Generational Gaps in Latina Literary Works

Generational gaps are defined as distinct viewpoints between people of different
generations. Generational gaps between first-generation immigrant mothers and their
second-generation, U.S.-born daughters can result in conflicts and impact their relationships.
Real Women Have Curves shares the coming-of-age story of Ana, a second-generation Latina, as she navigates her differences with her immigrant first-generation mother. Carmen, Ana’s mother, has deeply rooted ideologies that differ from Ana’s. The generational gap causes conflicts between the mother and daughter. “Frijoles” by Mixel Muñoz is another Latina literary work illustrating the impacts of generational gaps. Elizabeth Acevedo, a second-generation Dominican poet, highlights the tensions in her family. Latina literary works examine how generational gaps shape the experiences of Latinas coming of age. The generational gap is reflected in different views on gender roles and ideal body types, as these conflicts remain unsolved in Real Women Have Curves, “Frijoles,” and “Unhide-able.”
To begin with, a conflict stemming from the generational gap deals with gender roles.
First-generation Latinas value the traditional gender roles of marianismo, where women are
family and home-centered. On the other hand, second-generation Latinas value their agency as they pursue higher education opportunities outside the home. The different views on gender roles become most evident in Real Women Have Curves because Carmen has internalized gender roles while Ana is actively defying them. Being adopted from La Virgen de Guadalupe, a central aspect of marianismo is maintaining your virginity until marriage. Carmen expresses these sentiments by telling Ana, “Your husband’s not gonna like you knowing so much. A man wants a virgin” (Cardoso, 2009, 39:33). Ana responds by saying, “Why is a woman’s virginity the only thing that matters? A woman has thoughts, ideas, a mind of her own” (Cardoso, 2009, 39:38).

After Ana says this, the first-generation women laugh. Carmen wants her daughters to conform to traditional gender roles. In her perspective, a woman must save herself until marriage, get married, and have kids. Anything outside of conforming to these gender roles is unacceptable for Carmen. Ana’s response highlights the conflicting views on gender roles. In Ana’s perspective, a woman has the liberty to choose her path. Throughout the film, Ana is in the process of applying to college, which is empowering as Ana has the autonomy to think and make her own decisions. The differing takes on gender roles cause conflicts between the mother and daughter and impacts their relationship. The gender role conflict remains unsolved, as it leads to a drift in mother-daughter relationships. Carmen has deeply ingrained traditional roles and cannot support Ana’s higher education journey. She tells her husband, “I can educate her. I’ll teach her to sew. I’ll teach her to raise her children. To take care of her husband. They can’t teach her these things in college” (Cardoso, 2002, 9:58). Carmen has made various sacrifices for her family, as evident in her overall health. Her trauma impacts her interpretation of gender roles. All Carmen wants is for Ana to fulfill traditional responsibilities where she can adequately care for her husband and children. Therefore, Carmen cannot support Ana’s aspirations. The gender role conflict remains unsolved because Carmen does not want her daughter to leave their home. At the end of the film, Ana is heading to the airport to go to college. Ana, knocking on the door, says, “Ama? Mama. I’m going now. Don’t you want to come out and say goodbye? Mama, come on, open the door. Mama, come out and give me your blessing, please.” (Cardoso, 2002, 1:17:15). Ultimately, Ana
needs to leave without saying goodbye to her mom or getting her blessing. The door remaining closed signals the unresolved tensions that result from generational gaps. It is empowering for Ana to leave her home and pursue higher education. On the other hand, Carmen has internalized traditional roles and wants her daughter to conform to them. The first and second generations cannot see eye to eye because they have different views on gender roles, so this conflict remains unresolved.

