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Latin american womens roles in society
The women of colonial latin america essay about gender roles
Essay on latin women in america
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Women’s Role in Colonial Latin America “What kind of society made it possible for women to act independently, even when this caused conflict with the men around them” (Gauderman 132)? The Spanish system was socially, administratively, and politically decentralized, and the family was also part of the decentralization. One of the objectives of this decentralized system was to prevent any individual or group from consolidating a position of absolute control (126). Equality was not the goal of the legislation and the state, but to uphold social and legal norms (1). Gauderman gathered her information from legislation, civil and criminal litigation, city-council, and notarial records to support her theory that women had a significant role in colonial Latin America (5). Spanish history starts with the marriage of Isabella, queen of Castile, and Ferdinand, king of Aragon, in 1469. With this marriage, the two counties became one, but neither one could control the others possessions without the other person’s writing consent, which was true of all marriages under Spanish law …show more content…
One of the similarities is the right to inherit property, and sell goods in the marketplace. She was under patria potestad until the age of 25, because she was illegitimate child, and her grandfather has passed away, she was sent to live with her maternal aunt’s family in Mexico City (2). Sor Juana wrote about the promise-to-marry plight of women in her poem Hombres necios que acusais describing how men seduce women and blame the woman for the indiscretion (5). Gauderman describes the Convent as an asylum for women to escape the life of a married women, which was exactly why Sor Juana joined a Convent (Gauderman 37). Sor Juana did not go to the courts for justice for women’s rights, she wrote about
In her book, First Generations Women in Colonial America, Carol Berkin depicts the everyday lives of women living during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Berkin relays accounts of European, Native American, and African women's struggles and achievements within the patriarchal colonies in which women lived and interacted with. Until the first publication of First Generations little was published about the lives of women in the early colonies. This could be explained by a problem that Berkin frequently ran into, as a result of the patriarchal family dynamic women often did not receive a formally educated and subsequently could not write down stories from day to day lives. This caused Berkin to draw conclusions from public accounts and the journals of men during the time period. PUT THESIS HERE! ABOUT HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT THE BOOK.
Upon returning to the Dominican Republic after many years, Yolanda decides to take a trip across the island––something her family views as ridiculous. “‘This is not the states’ . . . ‘A woman just doesn’t travel alone in this country.” (9) This quote highlights the sexism inherent in Dominican society. Yolanda’s family is asserting that women are not individuals capable of taking care of themselves. On another hand, Yolanda’s close friendship with Mundín causes tensions as their mothers confront them about crossing gender lines. “My mother disapproved. The outfit would only encourage my playing with Mundín and the boy cousins. It was high time I got over my tomboy phase and started acting like a young lady señorita. ‘But it is for girls,’ . . . ‘boys don’t wear skirts.’” (228) This is an example of how Dominican societal norms and gender roles have impacted the sisters. Yolanda and Mundín were the only boy-girl playmates out of all the García children, yet this was frowned upon by both of their parents as to not impede the seemingly inevitable growth of Yolanda’s femininity, and conversely, Mundín’s masculinity. Moreover, this shows how societally-prescribed gender roles were instilled in Yolanda at a young age. However, this is not the only way in which women’s freedoms are
Before the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Moors were in control of much of the Iberian Peninsula. They desperately wanted to unite Spain and turn it into a Christian nation (“Isabella and Ferdinand”). Isabella carefully concocted a plan that would progress her ambition. She proposed to Ferdinand that they marry, which would unify Castile and Aragon, and kick-start the unification of Spain (“Ferdinand V”).
Susan Migden Socolow’s The Women of Colonial Latin America provides a comprehensive account of the varied roles of women in the colonial societies of Spanish and Portuguese America, spanning the three centuries between the conquests of the late-fifteenth century and the commencement of independence in the early-nineteenth century. Professor Socolow writes that “the goal of this book is to examine these [gender] roles and rules and thus understand the variety and limitations of the female experience in colonial Latin America” (1) and manages to carry this argument clearly and convincingly throughout the work. She argues that the patriarchy, Iberian patriarchy in particular, was encompassed in the church, laws, and traditions of colonial society
Socolow is successful in remaining nonjudgmental as she set out to be and examines the roles of men and women in patriarchal colonial Latin America well. This text is a good source for undergraduate introductory courses that do not require previous knowledge, but would not interest specialists, who are more detail oriented. Socolow undertakes a broad topic, expanding a large time period, but does fairly well. With a few maps to help geographic orientation, this book is an interesting, go-to text for undergraduates interested in gender roles of women in colonial Latin America.
Latin America’s independence kicked of with the independence of Haiti. Before the the independence movement that overtook Latin America, Haiti had gained independence twenty years before the movement. The Spanish Empire had been in decline for a period of time after the rise of the English empire and many failed battles on the Spanish (class notes). The French Revolution and the American Revolution had inspired many of the Latin American countries to fight for independence (Chapter 3). They were inspired by the Enlightenment that washed over Europe. Of the inspired, one man stood out and took the movement by heart.
