Mexican Culture and Gender Roles - Essay Example

Mexican Culture and Gender Roles Introduction The immediate neighbor of the United s, Mexico is a country of vast cultureand history. Even so that one of the states of the U.S is called New Mexico. The culture is wide spread over many parts of the U.S with a large population of Mexicans who migrated to the State in search of jobs and livelihood. The society and culture of Mexico is divided into different structures like any other cultural divisions. From family to social norms, Mexican practice in their way for their society. Ethnicity & Languages About 60% of the people are Amerindian-Spanish, around 30% are Amerindian where as white constitute of 9 percent of the total population divided into 31 states and one federal district. Almost half the population lives in the cities but the rural area are enriched with the local customs. A misconception might be that Mexican is the largest spoken language while in reality; Spanish is the most spoken language. Mexico also constitutes of wide variety of Amerindian languages. (Zimmermann, 2013) Mexicans mostly relate their religion to as being Catholic (about 90%), where as six percent constitute of Protestant, the rest have their faith within a combination of the pre-Hispanic Mayan Element. Muslims, Buddhists and Jews constitute a very small proportion of the society. (Kwint Essential, 2013) Besides the West and the South, most of the Americans although considering themselves Christians have liberal thoughts about religion in general. Not everyone is open to practices like in Mexico where it is considered an essential part of a society. Family System and Social Norms Mexican families have strong ties and are in large numbers especially in the rural areas. They are usually in depth connected with their businesses. People are much more careful about their relationship with their extended families as well. Parties are a usual in the Mexican household and the culture is supposed to be very circulated and warm towards the guests. Compared to the American system, where due to urbanization and most part of the country being suburbs, the family system is a bit more different. As compared to Mexico, people in America are much more oriented and the party life is limited outside and not much in the house holds. Mexicans family systems are much linked toward being hierarchal and the respect for elders amongst the top priority. People usually live with their parents for a longer time than in the U.S where urbanization has led to much more independence. Mexican culture in some occasions is much laid back, such as in parties, culturally people arrive 30-40 minutes late than expected arrival. When invited white roses or sweets are an appropriate, being excited over a gift while instantly opening it is also considered encouraging. Leaving things for later and gifts such as red roses are considered negative in the society. In comparison, Americans are much punctual in time and delay the opening of wrapped gifts, while roses are considered mostly under romantic or special occasions. (Zimmermann, 2013) Roles of Men and Women Unlike the United States in the 21st century, where both men and women take equal participation the household, Mexican household vary as it is mostly run by the income of the males. They dominate the household and usually have the final say in every matter. Although urbanization has led to women work as well but in majority household, women take care of house matters, nourishing of the children and connecting the families. They do have their high prestige in the society and in the house but it is still second to that of the male. (Savvy Monitor, 2009) Men’s roles in the society are also portrayed as being very masculine. Unlike in the U.S, where harassment is a punishable offence, in Mexico, culturally, remarks on women are considered common and are not to be taken in any harassment way. It is defined under machismo which is an intense strain of masculinity. Mexican society portrays men towards being highly aggressive, commanding and of authoritative figure and a typical woman is expected to be helpless and obedient. These roles although vibrant are slowly shifting as many women are starting to get educated and are given the position in cities as teachers, nurses and shop sellers. (Castenda, 2002) As the role of female in Mexico was also mainly towards producing offspring, due to gradual education, the rate of birth has gone slow which is a progress towards women. This owes to the fact that many women after getting educated have moved to cities and have started working. The mentality of the men is still much vibrant as only recently women started to get the right to vote and get hired at governmental positions but it a step towards a newer more dynamic society of Mexico.(Vianen, 2013) Independence is a major concern under the roles of men and women and they vary a lot. Men are not accountable for anything they do while women are questioned time and again from anything they do, wherever they go and whoever they meet. It adds more towards the male dominance as most of the maids from high levels to low are mostly females, added another step towards males masculinity. Changes in the roles of women In the past 40 years the role of women in the Mexican culture has changed, however there is very little change in the attitude of Mexican men. Women gained the right to vote and take a part in the elections in 1953, however men are still the majority leaders in Mexico. Initially women rarely worked outside of their houses and if they did it was informal work on farms. Today women are taking part in various jobs such as teachers, sellers and nurses. Women have started organizing movements and taking parts in trade unions to improve working conditions for women. Women are movies to urban areas for work. They move away from their extended families which provide childcare for their children, this thus reduces the birth rate. When they move to cities it also increases the chance for girls to get education. These smaller family sizes are helping Mexican women to be independent. However women in the United States gained the right to vote in 1920. Women in the U.S. are more independent as compared to women in Mexico, and girls have to the right to gain education without the fear of getting killed or kidnapped. (Savvy Monitor, 2009) Conclusion Mexican culture when put in contrast with the American culture has many similarities and differences. In compared to the roles of men and women Mexican culture is still emerging and learning. Mexicans are much more sensitive about their women while they are also limited towards giving them independence towards their life choices. Through education and other systematic approach, the gap between these roles in the society is starting to decrease. Mexican culture is a fast trending motivated culture. Many of its aspects are primarily Spanish based while it constantly is learning. With not a specific language in most of the rural areas, the country does lack a unifying strategy. Mexican culture does have deep routes but these can only go further through having a liberal point of view. Women in this Mexico are oppressed but even in marriages are starting to get their say. Compared to past 25 years of the history, women have started to get married late from 16 years to 23 years. With work allowances, Mexico is constantly competing towards its neighbor the United States. Although many decades of development is still required towards the institutionalization of the Mexican society, with its large population and distinct cultural identity, Mexico is well on its way. (Vianen, 2013) The attitudes of the Government also play an important role towards deciding how the state works. The cultural although is hard to break, but developing countries like Mexico can be introduced with many modern systems of approach according to the society to have major impact in the lives of individuals, especially for the education for male and female equality. References Savvy Monitor. (August, 2009) Gender. World Savvy Monitor. Retrieved February 23, 2014,fromhttp://worldsavvy.org/monitor/index.php?option=com_content&id=649&Itemid=1119 Castenda, M. (2002, October 18). Mexicos Machismo Machine. Project Syndicate RSS. Retrieved February 25, 2014, from http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/mexico-s-machismo-machine Mexico - Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette. (2013). The Translation Agency For A Complete Professional Translation Service. Retrieved February 24, 2014, from http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/mexico-country-profile.html Zimmermann, K. (2013, August 2). Mexican Culture: Customs & Traditions. LiveScience. Retrieved February 23, 2014, from http://www.livescience.com/38647-mexican-culture.html Vianen, A. v. (2013, February 9). Societal Roles of Men and Women - Mexico. Mexico. Retrieved February 24, 2014, from http://anvanviamexico.weebly.com/1/post/2013/02/societal-roles-of-men-and-women.html Read More