Pregnancy Test

Object Lessons

by Karen Weingarten

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things.

In the 1970s, the invention of the home pregnancy test changed what it means to be pregnant. For the first time, women could use a technology in the privacy of their own homes that gave them a yes or no answer. That answer had the power to change the course of their reproductive lives, and it chipped away at a paternalistic culture that gave gynecologists-the majority of whom were men-control over information about women's bodies.

However, while science so often promises clear-cut answers, the reality of pregnancy is often much messier. Pregnancy Test explores how the pregnancy test has not always lived up to the fantasy that more information equals more knowledge. Karen Weingarten examines the history and cultural representation of the pregnancy test to show how this object radically changed sex and pregnancy in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Object Lessons is published in partnership with an essay series in the The Atlantic.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Feminism

169 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2023

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC received in exchange for an honest review

Informative and well thought out history of the pregnancy test and its significant cultural and social impact. At times it did get a bit too scientific, but I think it needed to in order to get across how a pregnancy test actually works and really show how women have taken back their body autonomy. The fact that doctors use to withhold pregnancy tests from women, or only discuss the results with their husbands is wild to me.

My favourite section by far were the later chapters on the shift in societal perseptions and how the home pregnancy test has really become a right of passage to pregnancy. The discussion on power and control that pregnancy tests have in some dystopian literature, and by extension into the real world also further highlights that women, especially women of colour still have some way to go in order to reclaim our own rights.

[Liralen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quiz: All of the following methods have, at various points in history, been put forth as accurate pregnancy tests. Which has been scientifically tested and proven to have merit?

A) A woman urinating on bags of barley, wheat, and beans to see if they sprouted (variations between 1350 BCE Egypt and 900s CE Arabic texts)

B) Pouring milk into a glass of a woman's urine and seeing if the milk floated (1200s Germany)

C) Placing an iron needle in a cup of urine and looking for the development of black spots (1500s Switzerland)

D) Mixing urine with wine and seeing if it looked as though beans had stewed in it (1600s Netherlands)

E) Injecting a Japanese Bitterling fish with urine and seeing if the fish released eggs (1930s)

See the end of this review for the answer.

I subjected several friends, and also my mother and siblings, to this quiz while reading the book, each time with the caveat that no, it doesn't have any bearing on my life just now. The time it took me to read this book easily more than doubles the amount of time that I have spent thinking about pregnancy tests over my lifetime (I've never seen one out of the packaging), but it was fascinating: part of a series of short books, Object Lessons, Pregnancy Test takes you through the scientific and social history of—surprise—the pregnancy test. While the twenty-first-century home pregnancy test has become a familiar object, writes Weingarten, it started out as an idea about reproductive autonomy and privacy, and its implications have had a greater impact on our reproductive lives than anyone could have imagined (loc. 129).

At 160-odd pages, it's perhaps easiest to approach this as a series of long-form essays about history and social context and autonomy. Think doctors being the ones to decide whether women should be allowed to have a pregnancy test (after all, if she knows she's pregnant, she might choose an abortion); think scientists objecting to at-home tests because women couldn't be "trusted" to manage mixing a few chemicals together; think a rabbit or mouse being dissected for every laboratory pregnancy test done. I'm sorry (or—not), I'm a nerd, but this is utterly fascinating.

Much of this sounds like things of the past, but as Weingarten discusses, there are current—and pressing—implications of women being able, or not, to learn about the occupancy of their uteruses on their own terms. Again, this is a slim little book, but it's the sort of thing that should catapult you into even more reading.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley. Quotes are from a review copy and may not be final.

Quiz answer: A 1963 study showed that "a pregnant woman's urine could encourage the germination of both barley and wheat" (loc. 568). Whether or not the other methods have been tested, though, is unclear, and definitely merits scientific investigation, please.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laboratory pregnancy tests have been available since the 1930s and home pregnancy tests – the focus here – since the 1970s. All of them work by testing urine for the hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin). What is truly wild is that pregnancy used to be verifiable only with laboratory animals – female mice and rabbits had to be sacrificed to see if their ovaries had swelled after the injection of a woman’s urine; later, female Xenopus toads were found to lay eggs in response, so didn’t need to be killed. Home pregnancy kits were controversial and available in Canada before the USA because it was thought that they could be unreliable or that they would encourage early abortions. Weingarten brings together the history, laypeople-friendly science, and cultural representations (taking a pregnancy test is excellent TV shorthand) in a readable narrative and makes a clear feminist statement: “the home pregnancy test gave back to women what should have always been theirs: first-hand knowledge about how their bodies worked” and thus “had the potential to upend a paternalistic culture.”

Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.

[Elizabeth Mellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Academic for the ARC of this!

