally means “with woman”. “The woman with (the mother at birth), the woman assisting.” It also comes from the Latin word “obstetrix” which means “to stand before”. That meaning would make sense because a midwife stand before the mother while delivering her child. One of the earliest times that midwifery is ever used is during Biblical times. In the Bible, in the book of Exodus, there is a story about the Pharaoh of Egypt and two Hebrew midwives. The children of Israel, which were called Hebrews, were enslaved in Egypt and were greatly multiplying in number. They Egyptians feared the power that could possibly come from the many Hebrews in the land. Pharaoh ordered the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, to kill all male babies delivered to the Hebrew women. “The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the King of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.” (Exodus 1:17) The midwives told Pharaoh that the Hebrew women have easier labor than the Egyptian women do, and the Hebrew women delivered their babies before making it to the midwives. “So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more in number.” (Exodus 1:20) Although midwifery has been around for thousands of years, it has only been in the United States since the 1920’s. The profession started in the United States because of the large rate of infant