The movie Quinseanera, is about a young Latina girl who becomes pregnant before her quinseanera (before her fifth teen birthday). A quinseanera is an important traditional celebration that Mexicans celebrates, A quinseanera signifies the transition of a young girl into young lady. She moves into her uncles and cousins house, because she has nowhere else to go, after her preacher father kicks her out. The father blames the mother for the pregnancy and calls Magdalena’s pregnancy a disgrace and dishonor to the family as well as to the church that he preaches in. The responsible boy is sent away by her mother and Magdalena has no way of contacting him. When she goes and looks for him at his address, the mother tells Magdalena that Herman is not coming back that he has school to focus, and that she should just move on without him.
In this film the “Mexican stereotype was broken. Unlike many movies about Mexicans, this movie did not use Mexicans as gang members, and sex icons. Instead this movie did not follow the typical Mexican stereotype. Beginning with the family. Mexican families are supposed to be strong and united. However in this movie, the family has many flaws, although he father still plays the head of household, macho role. The stereotype of Mexican patriarchal machista lifestyle is also interrupted by Carlos character. Carlos is Magdalena’s cousin. Carlos portrays a macho character, and seems to b very masculine in the beginning of the film. However as the character develops, he turns out to be gay. Being gay in a Patriarchal Mexican family is very wrong, it is looked down upon and because of this man men and women hide true identity. Carlos who was also kicked out of his house because he was caught watching gay porn goes to his uncles house, for the same reason that he had nowhere else to go.
The grandfather is non -judgmental and understanding and accepts both Magdalena and Carlos, is not a stereotype that Mexican grandfathers take. Grandfathers are supposed to be machistas and instigators.
Many stereotypes were fulfilled, however other stereotypes were broken. For example. Mexican women are suppose to become mothers at a young age. Magdalena became pregnant at 14, without ever being with a man. It was interested how this stereotype was fulfills. Mexican women become pregnant at a young age eve if it happens miraculously, like in the case of Magdalena. In one of the scenes, Carlos tells Magdalena, that her life is over. In Mexican families when a women becomes pregnant, it signifies that she no longer will be able to pursue a career or become successful.
This movie shows that not all Mexican families carry the same values and beliefs. Like all families in the world, every family is different, many things are similar, but not all are the same. This movie is able to show this though the different roles that each character takes. We shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, and learn to understand that not all Mexicans are the same.
I really like your point about families not being “static” and/or universal. I really get the sense that this course is helping us understand the isms that take place when Chicana/os do not fulfill gender and sexuality roles that have been ascribed to us when examining the Chicana/o family structure.. Like Rodriguez from the text Net of Kin, I want to shoot the patriarchy as it relegates so many people to the margins of our society. The patriarchal structure of our society creates a space that is very limited, especially for the families and/or men and women who “deviate” from the socially constructed familial/gender/sexuality social categories that we are “suppose” to ascribe to. If we only lived in a world that actually embraced this idea of multiculturalism, more people would be accepted and not judged and/or perceived as dysfunctional/or ill-these stereotypes and rigid gender and sexuality dichotomy’s are keeping this system of patriarchy intact-we must step outside those “borders” and challenge this system of thought.