This was an interesting look at the history of an item that feels like a given in this day and age, through a feminist lens. I did know that original testing was on animals, but I didn’t realize exactly how it worked and it was fascinating to learn about. The nod to dystopian literature and where our world may be going felt especially timely. Overall it was paced well, interesting and informational without going on too long.

[Tara Gold · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a delightful surprise!

It held a unicorn trifecta for me: it was brief, comprehensive, and novel. I literally learned things I didn't even know I didn't know with this book. Who knew that pregnancy tests prior to the 70s/80s required killing mice, rabbits, and frogs? (not me!)

I liked that this covered so many bases in such a short space. Weingarten looks at the medical and innovation side of creating a consumer product, but also the political and social effects of women being able to learn information about their bodies from the comfort of their homes. We don't think much about pregnancy tests beyond their constant use as a storytelling device in TV and film, but they really are a fascinating little invention -- imagine not being able to know if you are pregnant without going to a doctor, or having to wait weeks for confirmation of something so impactful. This really helped me appreciate that those little $10 tests exist in pretty much every store in 2023.

I ended up buying this book because it's a great little addition to my feminist books collection, and I will book looking into others in this Object Lessons series from Bloomsbury. I have my eye on the Bookshelf volume in particular. If you are a nerd for the history of random and every day objects like I am, I definitely recommend this one.

[Mai H.]

Non-fiction November TBR

Women's History Month TBR

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this c/ the publisher, Bloomsbury.

I have never personally interacted with a pregnancy test, and yet - as Weingarten discusses here - I still know the basics of what one looks like. The appearance of the 'wand', and what it means on tv show when a woman is in a bathroom watching a little plastic stick, is ubiquitous in Western media. As with all Object Lessons, though, Weingarten shows just how complicated and not-straightforward this objet is.

This is another brilliant instalment in the Object Lessons series. The author goes through the history of pregnancy tests and the development of its most common appearance today. She also problematises the whole concept of pregnancy and how the simple yes/no really isn't that simple, and challenges the idea of pregnancy testing at home being an unassailably good thing.

I loved that Weingarten took the idea of pregnancy testing back before the 20th century, in a brief tour of various cultures have sought to confirm what at least some women suspect before external confirmation. The discussion of the medicalisation of women's experiences is something I've read around before, and continues here, as Weingarten points out the ways in which doctors etc present women's bodies as 'mysterious' and needing external (usually male) deciphering. Coming into the 20th century, I had NO IDEA how early scientific testing happened - using mice, rabbits, frogs and toads (... the mammals not surviving the experience).

Then there's the pregnancy test in media, from Murphy Brown on to The Handmaid's Tale... and also what could arguably be called the weaponisation of the test: people forcibly or covertly tested for pregnancy, and then their subsequent experiences determined by the results. And the fact that yes/no doesn't actually cover all the possibilities: that a chemical pregnancy might give a positive result; that miscarriages can happen really early on and without a test, you would never know you were pregnant anyway...

Weingarten, as with other Object Lesson writers, is coming at this topic both personally - having used pregnancy tests herself - and academically. She brings the two perspectives together thoughtfully, honestly, and engagingly.

Every time I read one of these, I come away with a better, and more nuanced, understanding of the world.

[Shameem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Weingarten's work should be required reading for everyone, from high schoolers studying history to elected officials responsible for making healthcare policy that affects anyone who might need to use a pregnancy test.

I genuinely was learning something new constantly throughout this entire read. Weingarten is meticulous in her research and grounds herself squarely in science, but she writes in a way that is extremely accessible to even those who don't have a background in science or medicine. Her ability to first state facts as they are and then comprehensively address the impact of the facts on various groups of people from a various number of perspectives is incredible. She truly writes with fairness and balance.

This book discusses both the history behind the diagnosis of pregnancy over time and across the world, and also the social impact of becoming pregnant in different situations, and the impact of having (or not) access to determine pregnancy status, and whether that assessment is private or public. There are so many layers to consider from so many different angles, and in such a short time, Weingarten covers that immense ground.

I cannot recommend this book enough.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is very well done. Hooooo boy, did it make me angry though.

[Book Club of One · Rating 4 out of 5]

Karen Weingarten's Pregnancy Test explores the history and culture of the pregnancy test for American Women in the 20th Century. It is a history full of animal death, blood, gender expectations and improved accuracy and shifts in control from the personal to the medical and back.

Weingarten spends the first half of the book detailing the history of the pregnancy test, beginning with the work of Margaret Crane, the woman who designed and created the prototype for the first home pregnancy test. From this initial section, the gendered assumptions and expectations are clear. Out of all the test prototypes, Crane's was the only one created by a woman and also the only one to consider how urine would be collected.

