Pink and Blue

In modern pediatric practice, gender matters. From the pink-and-blue striped receiving blankets used to swaddle newborns, to the development of sex-specific nutrition plans based on societal expectations of the stature of children, a gendered culture permeates pediatrics and childrens health throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. This book provides a look at how gender has served as one of the frameworks for pediatric care in the U.S. since the specialtys inception. Pink and Blue deploys genderoften in concert with class and raceas the central critical lens for understanding the function of pediatrics as a cultural and social project in modern U.S. history.