The potpourri of the literary selections clustered herein categorically unfolds and lays emphasis on the The Filipino Literatures of Gender and Sexuality across time and place accentuating the varied roles of men, women and the members of LGBT community within the context of Philippine society.
The onset of its chapter has to do with the theme, “Shaping the Image of the Filipino Woman”, which showcases multivalent images and representations of the Filipino women. The chapter’s anthological foreword and focal point delineates how women are viewed in the Philippine setting like their various roles and dominant disposition that distinguish themselves from the opposite sex. To rationalize its subtle aspects, “Montage” by Ophelia Dimalanta epitomizes
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Particularly selected, Rolando Tolentino’s “Si Richard at ang Mito ng Pagkalalaki” brings enlightenment that one’s concept of masculinity can solely be ascribed by the influence of various media as a gender myth which generally stems from the distinction between the biological basis of sex and the cultural category of gender. Edith Tiempo’s “The Chambers of the Sea” bear outs that masculinity is not defined, and should not be a gauge, as to how one conforms to stereotypical image of a man -that one’s superficial inclination and demeanor should not be the logical bases of his/her sexuality. Its supposition is somehow contrasted with J. Neil Garcia’s “The Conversion” which centers around a man who had preferred concealing his real sexuality for the sake of his family’s groundless and unfair desire; this, too, holds the view that one who deviates from the norm of heterosexuality is preordained to live a life with humiliation and inequality leading one to suffer from sexual repression. Siako’s “Ituloy Mo Lang” claims the supposition that being homosexual, though it gains condemnation by certain people, is not immoral that one should be daunted to come of out his/her closet; whereas, Dagtang Lason’s “Nagmamahal Ako Ng Bakla” affirms the assumption that Filipino man resorts seeking emotional attachment and non-sexual intimacy to his same sex after a devastating relationship with opposite sex which excretes smearing and stigmatizing attribution toward Filipino men in
Discuss the ways in which Rosario Castellanos challenges and subverts gender stereotypes in her work? In this essay I am going to examine and discuss the work of one of Mexico’s most important literary figures, Rosario Castellanos, with particular emphasis on her feministic beliefs and the ways in which she used her writing to catapult her views into the forefront of society. Her writing reflects bitterness regarding the desires and misfortunes of the female population of her nation. Castellanos used poetry, novels and plays as a platform to voice the many inequalities that she deemed prevalent in society at that time.
In the reading by Peter Redman, he raises the argument that the ‘AIDS carrier” becomes the central representation of the HIV epidemic and how the representations of HIV cannot be narrowed down to one cause. In addition, the ‘AIDS carrier’ is represented as monster and the carrier spreads HIV from the deviant subpopulations to the mainstream. Also, AIDS has been connected to social and moral issues and singles out groups like gay men, black people, and young single women. These groups are then viewed as diseased subpopulations and that causes others to feel disgust and panic. The heterosexual men are then afraid to have physical or emotional contact with men in general and that’s why boundaries of heterosexual masculinity were produced.
Robert Wood traveled to Uganda in search of how the AIDS crisis had effected the men and women in the town of Bwaise. In his book AIDS and Masculinity in the African City: Privilege, Inequality, and Modern Manhood, he found that this crisis along with growing women’s economic opportunities have posed a threat on men’s sense of masculinity. These men are experiencing an identity crisis within their life because ideals in their work, authority, and sexuality are beginning to shift. This threat to a man’s masculinity is not only in Bwaise, but also in America. Gender equality and feminism have been on the rise and some men have felt threated by it for the same reason the Bwaise men feel threatened; it takes away their power and masculinity.
Chicana Feminism: The Defined Line between Gender and Ethnicity Women’s civil and political rights in the second half of the twentieth century ascended with a renewed mindset of women from regions in the Americas. Chicana/o feminism arose during the second-wave of feminism, but differed from other ideologies in that they aspired to resolve internal and external conflicts that penetrated the Chicana/o community. Starting in the late 1960s, Chicana feminism developed into an idea of equality between genders and ethnic groups with a strong refusal of the traditional patriarchal roles; this caused commotion between women and men during the Chicana/o movement. The transition of the Chicana mindset allowed for uprisings of activists to occur,
“The common denominator all Latinos have is that we want some respect. That 's what we 're all fighting for” - Cristina Saralegui. Judith Ortiz Cofer published the article, “The Myth of the Latin Woman,” where she expresses her anger towards stereotypes, inequality, and degradation of Latin Americans. Cofer explains the origins of these perceived views and proceeds to empower Latin American women to champion over them. Cofer establishes her credibility as a Latin American woman with personal anecdotes that emphasize her frustration of the unfair depiction of Latinos in society.
Judith Ortiz Cofer: The Myth of the Latina Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria The Myth of the Latina Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria by Judith Ortiz Cofer is a story covering Latina Women in America. Judith is from Puerto Rico and for much of the passage, discusses her life as a Latina and how she would be judged for doing common people activity. She would be ridiculed for her clothes and labeled illegal or a prostitute.