The traditional gender roles are reflected in other Latina literary works, such as “Frijoles”
by Mixel Muñoz. The literary work further highlights how gender roles are an existing
generational gap. In “Frijoles,” the mother exists in traditional spaces such as the kitchen.
Conversely, the second-generation daughter went off to college and is only now returning home.The text states, “Sitting on the torn-leather discolored sofa with a cushion molded to her trasero (because after all, that was her spot)”(Muñoz, 2019, 240). The traditional gender role places women in the home. Flaca exists in traditional female spaces. Home is the spot in which Flaca belongs. The cushion molding to her body demonstrates how much time she spends in the house. Muñoz writes, “She could see all the containers that held her secret seasonings to her mystical sazón” (Muñoz, 2019, 241). Traditional gender roles paint women as belonging in the kitchen and submissive to their husband’s wants and needs. Flaca’s sazón points to the time she has spent in the kitchen. Furthermore, it points to how Flaca has submitted to her husband’s requests. Flaca’s husband doesn’t like Honduran food, so Flaca is forced to learn Mexican recipes (Muñoz,2019, 245). Consequently, Flaca hasn’t had frijoles rojos in many years. Not only does this point to women upholding traditional gender roles as they cook for their husbands, but it also shows how first-generation women have submitted to their husbands. Flaca’s entire culture has been suppressed as she was forced to do what her husband wanted. On the other hand, Mari, a second-generation Latina, did not comply with gender roles. She left her home to pursue a college education, where she became a feminista. When Mari learned about the frijoles, she understood the patriarchal sentiment behind the act. Mari says, “They are not just beans—they are much more. She is much more than this” (Muñoz, 2019, 247). In Mari’s perspective, the frijoles reflect the patriarchy, where the male holds the power and is the head of the household. Mari gets upset when she learns how her mom has been robbed of her freedom to do something as simple as cook frijoles rojos. The text states, “Flaca walked back to the kitchen and she could see that her hija was upset, but she did not understand exactly why” (Muñoz, 2019, 246). Flaca does not understand why Mari is upset, which points to their different perspectives on gender roles that stem from generational gaps. Flaca doesn’t see how the patriarchy limits what she can do. On the other hand, Mari came home determined to lead a feminist movement, feeling discouraged when she saw how the patriarchy was present within her home. As the father, the oppressor, comes home, Mari and Flaca cannot resolve their differences. Therefore, the generational gap impacts how Latinas perceive gender roles throughout literary works. Real Women Have Curves and “Frijoles” shows how first-generation women adhere more closely to traditional gender roles. As Villalba et al. explain, “Latinas are expected to put their family’s needs before their own personal interests, and to have strong aspirations for marriage and childbearing” (Villalba et al., 2018). The same standards are observed in Latina literature, where first-generation women have made sacrifices for their families. Carmen in Real Women Have Curves has arthritis and is losing her eyesight as she constantly works to help her family. Flaca, in “Frijoles,” had to give up eating her favorite foods to satisfy her husband. As Villalba et al. go on to explain, “Research in recent years has demonstrated a shift from traditional to nontraditional views among Latinos, especially if they are exposed to gender role attitudes that are substantially more egalitarian than those to which they are accustomed” (Villalba et al.,2018). As Latinas get exposed to egalitarian roles, their beliefs change. For example, Mari, in “Frijoles,” went to college and was exposed to differing ideologies. These shifts explain how a generational gap in gender roles impacts mother-daughter relationships. Moreover, different beauty standards result in generational gaps between mothers and daughters. Throughout the film, Carmen takes every opportunity to belittle Ana’s weight. The factory is hot while Ana works, so she removes her shirt. Carmen looks mortified and says, “Aren’t you embarrassed? Look at you. You look awful. The two of you should lose weight. You would look beautiful without all that fat” (Cardoso, 2002, 1:09:58). Carmen equates beauty with thinness and constantly pushes her daughters to lose weight. In her view, the ideal body is someone thin. Ana responds with, “Mama, you look just like us.” In response, Carmen explains, “Yes, but I’m married.” (Cardoso, 2002, 1:10:21). Carmen’s views on the ideal body point to what a woman should be and look like. Being beautiful was equated with thinness, which is necessary to get married. The ideal body was constructed based on appeasing a man, which explains why Carmen constantly body-shames Ana. Nevertheless, Ana embraces who she is and how she looks. Ana explains, “Mama, I do wanna lose weight. But part of me doesn’t because my weight says to everybody, f**k you! Mama, how dare anybody try to tell me what I should look like or what I should be when there’s so much more to me than just my weight!” (Cardoso, 2002, 1:10:33). Ana doesn’t want to appease others; instead, she embraces her looks and is empowered. Ana refuses to be defined by how she looks. Altogether, Ana pushes the other women in the factory to embrace their bodies. She empowers everyone to take off their clothes and celebrate their bodies. When the women do this, Carmen does not join them. Carmen looks at the women in shock and says, “Look at you. Look at all of you…Desvergonzadas” (Cardoso, 2002, 1:12:53). Carmen storms out of the factory. The scene highlights how these conflicts remain unsolved because the mother cannot agree with her second-generation daughter. Ana has different ideas about what an ideal body should look like compared to her mom, which impacts their interactions. Another literary work highlighting the generational gap about ideal bodies is the poem “Unhide-able” in The Poet X. In this poem, the author writes about how she is judged based on her looks. The protagonist is constantly critiqued for her looks, even by her parents. The poem says, “Taller than even my father, with what Mami has always said was ‘a little too much body for such a young girl’” (Acevedo, 2018, 5). In this case, the protagonist recalls her mom judging her body as “too much.” The protagonist cannot exist comfortably without receiving judgment from her mother, even as a young girl. This points to how women are constantly belittled for having a big body. However, the second-generation Latina is defending herself and reclaiming her body. She says, “I’ve forced my skin just as thick as I am” (Acevedo, 2018, 5). Everywhere the protagonist goes, she takes up space, thus receiving judgment from other people. She cannot hide; instead, she must accept and embrace herself. The protagonist responds by thickening her skin. In other words, the protagonist no longer acknowledges critical comments about her body. Therefore, literary works by Latina authors point to different perceptions of the ideal body, which reflect a generational gap.To conclude, intergenerational gaps are present in first-generation and second-generation mother-daughter relationships. Views on gender roles are one example of a generational gap.
First-generation Latinas hold more traditional views, while second-generation Latinas call for autonomy. Different body ideals are another example of the generational gap that exists. Films like Real Women Have Curves and literary works like “Frijoles” and “Unhide-able” reflect the conflicts that arise from generational gaps, which remain widely unsolved.

Works Cited

Acevedo, E. (2018). “Unhide-able.” The Poet X (5). Quill Tree Books.
Cardoso, P. (Director). (2002). Real Women Have Curves [Film]. HBO Films.
Muñoz, M. (2017). Frijoles. In L. Hernandez et al. (Ed.), The Wandering Song: Central
American Writing in the United States (240-248). Tia Chucha.
Villalba, K., Ramirez, O. D., Dévieux, J. G., Attonito, J., & Rojas, P. (2018). Gender‐Role
Attitudes Among Immigrant Latinas: Empowering Women. World Medical & Health
Policy, 10(4), 401–414. https://doi.org/10.1002/wmh3.288