Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the United States - Assignment Example

Cultural Myth Around the US, Latina women celebrate their 15th birthday with a popular cultural tradition known as quinceanera. In most Latin American nations, 15 is the legally recognized age at which a girl transitions into womanhood and is even allowed to marry and have children. The quinceanera, which is characterized by lavishly expensive clothing, catering and partying, has been engrained in the US as a rite of passage which the Latinas strictly observe. In her book Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA, Julia Alvarez examines quinceanera beyond the celebrations and analyzes the issues faced by adolescent girls. Just as the cultural myth of gender roles is describe in the article “True Women and Real Men” in the book Rereading America, Alvarez explores the categories of gender as they are constructed by the society. She uses social research, the quinceanera story of a girl named Monica, her personal experience and history to explore the cultural myth of gender roles. This paper will describe how the cultural myth of gender roles is presented as one that enforces the differences between women and men in Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA. Ideally, Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA pushes readers to question the cultural perceptions of gender as embedded in rites of passage rituals. Having left the Dominican Republic at the time she would have had her own quinceanera, Alvarez examines how gender is perceived among girls who are not sure themselves of the significance of the ritual. The cultural myth of gender roles is deeply entangled with the identities of individuals as determined by the cultural values they have internalized from infancy. In her book, Alvarez neither presents arguments for gender superiority nor inferiority but, rather, presents the case as typically perceived by the Latina community. The clear message embodied in the quinceanera concept as opined in Alvarez’s book is that the Latina girl is expected to get married, devote herself to her husband and have children. In the US, as Alvarez implies, a quince (or Latina girl coming of age) is exceedingly dramatized and the scenario often entails the parents overspending in what seems to be advertising their daughter for marriage. Symbolically, during the ceremony, the young girl is dressed much like a bride. Then her father changes her flat shoes with high heels, claims the first waltz and passes her on to an uncle, brother or grandfather and finally an escort. Ideally, it is a wedding rehearsal just short of a groom but the message to the girl, and larger community, is clear: she will soon be handed over to a man and expected to remain submissive. Alvarez uses this point to communicate the way gender roles are understood among the Latina communities. As she points out, it is not surprising that Latina girls get pregnant soon after their quinceanera. The community views the quinceanera as the platform through which young girls are ushered into womanhood and a sense of responsibility. However, Alvarez influences the reader to wonder if such a tradition is merely meant to present a false impression of female power in a system that is openly known to be traditionally patriarchal. Ironically, most of the Latina mothers in the US never had a quinceanera of their own, yet they insist on their daughters having one for the sake of going from a girl into a woman. According to Alvarez, that notion only serves to encourage illusions of adulthood in the girls’ lives at a period when only biological maturity is setting in but not social maturity. Further, Alvarez views the quinceanera as a means of permitting girls to become sexually active without warning them of the associated risks that include early motherhood. While interviewing Latina girls at Lawrence High School, Alvarez is told by one of the interviewees that boys do not need to have a quinceanera because they are born men (Alvarez 58). On the other hand, it is imperative for a girl to have one because she must turn into a woman. Clearly, this notion objectifies women. It is a manifestation of the deeply placed and guarded divide, albeit traditionally, in a young girl’s life when she transforms into a sexualized body. Critically analyzing this comment shows that boys have the luxury to forget their sex, but girls are constantly reminded they are girls and will graduate into womanhood, and defined roles, at a certain age. From this point, it can be seen that, just as described in Rereading America (412), Alvarez uses the notion of educational empowerment as being a myth to describe the role of gender in society. If education is meant to empower women and make them independent, then it is ironical that girls in high school still view themselves as subordinate to boys. Hence, if learning delivers power, it implies something different in regard to Latina girls. Quinceanera, therefore, only gives girls a momentary illusion of power by celebrating their youth, sexual power and beauty but in reality is an enactment of the old paradigm of the increasing patriarchy in the US. Even as she and other girls as well, discovered their own sexuality during adolescence, it was always interpreted through external perspectives. Older women around them always used men as points of reference when defining sexuality and they were always controlled by patriarchy. They warned the girls constantly about their conduct around men. As much as it is seen as celebrating the initiation into womanhood, the quinceanera mainly positions women further away from the social and political aspects of life. Most importantly, it introduces girls into their real (or perceived) roles in society. From another perspective, the initiation may be considered as a relief for an oppressed class. The young girls might be undergoing initiation, but, in itself, the ritual does not really change the structure of society. For example, from the understanding of Alvarez, who actually gives her own account of being a Latino and not looking in as an outsider, she struggled to stay relevant in a professional society dominated by men. Here, the cultural myth of gender roles