Sufficiency in Motherhood

Cusk stresses the significance of sufficiency in motherhood, going so far as to equate sufficiency with motherhood itself, and connecting it with the willingness to be available for one’s child. Of having endured persistent crying during the first months of her daughter’s life and reached a point where she feels an understanding has developed between them, she writes, "this, I suddenly and certainly know, is motherhood; this mere sufficiency, this presence" (70). As this follows a period of doubt about whether or not she is a fit mother, this declaration is significant, and suggests that she has traded the idea of there being a right way to mother for the idea that motherhood is not about adhering to a particular framework, but about being willing to adapt to a child's needs.

To better define sufficient motherhood, Cusk contrasts it with insufficient motherhood, primarily using the...