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A Sociological Look At The Maria Paradox, Cecilia Juana De Sola Potharst

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Maria Paradox: How Latinas Can Merge Old World Traditions with New World Self-Esteem (1996) argues that acculturation is difficult for Hispanic women more so that for other women, because traditional gender-roles hinder adaptation to life in the United States. While the book looks psychologically at the ideology of marianismo, I believe a sociological analysis of this ideology is helpful. I argue that the umbrella term of Hispanic should not be used because it assumes that this group is culturally homogeneous, which is not the case. Post-industrial society has changed the status quo irrevocably in such a way that everyone …