Both the play Real Women Have Curves by Josefina Lopez and the movie adaptation make an attempt to communicate the message of female empowerment through their respective protagonists, Estela and Ana. Men resolve most of Ana’s problems, whereas Estela relies on herself and other women. The play conveys the theme of female empowerment because it is female-centric, successfully addresses the issues of body image, and focuses on women’s independence and self-validation. Lopez’s play serves as an example of what can happen when women uplift and depend on each other, as opposed to men.
Despite the claim that the world has made progress towards gender equality, women are expected to depict feminine characteristics and mannerisms deemed suitable by society. Sandra Cisneros challenges these societal expectations in her poem “Loose Woman” by embracing the negative connotations of a masculine woman. Cisneros faces the pressures of conforming to the American and Latin American status quo of being a woman. Because Cisneros chooses to defy many womanly ideals, she is labeled with “undesirable” identities heavily influenced by religious beliefs. These religious views impact the social expectations of a woman’s sexual orientation as well as her social behavior.
“Masculinity as Homophobia” an article by S. Kimmel, that talks about how men these days have the fear of being judged and ranked based on their manhood. There are some arguments that the Professor mentions and uses in his article that supports his argument and some experiences from other people 's perspective in life of men over the years. The author’s main argument is about how men these days are being watched and judged closely based on how they walk, talk, eat, dress, move and look like. The author explains how the world is judging men and how it tries to take that power and that pride of being a man.
People's way of thinking is strongly influenced by the patriarchal scheme of the culture in which they live, and their judgments deriving from this scheme are deeply embedded in their psyche. Gender roles within patriarchal society prescribe the hierarchical roles of men and women assumed to be “natural,” and labeled as “masculine” and “feminine” as if these categories were ontological. In this context, the heterosexual majority regards homosexuals as those who transgress traditional gender roles and thus violate the prescribed rules of the “proper” sexual behavior. It is being supposedly said that gender identity such as masculinity and femininity is not something inherent you born with but, a learned entity, a social construction. When John looks at his father’s penis in the bathroom, Gabriel beats up his son in order for John to become a “proper” man, and must not sexualized the male body.
The queer historical past has been characterized positively, with aspects such as identification, desire, longing, and love highlighted (31). In contrast, Heather Love seeks to focus on the negative aspects that characterize the relationship of queer history amid the past and present, in her work, “Emotional Rescue: The demands of Queer History,” the first chapter in her book, “Feeling Backward: Loss and the Politics of Queer History” (31-32). According to Love, some queer critics have failed to include the harsher accounts when studying queer cross-historical relations. The negative aspects of the past that queer figures can relate to makes it relevant. In her article, Love critiques various works to identify the negative aspects present within the queer history.
This novel follows the life of a recent college graduate, Marian MacAlpin, through her career and emotional maturation in a somewhat unnatural, if not threatening world. The queer concept of this world is branded by a spectrum of moral viewpoints of gender politics that manifest themselves and surround Marian. The political and cultural values and practices of a male dominated and sex driven society depicted in the novel are so strong that they seem to devour Marian physically and emotionally. She rebels against this cannibalistic, patriarchal society through a comestible mode and the end, reclaims her identity crisis by restoring her relationship with
“People are always ready to see the lesbian as wearing a felt hat, her hair short, and a necktie; her mannishness is seen as an abnormality indicating a hormonal imbalance” (De Beauvoir, 479). With this quote French feminist writer, Simone the Beauvoir, starts her chapter on “The Lesbian” in her book The Second Sex (1949). It is peculiar that the stereotype of the masculine lesbian can still be found in contemporary popular culture and literature, yet slightly altered to a more contemporary version. This chapter will explain what lesbian literature is, give some historical background on how lesbian literature developed from 600BC to present day, and show various lesbian identities and stereotypes that recur in lesbian fiction. As stated in
1.2 Background Females are an integral part of human civilization. No society or country can ever progress without an active participation of female in its general development. The status of female in society is directly linked with social and cultural traditions, stages of economic development achieved, educational levels, attitude of the society towards women, social and religious taboos, women's own awareness and political attainments. Through the centuries, the image and the role of female have been observed and studied in various ways, and the acquired knowledge has been recorded in literature, works of art, religious texts, mythology and codes of social behaviour.
Jessica Hagedorn’s Dogeaters exposes lives of numerous characters living in the postcolonial Philippines. Hagedorn vividly paints the picture of a society freed from the foreign oppressor that still clings to the imported values and struggles to recreate itself. The postcolonial confusion and a sense of a lost national identity have allowed for a newly formed nationalism to spread. Yet, the influence of the former U.S rule lingers as society remains infatuated with Hollywood movies, soda drinks, and shopping. The Hagedorn's novel displays “the pressures that neocolonialism places on gender, as well as the pressures the gender places on neocolonialism” (Chang, 637).