Keeping Rural Tradition Alive: the Race, Class, and Gender
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KEEPING RURAL TRADITION ALIVE: THE RACE, CLASS, AND GENDER DYNAMICS OF THE MODERN CHARRO COMMUNITY A Dissertation by BEATRIZ ALDANA MÁRQUEZ Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Stjepan Mestrovic Committee Members, John M. Eason William A. McIntosh Kristan Poirot Head of Department, Denis O’Hearn August 2017 Major Subject: Sociology Copyright 2017 Beatriz Aldana Marquez ABSTRACT The Charro tradition is the national sport of Mexico. Yet, its national recognition is limited even though the Charro tradition has influenced other important Mexican and American cultural symbols such as the mariachis and even the American cowboy. I conducted an ethnographic study (2013-2015) in Mexico on the Charro community to assess their cultural adaptability in a changing Mexico. The figure of the Charro serves as the personification of centuries of culture and tradition as it is displayed through their body comportment and clothing, as well as the behaviors, mannerisms, and adherence to the norms that are unique to this subculture. Charros perform suertes or events as a team to gain points in front of judges during Charreadas or competitions to pay homage to early Charros. The judgment is strict and points can be deducted for incorrect techniques, clothing, or form which is indicative of the continuous standardization by the Federation of Mexican Charros. Charro women (Escaramuzas) perform a ten-minute routine of synchronized horse dancing to traditional Mexican song and are judged on their grace, elegance, and presentation. Although men and women both participate in the Charro tradition, emphasis is placed on men since their presence in the Charro tradition originates from its inception. The following chapter use the theories of Thorstein Veblen to analyze the race, class, and gender dynamics of the Charro community in relation to a changing Mexico. ii DEDICATION To the Mystics, the Aldana and Marquez families, and Emily Knox iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my grandfather, Victorino Marquez, who inspired me to continue my work on the Charro community. He believed in my work from the beginning and supported me throughout my time in Mexico. I also want to give a special thanks to the rest of my family in Mexico for helping during my time there. I am so thankful for their love, support, and encouragement. I also want to give my gratitude to my parents, Herlinda and Martin, for their support and hard work. If it was not for their sacrifices, I would not be neither the individual nor the scholar that I am today. I want to thank my sisters, Marlene, Jackie, and Linda, for always answering their phones and keeping me sane throughout my graduate school career. I am grateful to my friend, Apryl, for always making me laugh and giving me a place to escape. You are truly appreciated. I want to also thank my partner, beautiful genius and fantastic scholar, Emily for helping me gain confidence as a scholar. Her love and support is never ending. I deeply appreciate the TAMU Sociology Faculty: Dr. Sell for listening to my problems, Dr. Gatson for helping me lay the foundation for my dissertation, Dr. Moore for listening to my graduate school problems, and my committee members, Dr. Eason and Dr. McIntosh, for their guidance and support throughout the course of this research. I am deeply indebted to you all. A special thanks to Dr. Mestoric, my chair, for introducing me Veblen and believing in my work. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION ........................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... iv CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES ..................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................................... viii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION .......................................................................... 1 What is a Charro? ................................................................................................. 1 Prior Work on the Charro Tradition ..................................................................... 9 Why Veblen? ....................................................................................................... 12 Research Methods ................................................................................................ 15 CHAPTER II THE INFLUENCE OF BUSINESS PRINCIPLES ....................... 21 Applying Veblen’s Theories ................................................................................ 23 Charro Jefes and Motive of Business ................................................................... 29 The Charro Team and Social Duty ...................................................................... 35 Generational Differences in the Charro Community ........................................... 43 CHAPTER III THE MODERN CHARRO AMBITION AND FANTASY ........... 59 Charro Socialization, Identity, and Legitimacy ................................................... 61 Charro Rookies and the Charro Community ....................................................... 84 CHAPTER IV THE RANKING OF CHARRO WOMEN ..................................... 97 The Highest Degree of Charro Female Respectability ........................................ 100 The Charro Love Interest .................................................................................... 116 The Invisible Women of the Charro Tradition ................................................... 131 CHAPTER V BEAUTIFUL WOMEN ON HORSES ........................................... 138 The Reproduction of the Spanish Aristocracy ..................................................... 140 Self-Reflection and Charro Scrutiny .................................................................... 149 Mexican Federation of Charros and their Relationship with Escaramuzas ......... 155 v CHAPTER VI CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................ 161 REFERENCES .......................................................................................................... 164 vi CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES This work was supported by a dissertation committee consisting of Professor Stjepan Mestrovic as my chair, Professor John Eason and Professor W. Alex McIntosh as my committee members of the Department of Sociology, and Professor Kristan Poirot of the Department of Communications. All work conducted for the dissertation was completed by the student independently. Graduate study from 2014-2017 was supported by a teaching fellowship from the Department of Texas A&M University. vii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1 Scoring for El Paso de la Muerte ....................................................... 37 Figure 2 Colas en el Lienzo .............................................................................. 41 viii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Charro grabbed his son and roughly placed him on the saddle. “Hold on tight,” he ordered, while he looked directly into his son’s eyes. The little boy grabbed the horn of the saddle with a big smile, he nervously said, “Okay”. The music began and the all the Charros began to line up for the parade of the teams. The announcers begin to announce the names of each teams as the Charros proudly prance around the circle section of the lienzo to their designated spots. The teams ride their horses around the edges of the lienzo and greet the audience with a wave. Their eyes are centered on the audience. One Charro has his ten- month old baby in his arms. The baby is dressed in a miniature Charro outfit and looks like a doll-sixed representation of his father. The father looks down happily at his baby and the baby smiles at him. Once the father is settled in his spot in the lienzo, he grabs the baby and lifts him slightly above his shoulders. The audience claps and yells in approval. His legacy will be kept alive. (Observation, 2013) What is a Charro? The Charro tradition commenced from a complex and racialized relationship between the Spanish Conquistadors and the indigenous population. During Spanish colonization, Spanish colonial officials attempted to institute a strict racial category between the indigenous population and the colonizers by implementing the casta or caste system that subjected a long-term inherent division in social economic, and cultural identity (Jackson, 1999). The Spanish condemned mestizo and indigenous people by denying them resources and rights in colonial society. Indigenous people were granted even less rights as mestizos became synonymous with bastard offspring leading to necessary distinction by the Spanish colonizers regarding claims to Spanish ancestry and rights in the casta system (De Mente, 1996). Spanish rule in the 1570s prohibited mestizos and indigenous people from living among one another (Werner, 2001). 1 The casta impacted rural life since lower casta work was bound to hard labor in small and large haciendas. According to Merchasin (2014), “These vast entitlements existed as semifeudal systems, where patrones were responsible for the campesinos, and the campesinos were reciprocally dependent on the patrones. Survival tactics for life in these