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Dolores Del Rio

800 Words4 Pages

The Revolution created a period of incredible change in Mexico. The forced resignation of Porfirio Diaz and adoption of the 1917 Constitution gave new strength to the middle class and rural population. As Susan Dever puts it, there was an increased interest in “nation-building rhetoric” with a focus on “patriotism, ‘our’ indigenous heritage, and the sanctity of Mexican womanhood” . The “our” she is referring to is undoubtedly the Mexican people, and one of the most accessible forms of spreading this rhetoric was film. For many citizens, film (along with radio) was one of the only ways to consume information and storytelling because many were illiterate due to limited access to education. This meant going to the movie theatre on a weekly, …show more content…

Her influence lied in her physical beauty and ability to express a variety of emotions with incredible drama. Her refined features and round face were considered to be the epitome of Mexican beauty. She returned to Mexico in 1943, after spending several years in Hollywood where she was featured in many films. This period spent in America resulted in a sense of national pride back home in Mexico, for she was the “compatriot-who-has-made-it-in-Hollywood, the local girl who is a delight on the universal screen” . Her return was at an ideal time in Mexican cinema and she decided to change her image from a glamorous and modern starlet to that of a “meek and ignorant barefoot Indian girl” …show more content…

Her plight is tragic and it is difficult to not feel sorry for Maria Candelaria, whose love for her fiancé is the only motivation she has to go on in a community where all her neighbors hate her. The source of this hatred is ambiguous beyond the little information given about her mother being a “shameful woman”. This ties back to the nationalist interest in protecting the purity of Mexican women. The unknown sins of her mother lead to Candelaria’s exclusion from their society, to the point where she is withheld of the right to make a living and even the medicine needed to save her live. Even with such harsh treatment, Candelaria is kind towards her neighbors, and abides by their unfair demands. Her behavior interprets as the proper way for a Mexican woman to behave, docile and

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Julia Alvarez: The Voice of the Mirabal Sisters Numerous accounts of families affected by oppressive dictatorships exist all around the world. Julia Alvarez, an author whose father was involved in a resistance group to such a regime, is a prime example of one of those stories. After leaving her childhood home of the Dominican Republic, Alvarez struggled to adapt her lifestyle to match that of an average American. During this time period, Alvarez recalled her experience under an authoritarian government and combined it with her impressive storytelling skills to create a fictional documentation of another family just like her’s.

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In the altar’s center is “a plaster image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, quarter-life size, its brown Indian face staring down on the woman” (Paredes 23). The implication of the stare is of criticism as the Virgin, symbolic of an ideal Mexican womanhood, looks down on Marcela, whose Anglo features starkly contrast with the Virgin’s, and whose actions are in opposition to the values that she represents. This carefully constructed scene is meaningful. Marcela’s lifeless body lies between the bed and the altar, and opposite to the altar is Marcela’s shrine dedicated to Hollywood movie stars. These are the visual images of the opposing forces that characterize the Mexican-American struggle for resistance against American cultural hegemony.

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999 Words | 4 Pages

The Bronze Screen introduced both positive and negative portrayals of Latinas and Latinos in film. While there are plenty of positive Latino roles in films, Latinos and Latinas should be included in more positive roles because the negative roles Latinos have in films cause negative stereotypes. Positive and negative representations of Latinos in films has always fluctuated throughout history, however the more negative ones seem to always overpower the good ones. The film, “The Bronze Screen”, gave many examples of the negative roles Latinos played in films throughout film history. Early films included Latino actors, however they did not always have a lead role or even a positive one.

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Carmen Miranda was a Portugeses-Brazilian beauty who rose to fame in the 1930s and 1950s as a South American cultural icon. Her distinctive fruit headpiece and flamboyant costumes captivated audiences, and her life had both accomplishments and disappointments, making her a diverse and distinctive character in entertainment history. My intent with this essay is to prove that Carmen Miranda had a major impact on Latin America, introducing the world to samba and other Latin American rhythms. She also challenged preconceptions about Latina women on cinema by playing strong and independent characters. She was also a forerunner in the entertainment world for women, being one of Hollywood's highest-paid actors in the 1940s and campaigning for improved treatment and opportunities for women in the business.

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According to the Mansfield News, Rio was considered “a real Spanish beauty” that possessed “the sexual attraction, the beauty of face, the attractiveness of figure, [and] the racial characteristics” necessary to master her role in “Carmen” (11). The word “Spanish” utilized to describe del Rio was foreign enough to appeal to U.S. audiences--who favored American whiteness--but not “too ethnic” to be associated with blackness and the working class. Del Rio’s “racial characteristics” allowed directors to view her as an “acceptable” Latina (11). Because Eurocentric beauty standards were foregrounded and idealized worldwide, Hollywood allowed del Rio to become one of the most successful Latina actresses of the decade. Dolores del Rio possessed light-skin, was white-passing, educated, and associated herself with the elite, as she had “parents of Spanish nobility” (11).