Chapter two discusses the discovery of what we now refer to as the hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) that is the key component in diagnosing pregnancy. (pg 4). Doctors then learned that they could inject samples from women into first mice, then rabbits, and after an autopsy could determine whether or not the woman was pregnant. With this increase in medicalization of pregnancy tests women were discouraged from trusting their own bodies. The rest of the history section discusses the development and improved accuracy of the test and the lowering price of access that had its own cultural and racial implications.

Part 2, looks at different facets of American culture and how they have been shaped by the pregnancy test. Weingarten samples print advertisements, televised commercials, pregnancy tests as plot points in comedies, soap operas or other visual media to the present on TikTok and other social media. This section concludes with discussions of the "science fiction of pregnancy testing." (chapter 8, starts page 113). Here the realities in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale is contrasted with it's television adaptation. Some of the other works discussed are Alaya Dawn Johnson ("They Shall Salt the Earth with Seeds of Glass," Leni Zumas's Red Clocks, and Ling Ma's Severance.

It is with these science fiction titles that we're brought back to the present in considerations of what the test can mean. Of particularly import in the United States is the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade making abortion access harder to access in more than half of the US, as Weingarten discusses in the afterword.

This book will appeal to those awaiting pregnancy test results, medical historians, or readers of The Birth of the Pill: How Four Crusaders Reinvented Sex and Launched A Revolution by Jonathan Eig.

I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher.

[Darius Ostrowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe that this is my sixth entry in the Object Lessons series, short books that focus on the hidden history of everyday objects. Although the concept is excellent, I have had a very up and down relationship with the series, it seems that I alternate between “very interesting” and “not at all”. Luckily the latest lesson for me, “Pregnancy Test” by Karen Weingarten, is one of the better entries in this series, being both scientific and social, telling the story of something that we take for granted in today’s society.

Ms. Weingarten starts with the story of Margaret Crane and her work designing the first at-home test. The amount of pushback was ridiculous, from doctors and laboratories that realized that their power and control (not to mention revenue) were under threat. We then get an overview of the science, and the fact that a pregnancy test does not test for a viable pregnancy but for the presence of a hormone tied to the existence of a placenta. This little wrinkle actually changed what the definition of pregnancy became, since earlier detection spotted situations that we’ve never had to deal with before.

The societal impact is even bigger than the science, I know I must be pretty naïve to be shocked that in my lifetime doctors were deciding whether a woman was allowed to have a pregnancy test (based on the doctor’s impression on whether she’d have an abortion) or discussing pregnancy with the husband in another room while the wife waited for them to make a decision. Ms. Weingarten also goes into the advertising world, how the adverts have changed to minimize certain impressions and quell the public outcry of marginalized women taking control of their own bodies and making their own decisions.

All-in-all a fascinating look at an everyday object, exactly what the series sets out to do.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Bloomsbury Academic via NetGalley. Thank you!

[Tutankhamun18 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little history of the pregancy test as an object is exactly that and fantastic. The book opens with the invention of the first at home pregnancy test in 1967, followed by its roll out in Canada, Europe and eventually Europe. From there it follows the history of pregnancy tests and how these went from the realm of women to doctors and how knowing you are pregnant earlier intersected with attitudes around abortion of the worth of women. Really well written, full of content and exactly what it says on the tin in the best way.

Meg Crane “on New Year's Eve 1967, …stayed late at work to finish her design. Using everyday materials, she had created the prototype for the first home pregnancy test.”

“Just a month after the home pregnancy test's release, The Province, a British Columbia newspaper, reported on the test's popularity on the Canadian west coast. Pharmacies regularly sold out of the test, the journalist noted.”

“In the United States, a different narrative unfolded. Even before the home pregnancy test emerged as a reality, laboratory pregnancy tests were far more regulated in the US than in Europe and Canada. By the 1960s, women outside of the US could go to a pharmacy to have a pregnancy test administered by the pharmacist. In the US, however, the pregnancy test was deemed a medical procedure, and only women with a referral from their doctor could take the
- laboratory test…In 1973, one small drug store in New Jersey tried to offer the test —the first known American pharmacy that advertised to women that they could process these pregnancy test kits without a doctor's prescription-but eventually, they were shut down and deemed illegal because of a 1953 law that mandated that only people with special licenses could handle bodily fluids."

[J Earl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pregnancy Test by Karen Weingarten is an excellent addition to the Object Lessons series, examining the now commonplace test from historical, sociological, and commercial perspectives. Most interestingly where they meet.

In covering the history we get a fascinating look at the scientific and technological developments that went into the test we all know. Among the many things covered in addition to the basic facts is how, even for a product designed for use by women, women were not consulted. Not really surprising, but still makes one wonder just how deep some harmful belief systems run.

