Hondagneu-Sotelo's Analysis

Industrial Park by Patricia Galvao is book referencing to the industrialization going on in Latin America in late 19th century and early 20th. The book goes into both views and lives of the proletariat working class and the bourgeoisie middle to upper class. The book helps with understanding the ghastly and rough working conditions in factories for the working class. The dingy living conditions for workers apposed to the luxury of the bourgeoisie and the wealth they have from the exploitation of workers. The gap in wealth between these groups of the proletariat and bourgeoisie causes discontent as the working class increases opening the door for socialism more specifically communism. The situation for women during this time is especially

Social reproduction refers to the continuous intergenerational physically and emotionally exhausting household labour that is needed to maintain life (Trotz, lecture, Jan 13, 2016). This kind of labour though is considered to be a woman’s duty. Since an economic activity happens where there is a market, social reproduction is not considered as one as it doesn’t have a visible market. Even though, it doesn’t have market value, domestic work greatly contribute to the economy (Waring, 2013). Since this work is done in homes and by women who are usually marginalized, it remains invisible and thus not considered for pay. This kind of work depends on the traditional division of labour in which women are seen as housewives while men, breadwinners. Thus, the gendering of social reproduction is a result of “doing gender,” where women’s abilities to be mothers are naturalized (Coltrane, 1989); in other words, women are made to fit into the simplistic “domestic = family = heterosexual woman = care and love” equation (Manalansan & Martin, 2008, p.2), while any man who does the caring work in a family is feminized and considered a lesser man (Coltrane, 1989).Thus, a woman’s femininity depends on her motherhood while a man’s masculinity depends on “not doing mother’s work” (Coltrane, 1989, p.473).

What are two ways women’s domestic duties are affected by those jobs performed outside the home? “Throughout history, women have made major economic contributions to their societies and families through their labor” (Lindsey, 2011, pg. 273). However, there is old rumors that state women clearly were declined the opportunities to bound in any form of clamorous work of any kind. Though, that is no longer the case today, for many women join the men in the fields, to help process the crops in order to provide much needed nutrients for their families; than ever before. “To explain the world of work for women, sociologists focus on four major types of production in which women have traditionally engaged: producing goods or services for consumption

Women working men’s jobs were not as welcomed in society as they were in factories. People held on to the belief that women should be house wives and not have to do much in the way of work. The man should provide for the family, and the women should take care of the family. Many of the women who worked were lower class and had to help provide for their families, or were the only providers for their families. Women who worked men’s jobs were looked down upon and thought to be no better than dirt. Although women working in factories were still women, men did not show them the same respect as they did a woman working as a secretary or teacher.

Firstly one must look at the division of domestic labour and conjugal roles. Conjugal roles refer to the roles performed by men and women in relation to housework, childcare and paid work. Traditionally men had the instrumental ‘bread-winning’ role which the women had the

Domestic work and other types of work that is typically associated with women has always been undervalued and overlooked. Many types of work fall under the umbrella of domestic labor, such as: cooking, cleaning, mending, child care, running errands, managing the household, and much more. This type of work is highly undervalued and often ignored. Many of the works that we have looked at in this section highlight how many women felt about the domestic sphere that they were placed in. In this essay I will discuss this point using points from "The Yellow Wallpaper" and "Professions For Women". Both women commented on the domestic sphere for women and what that meant for them.

Morgan, Jennifer L. Laboring Women: Reproduction and Gender in New World Slavery. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004.

Women were traditionally seen as the weaker sex – second-class citizens with a lower social status than men. A woman’s place was in the home. Men did the “heavier” labor, like plowing and hunting.

Women are known to be the nurturing part of human nature. It is women who birth and generally care for the young of human kind; however, the roles of women have progressed to be so much more in today’s society. Now women are looked to not only as a homemaker, but a breadwinner as well. In many families, the women provide a major source of income and are responsible for the wellbeing of the family. “More than a quarter century has passed since Arlie Hochschild’s The Second Shift powerfully made the case that women cannot compete fairly with men when they are doing two jobs and men are doing only one.” (Moravcsik). He goes on to say that women’s roles have shifted to being able to balance a job and a family at one time. Despite the many jobs that

By working in factories, women made money that would support them in later aspects of their lives and proceeded to make their lives better. For example, most of the women used their money to save for their dowries so they could one day marry a richer man ("Daughters"). If a woman came from a farm, she would never have as much to give her husband than a woman who worked and got paid. Some women even used the money they earned to pay for an education to better themselves and have a successful occupation one day with more pay. Additionally, with the money they saved up, the women could enjoy their lives by using their wages to “purchase pretty, store bought clothing” (“Daughters” 8). Lastly, the women could even use the money to support themselves and their families (including children, a husband, and

Regarding females in the workplace, the common opinion across the American continent used to be that by working outside the home, women were abandoning their primary job in life—that of a mother and wife, taking care of the house and the family. In modern times, Latinas take on multiple roles; not only are they still expected to look put together and run the family and the household—for most Latinas in the US, without any outside help—, but many are also breadwinners, some by choice and others by default. The decision made by many Latinas to work has already changed society due to growing feelings of self-empowerment. This newly discovered power is reflected in the increased use of contraceptives by Latin American women. Despite the Roman Catholic teachings, Latinas have taken matters into their own hands by using birth control to decrease the size of their families and lessen their burden, thus allowing them to fulfill their multidimensional desires and duties.

Men and women have different pre-existing gender structure expectations imposed by their country's society. In the Philippines, women are often expected to do the "reproductive labor... [which] includes household chores; the care of elders, adults, and youth; the socialization of children; and the maintenance of social ties in the family (Brenner and Laslett, 1991; Glenn, 1992)" (Parreñas, 29). Men, on the other hand, primarily perform "'nonnurant reproductive labor' (2007: 323) as janitors, food preparation workers, or gardeners, questioning the notion that they do care work" (Parreñas, 50). As stated by Parreñas, women are often expected to do more reproductive labor than men, shaping the gender patterns of migration in the Philippines.

Women’s unpaid labor in maintains a systems of oppression in many ways. In Susan M. Shaw and Janet Lee’s Women’s Voices Feminist Visions unpaid labor done by many women is, “undervalued as women’s formal productive paid labor in the workforce is prioritized” (Shaw & Lee, 2015, 471). Shaw and Lee are saying that women work at home is devalued because it is viewed as informal and as work that is done out of love or is natural work. Since the work being done is viewed as natural work, it further reinforces gender stereotypes by stating that women are supposed to do the household work which is deemed more as feminine. This thought process follows patriarchal thinking, where women are expected to do the

In this poem “Woman’s Work”, the mother is forced to do household cleaning which represents a domestic life and the impact of gender specific roles. This poem is written in the third person point of view. The speaker is the daughter of a mother who doesn’t work outside, but only inside of the house, and is forced to do household cleaning with her as she hears her friends playing outside in the street. Author Julia Alvarez uses imagery, simile, and alliteration to portray the meaning of the poem that women work harder than men.

The second chapter discussed the international division of reproductive labour and the reasons why women may choose to become migrant workers. Often times the common answer of why these Filipina women made the decision to enter the reproductive labour force is one based on both economic and gender inequality reasoning. Gender is now seen as the hidden cause of migration, where women are taking on the role of the income provider and it is a strategy that can “relieve women of their unequal division of labour with men in the family.” (Parreñas, 2015 – pg. 32) Through the three tier system there is honestly no gender-egalitarian way that the division occurs, because their own responsibilities are given to those who are less privileged for less benefits.