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The Virgin of Guadalupe is a worldly known work of art; Jeanette Favrot Peterson questions the meaning of this iconic symbol in her article The Virgin of Guadalupe: Symbol of Conquest or Liberation? Peterson argues that this symbol is not only of religious connotation but of political value to freedom as well. Furthermore, paraphrasing her claims, that it was not until the nineteenth and twentieth century’s did the image reach its fullest potential of bringing together a fragmented people and become known as the “Mother of Mexicans.” The legend says that Juan Diego was visited by the Virgin on the hill of Tepeyacac and that she sent a message with him that she wanted a church built in her name, only after the third visit was he able to convince

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Up until the 1960s Anglo social scientists wrote most of the literature about the people of Mexican- descent in the United States. Their analysis of Mexican American culture and history reflected the hegemonic beliefs, values, and perceptions of their society. As outsiders, Anglo scholars were led by their own biases and viewed Mexicans as inferior, savage, unworthy and different. Because Mexican scholars had not yet begun to write about their own experiences, these stereotypes were legitimized and reproduced in the literature. However, during the mid- 1960s scholars such as Octavio Ignacio Romano, Nick Vaca, Francisco Armando Rios, and Ralph Ricatelli began to reevaluate the literature written by their predecessors.

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“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.

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Lola takes advantage of her deteriorating mother whose illness represents the declining hold of the norms over Lola. Since her mom “will have trouble lifting her arms over her head for the rest of her life,” Lola is no longer afraid of the “hitting” and grabbing “by the throat” (415,419). As a child of a “Old World Dominican Mother” Lola must be surrounded by traditional values and beliefs that she does not want to claim, so “as soon as she became sick” Lola says, “I saw my chance and I’m not going to pretend or apologize; I saw my chance and I eventually took it” (416). When taking the opportunity to distinguish herself from the typical “Dominican daughter” or ‘Dominican slave,” she takes a cultural norm like long hair and decides to impulsively change it (416). Lola enjoyed the “feeling in [her] blood, the rattle” that she got when she told Karen to “cut my hair” (418).

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977 Words | 4 Pages

A texan woman, named Sandra Bearden was looking for a maid to complete housework and look after her son, so she traveled into a poor village in Mexico and met Maria. Maria, being only twelve years old, saw this as an opportunity to move to the U.S. and receive better education which produced a better life. Sadly, Maria’s dreams were crushed because Sandra began to take advantage of her both physically and mentally. Her punishments for not working included: pepper spray in the eyes, a bottle broken against her head, jamming garden tools up her private areas,

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Esperanza is often humiliated not only by where she lives, but also by her physical appearance, hence causing a restriction in her climb to a higher social class. Esperanza is frequently ashamed of her family’s broken-down house in an urban, poor

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543 Words | 3 Pages

The article “true colors” by Christine Granados relates to the clash between the thoughts of the author and her mother. In the article, Granados shows ups and downs of diversity between a mother and a daughter. In the article Granados felt that she is typical American and she wanted her life to be like an American T. V. show. She was attracted towards American lifestyle, but on the other hand, her mother used to like to follow Mexican culture.

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In Mexican American society , women are deemed inferior to men, evident in traditional family roles, the male is the head of the family who provides for the family , while the woman stays at home to look after the children she is expected to provide for her husband . In the third vignette of ‘The House on Mango Street’ titled ‘Boys and Girls’ the reader is informed of the division between men and women when Esperanza refers to herself and her sister Nenny , and her brothers, “They’ve got plenty to say to me and Nenny inside the house. But outside they can’t be seen talking to girls”. The male dominance begins at a very young age.

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1472 Words | 6 Pages

The setting allows the reader to understand how people without honour are seen as outcasts of the society and the existence of a woman’s virginity is seen as a measure of her honour, as well as a precious commodity, which can purchase the family’s social advancement, through a marriage of convenience. Ángela states that Santiago deflowered her, but since “…she looked for it in the shadows…”, even though “She only took the time necessary to say the name.” we question this piece of information and its reliability, due to it being precise but also vague at the same time. Due to their sister stating this, Pablo and Pedro Vicario are ordered to reinstate their “…sister’s lost honour…”, ironically by their mother, to meet the expectations of the community and it is up to them to spiritually retrieve their sister’s virginity by killing Santiago. This means the brothers cannot back down from “…the horrible duty that’s fallen on them…” as “…there’s no way out of this…”.

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835 Words | 4 Pages

As a young child, after being told of how poor her houseboy Fido was, Adichie did not believe his family could also be hardworking. “Their poverty was my single story of them. ”(Adichie) She also details how later, on a trip to Guadalajara she was overwhelmed with shame because her only image of Mexicans was the “abject immigrant” due to the “…endless stories of Mexicans as people who were fleecing the healthcare system, sneaking across the border, being arrested at the border, that sort of thing.” (Adichie)a She was caught by surprise when she saw Mexicans happy and at work in the marketplace.

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