I can't help but pity anyone who wants only a partial history then claims that there was too much of the parts they want to ignore. Shows how one's nonsensical sensibilities allows them to live a life blind to the plights of others. Abortion is mentioned (not extensively, but when applicable) because it was a factor in developing, administering, and policing pregnancy testing. Not the only factor, but Weingarten never even implies that (well, to anyone with a basic level of reading comprehension skills), but definitely one that influenced its development and marketing.

One of the most interesting topics covered here, for me, was the area of chemical pregnancy, the topic that initially sent Weingarten on this research journey. I had heard of them but only vaguely, now I feel like I have a much better understanding of the entire interface between human biology and medical testing.

Highly recommended for anyone curious about the science of testing or the social and cultural impact of home pregnancy testing.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

[bowiesbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a really fascinating and well-researched book about the history of pregnancy tests and the cultural impact that they have. It is short but sweet, splitting the book into two sections and brining in a lot of relevant pop culture and personal anecdotes. I found this to be really helpful because it is quite a heavily scientific book with a lot about immunology and hormones in order to understand the body and testing for pregnancy. This helped it to be more digestible.

I loved the interview with Meg Crane who Weingarten credits with being essential to the process of the at-home pregnancy test. It was great to hear it from the horses mouth as they say.

I learnt a lot about the history of how doctors tested (with animals) and even found myself shocked at a lot of the anecdotes about how women were treated. I very much enjoyed the feminist tone that this book took and I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to lean more about the culture surrounding pregnancy tests and the implications that it has had for women throughout time.

[Ali C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really interested to read this as I have read other object lesson books and really enjoyed them. I was excited to learn about the history of pregnancy tests, (wheat, milk, rabbits, and toads?!) and how the modern tests were created and brought to market.
Beyond that, it seemed like this book was more about abortions than pregnancies and that left a bitter taste in my mouth, especially as a mother. I wouldn't have picked this up had I known, and maybe should have researched the author more beforehand. The prochoice/woke agenda is pushed throughout the book. With all of the mentions of abortion and unwanted pregnancies, I found the portions that addressed infertility lacking and honestly a bit contemptuous, which is fine, but not what I was looking for.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about the history of the pregnancy test, how the modern at-home tests came about and the ways pregnancy was tested for prior to that. There is discussion of the effects of women being able to control the knowledge about their own bodies versus being controlled by (usually male) doctors. There is also a brief section of the effect of the availability of home pregnancy tests on those dealing with infertility and the ambiguity of tests and disappointment when it comes to chemical pregnancies (the existence of which was not even known prior to home testing being available) and/or nonviable pregnancies. There is a definite pro-choice slant. It was interesting scientifically and socially and also a pretty quick read. 4 stars.

[Britt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me appreciate pregnancy tests so much more! They are undoubtedly crucial for the freedom and rights of women and other people with uteruses!

Furthermore, the history of pregnancy tests is entertainingly weird. From mice, and rabbits to frogs, knowing whether you were pregnant included some interesting tests... (and sad)

It was very insightful and very empowering! I really recommend it if you want to learn more about pregnancy tests and how they are more important than just being convenient.

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent addition to the Object Lessons series. Informative, well-researched and comprehensive, the author explores the science/art of pregnancy testing through the ages right up to the cheap and easily attainable tests that are available today – with many a fascinating stop along the way. Unlike many in the series this one was much more fact-based with fewer personal anecdotes, and that appealed to me. I learnt a lot and I suspect most readers will too.

[Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. This short book packs tidy summaries of the history, development, and culture surrounding the pregnancy test - an item we commonly recognize on sight today. Weingarten's writing is concise yet thorough, encouraging us to view how the patriarchal culture surrounding pregnancy testing lingers, how new technology can be a tool of surveillance and further inequality among communities of pregnant people, and how media and social discourse reflect these ongoing problems.

[Tessi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read that shines light on the evolution of pregnancy tests and its symbolic role in society over the years. I really enjoyed how the author dug into the science of pregnancy tests but also explored the emotional, social and economical of this object, asking the central question: Pregnancy tests — objectifying or empowering women?

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting more from this book than I actually got. Although I found it every informative on the use of the test throughout the years. Also, on the use to control women. I would have liked a little more content.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to see an ARC

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pregnancy Test by Karen Weingarten is a fascinating deep dive into the evolution of this ubiquitous test and its cultural significance. I really enjoyed learning how something so commonplace has changed over time and shaped conversations around women's health. The book is concise yet packed with insights, making it perfect for anyone interested in the intersections of health, history, and gender. I especially loved the discussion about how pregnancy tests are portrayed in media—it added an engaging cultural layer to the analysis.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.