Often historical events leading up to the twentieth century are dominated by men and the role of women is seemingly non-existent outside of reproduction. When one thinks of notable and memorable names and events of the Revolution, men are the first to be mentioned. The American Revolution was mainly dominated by men including George Washington, Samuel Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. There is no denying that men were vitally important to the American Revolution, but what were the women doing? Often overlooked, the women of the Revolution played a key role in the outcome of the nation. The women of the American Revolution, although not always recognized, were an influential society that assumed risky jobs like soldiers, as well as involvement
Identity is a group of characteristics, data or information that belongs exactly to one person or a group of people and that make it possible to establish differences between them. The consciousness that people have about themselves is part of their identity as well as what makes them unique. According to psychologists, identity is a consistent definition of one’s self as a unique individual, in terms of role, attitudes, beliefs and aspirations. Identity tries to define who people are, what they are, where they go or what they want to be or to do. Identity could depend on self-knowledge, self-esteem, or the ability of individuals to achieve their goals. Through self-analysis people can define who they are and who the people around them are. The most interesting point about identity is that some people know what they want and who they are, while it takes forever for others to figure out the factors mentioned before. Many of the individuals analyzed in this essay are confused about the different possible roles or positions they can adopt, and that’s exactly the reason they look for some professional help.
Immediately following the war with Spain, the United States had both the political will to pursue imperial policies and the geopolitical circumstances conducive to doing so. But the way in which these policies would manifest was an open question; was the impulse to actively remake the world in America’s Anglo-Saxon image justified? Hence, there were several models of American imperialism at the turn of the twentieth century. In the Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Samoa, the United States asserted unwavering political control. In Cuba, and later throughout most of the Caribbean basin, the economic and political domination of customarily sovereign governments became the policy. Ultimately, the United States was able to expand its territory
Rather than using the new political rights and civil freedoms to better care for their families, women were swarming in the streets brandishing weapons at each other, meddling in political affairs, of which they had little knowledge and generally causing disorder (Landes 100). As a result, the Assembly felt that women had proven themselves as, “lacking in their physical as well as moral strength required to debate, deliberate and formulate resolution” declared Ander Amar (Wollstonecraft 87). Thus when, women broke out from their traditional sphere and used the newfound rights for purposes other than conversing with their men and educating children , they found themselves right where they had started, confined into the home and the suffocating embrace of their men.
The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria, an essay written by Judith Ortiz Cofer, discusses the racial stereotypes Cofer struggles with as a Latin woman who travels across America. Throughout her life, Cofer discusses her interactions with people who falsely misjudge her as a Latin woman. Additionally, Cofer mentions other Hispanic women she has met in her life, who also suffer with racial assumptions. Although several people would disagree with Cofer and claim that she is taking racial remarks too seriously, racial stereotyping is a significant issue that should not be overlooked in our society. People should not base someone’s worth by their outward appearance or their ethnic background.
The idea that a woman’s job is to be a wife and mother is old-fashioned, but not completely out of style. Though these roles require a great deal of talent, resilience, patience, love, and strength, to name a few, they are often underestimated or depicted as simple. Especially in modern times, many women in the United States who stay home to raise a family are viewed as anti-feminists, whereas women in Latin America are not criticized for similar actions. In recent decades, more Latin American women have started to break the mold, daring to be both sexy, and successful in the workforce, while remaining pillars of domestic life.
Indigenous people of the world have historically been and continue to be pushed to the margins of society. Similarly, women have experienced political, social, and economical marginalization. For the past 500 years or so, the indigenous peoples of México have been subjected to violence and the exploitation since the arrival of the Spanish. The xenophobic tendencies of Spanish colonizers did not disappear after México’s independence; rather it maintained the racial assimilation and exclusion policies left behind by the colonists, including gender roles (Moore 166) . México is historically and continues to be a patriarchal society. So when the Zapatista movement of 1994, more formally known as the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación National (Zapatista Army of National Liberation; EZLN) constructed a space for indigenous women to reclaim their rights, it was a significant step towards justice. The Mexican government, in haste for globalization and profits, ignored its indigenous peoples’ sufferings. Chiapas, the southernmost state of Mexico, consisting of mostly indigenous peoples living in the mountains and country, grew frustration with the Mexican government. It was in that moment that the Zapatista movement arose from the countryside to awaken a nation to the plight of indigenous Mexicans. Being indigenous puts a person at a disadvantage in Mexican society; when adding gender, an indigenous woman is set back two steps. It was through the Zapatista movement that a catalyst was created for indigenous women to reclaim rights and autonomy through the praxis of indigeneity and the popular struggle.
Some of them came to the United States illegally because they had heard so much about the wonderful opportunities that were available here. Family was another reason why many women decided to come here because they wanted a better life for themselves and their children. In general the decision to migrate to the United States was a complicated puzzle to fix in itself but “Success in America depended on the policies of the United States, and the U.S. economy determined the immigrants’ possibilities of employment” (Clarke, 2002). Accepting American culture was no longer a barrier for Guyanese women immigrant because as Foner described the growing American influence on the Caribbean culture “British influence has declined, while American political, economic, and Cultural influence has
The fact that women are discriminated against and often viewed as inferior to men is no secret. Women all over the world have struggled to gain equality. Some of the rights that women longed for included better treatment at work and home, higher education, and parental authority. Many women in Latin America had conflicting views about certain women’s rights such as suffrage and divorce. While some progress has been made, Argentine women continue to fight for their rights with the help of important leaders and organizations because certain rights are still denied and violence against women continues to be a huge issue.