shapes the way the society thinks about and perceives gender in a way that makes sense to them. Through cultural myths, societies share a common belief on the position of gender and for the Latina adolescents, they start experiencing gender roles and how they are imposed on them. After the quinceanera, they soon find out that they must adjust their self-perception as they move into womanhood that is manipulated by patriarchal rules. As Alvarez points out, mothers, godmothers and aunts use the quinceanera to ensure that young girls, such as the case of Monica, have a magical night through which they force the world to recognize their transition from girlhood into womanhood. However, typical of the patriarchal society, the girls are not aware, or even warned, of what they will face in life beyond the day of the quinceanera. Their gender roles will launch them into a world of unsupportive imbalance and tribulations far removed from the ideals of the quinceanera. From this perspective, the work of Alvarez discusses the cultural myth of gender roles by consciously attempting to describe the experiences of young girls having to grow up as Latinas in two different worlds. This is further compounded by their attempt to search their new selves. Alvarez tries to reconcile two different worlds, in the sense of two different cultures (the US and Latino) by focusing on the best of them even when it means condemning aspects that oppress women. In Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA, Alvarez brings out the idea that the girl child will go through sequences of developmental stages until she reaches maturity. The maturity stage is what will make her a social subject, unlike what she had inside the private sphere provided by the family. The notion of gender roles as constructed by cultural myths provokes confusion and tensions that impact negatively on the development of the girl child. According to Alvarez, the quinceanera ritual is a manifestation of the submissive role of women as dictated by the cultural myth. Even with all the positivist claims associated with quinceanera, the book portrays the desired result as aiming to make girls willing and ready to take up their traditional positions as women the way it is defined by culture. Strategically, the ceremony places girls on a platform and carries them to the outermost possibilities in an ironic way that, viewed from a different perspective, treats them as goddesses only in preparation for drudgery. For the Latina community, the underlying issue is that as much as they wish to retain their heritage, they are also confronted with the problem that it is defined by roles and rituals that imprison women within their culture. For instance, as in the case of Monica, most Latina girls are not exactly sure what the quinceanera means to them, or if they actually have meaning at all. After analyzing several quinceanera ceremonies critically, Alvarez establishes that they do have themes such as Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, but not a specific meaning to the girl as intended by the original culture. Most girls have it because it is simply part of their culture; are pressured by their mothers; their friends have had it; or they just turning into women. Young Latina girls only view quinceanera as a party meant to impress their friends and the community. They do not understand the significance embedded in the act of the father changing their shoes from flat heeled to high heeled ones. Ideally, that signified the march into womanhood and, more importantly a defined role. In the Latina society, this is unlike boys, who are men from childhood. Alvarez explains how the boys are taught to prove themselves from childhood as healthy “machos” who would later prey on the girls (Alvarez 58). Accordingly, a quinceanera is described as the formal platform through which parents announce that their daughters are ready to receive, and accept, male attention. The carrying of the doll is symbolic of the last evidence of childish dreams a girl will be permitted to enjoy. From this, it can be deduced that unlike boys, girls are expected to transform into a new status. It can further be seen that by the fact that girls will change into women, they are under some form of control and, not of their own but, rather, the society. Extending the ceremony to the church is evidence enough that their adult responsibilities are being acknowledged not only before the community but also God. The way Alvarez describes her high school days it is evident that there was already a perception of gender roles developed into their minds as young girls. For instance, while quinceanera was basically considered to groom young girls for their entry into adulthood, school taught and encouraged them to develop their minds (Alvarez 58). This is as opposed to allowing gender divides to put limits on their possible achievements. The only reason the school’s motto urged them to get into understanding in order to advance to nobler living is because it was a known fact that their gender had profiled them socially. It is from the understanding of this social profiling based on gender that they were encouraged at school to be independent, smart and resourceful women. On the other hand, rather than being a genuine and positive ritual that connects Latinas to their roots, a quinceanera typically markets young girls for marriage. In conclusion, the quinceanera is not simply a rite of passage meant to usher girls into womanhood. Apart from the lavish parties and celebrations, a quinceanera basically positions women where the patriarchal society has always placed them. Alvarez clarifies this by pointing out how while it appears to be getting them ready for adult life, it actually moves them further away from social and political roles considered to be masculine. Typical of a patriarchal society, announcing that a woman is ready for adulthood translates into being under a man who will have control over her. Works Cited Alvarez, Julia. Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA. New York: Plume, 2008. Print. Colombo, Gary, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing (9th ed.). New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013. Print. Read More