"The ideal mother, like the ideal marriage, is a fiction"

In this quote, Milton R. Sapirstein is recommending that the concept of an "ideal" mother or an "perfect" marital relationship is not based in truth. He is indicating that society's expectations and standards for moms and marital relationships are unrealistic and unattainable. Simply as an imaginary story may have an ideal, flawless mother or marriage, the concept of a perfect mom or marital relationship is likewise a fabricated concept. Sapirstein might be talking about the pressure and expectations put on females to be best moms and have best marriages, and how these expectations can be harmful and unattainable. Eventually, he is challenging the concept of perfection and encouraging approval of flaw in both motherhood and marriage.