"Intimate Frontiers: Sex, Gender and Culture in Old California" by Albert L. Hurtado - a masterful thorny piece of history, describing the intersection of sex, gender and culture in Old California. The author introduces two main themes in his book: sexuality and frontiers. This book can be called one of the best books in California history, as it reveals the significance of gender and sexuality in the American West in the context of multicultural society. Marriage, reproduction and family relations of Native American, Anglo American, Hispanic, Chinese and people of mixed blood are explored in this work. In Hispanic, American and American society the patriarchy was in power. Women "were a minority in frontier populations and were politically powerless". These historical times were marked by libertine and violent attitudes against women; the author tackles the minimized roles of women and minority women, who had not more rights than Anglo women. Hurtado believes that "outcast women-especially Indians and Chinese bore the mark of color and exotic cultures. Men, who extravagantly praised the supported worth to California society of bourgeois white women and defended their virtue paid scant attention to the lot of a poor Indian woman" (p. 132). He underlines the lack of respect and brutal attitude towards the Indian women, typical for that society. He states also that "each newcomer transformed California the exotic into California the familiar" (p.133). The conclusion could be as following - men desired to build families only with "familiar" white women, there was almost no place for interracial marriages at that historical period, they could not become the social norm. The norm was considered organization of marriages and concern for family honor; Anglos had laws to regulate prostitution, had missionaries to fight against vices and "proper" women to bring civilization to the frontier. " In the end, the frontiers of the heart and mind reinforced California's frontiers of difference, no matter how strong ran the currents of passion, longing and desire" (p. 141). Here the author draws the reader's attention not only to some human relations, desires and attitudes, but wants also to underline some political meaning of the categories of sex/gender/race interaction in the society of that historical period.
In his book "The Lost Land: The Chicano Image of Southwest (1984)" John Chavez presents one of the most important historical models for the history of El Norte. This model could be called rather critical, as it offers a different historical view of life in the American Southwest, it accounts for the Mexicano population. In this historical overview of the region and its population the author makes an attempt to re-historicize the painful, rather active and sophisticated role, played by Mexicanos. For example in one of his passages Chavez notes: "We can date to 1848 the modern Chicano image of the Southwest as a lost land. The conquest of the present Southwest severed the region from the control of Mexico City and the local Mexican elites. In some places the Anglo - American seized complete political power and almost immediately after the military conquest, but in other areas, notably New Mexico, the native leadership managed to maintain some influence after the occupation." (p. 42). The author describes the hard situation in which the genocide and social/political dislocation eliminated Mexicanos from their ancestral land. Political and social violence widespread between the competing groups, the result of it was a long struggle for statehood.
"Finding their culture steadily declining with the increasing influence of Anglo society, Mexicans began to see themselves as "foreigners in their own land".Yet, though Mexicans felt themselves increasingly alienated from the Southwest, they continued to see it as their homeland" (p. 43). This passage speaks for the present day Chicano, who remains patriotic, devoted to his homeland, to his culture and history, who yet recalls his dispossession. The author also provides some historical resources to re-read and re-write the intricate history of the present day Southwest in America.
Overall, the first book raises the questions connected with problems that prevented a multicultural California from developing; this material suggests a fuller understanding of how California's society was shaped by the ideas of sex, gender and culture, which also produced certain relations of power.
Chavez, being himself one of the most durable and intelligent political figures of Nuevo Mexico, tried to present in his book the true to life description of the struggle of the Mexicanos for their native land, traditions and political power, culture and social rights.
Custom Essays Essays in 24 hoursBuy custom essays
Laptop Battery
Computer memory is the quickest, cheapest, and easiest way to improve the performance of your system. Find RAM memory upgrades for desktops, laptops, servers, and printers all backed by a lifetime warranty and guaranteed compatible with your computer. Shipping is an everyday low price of $1.99! Computer Memory Outlet sells memory compatible with all leading computer manufacturers like Dell, Apple, Compaq, HP, Sony, IBM, Lenovo, and many more.”
Thinkpad Lloyd Johns was a professional freelance writer for 13 years.
Now he is a technical writer, advertising copywriter, & website copywriter for Custom Essay Network.(www.custom-essay.net)
Virtual servers may have a different hardware configuration (the box that you're moving your data from), and with Acronis True Image Universal Restore, we actually have the ability, now, to take that image of a physical box, say you might have it on a Dell Server, and restore that image to an IBM Server, running VMWare, or Microsoft Virtual Server 2005.
[ Comment, Edit or Article Submission ]
