Teresa: Struggling to Balance Between Two Cultures - Essay Sample

Introduction

Teresa as a maid’s daughter living in Smith’s premises helps us to understand dynamics in gender, class and race in family life and reproductive labor. Teresa is born and raised in Smith’s home under the care of her mother who was working as a maid. Teresa’s mother Carmen was from low class Mexican decent women, majority of whom were working as maids in EuroAmerican families (Romero 1). Teresa struggles to balance between two cultures. The smiths want her to abandon her culture and adopt EuroAmerican language and cultural values. However, her mother insists that she must not ape anything from foreign cultures. Carmen was not happy when her daughter was separated from her. This paper explores how Carmen, Teresa and Smiths act as powerful agents of social change in a stratified society.

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Teresa is the main agent of social change. In the first place, it should be noted she is educated in better schools like children from high-class families but understood the importance of learning her language. She decided to become bilingual for the sake of retaining her culture a Mexican citizen. Secondly, she accepts to be separated from her mother because she believed it was important to balance. The Smith family was acting as an alternative family member to her that is why she was to maintain strong ties with them (Romero 7). Similarly, she was brought up in the same family socialized therein that is why she accused her mother saying it was not her fault. The Smith’s family was caring and good to her because they took her to school to acquire skills a fact that made her not break ties just because of her race or social class they belonged in the society.

Teresa is depicted as Mexican educated elite with the potential to bring change in the society by breaking the boundaries between social class structures. When she was asked whether her mother position for her being separated from maternal love she remained firm and explained why she needed to balance. Teresa accepts to sleep upstairs with Smith’s daughters despite objections from her mother (Romero 10). However, she maintains her cultural values as a Mexican woman by learning everything that pertained to her language and way of life. In essence, Teresa was able to balance her life as an employer’s daughter and a maid’s daughter. Her whole life and lifestyle were unique. She was shifting roles from high social class to low class. She learns both the language and cultures of Mexican people and EuroAmerican citizens co-currently.

Carmen, Teresa’s mother is also an agent of social change. For instance, she was so opposed to the fact her daughter was adopting new ways of life. She did not want her child to interact freely with Smith’s family and leave their Mexican way of life (Romero 5). Secondly, she would occasionally meet with other maids to brief them about their rights. Carmen explained how she was able to live the people from high-class families without being affected. Here she meant that it was good for people to interact even though they were from different culture, class and gender. Carmen decided to mingle and bring up her daughter in high-class family homestead breaking the boundaries that existed. Whist in Smiths compound, she retained the Mexican way of life. She ate Mexican foods and listen to a local station that was full of their own culture. However, she also respected the EuroAmerican culture of his employer.

Smiths family to an extend exhibits features of social change. For instance, the family accepts to stay with Carmen in their compound. When Carmen gives birth, they take care of her daughter. The family breaks the boundaries of social class and race that exist between Mexican and Americans. The family took Teresa in better school that belonged to high-class citizens. Similarly, they could visit her in schools. Smith kept referring to her as one of her daughters. The acceptance of Teresa by smith brings a change in the thinking of Euroamerican culture that Mexican deserve the right to education and other human rights enjoyed y the natives (Romero 8). The family also could interact and dine freely with Teresa in their home which was an indication of social change in race and class dominated society.

However, the Smith family had a vested interest to educate Teresa. There are some instances when they showed discrimination to Carmen. Teresa’s mother was forced to serve her daughter while in smith’s house that showed a lack of respect (Romero 6). The family wanted Teresa not to associate with Mexican culture anymore it was inferior too small in the EuroAmerican dominated society. Teresa was moved to sleep upstairs and dine with class people but her mother has mistreated a fact that shows that the Smith family had a hidden agenda. Their intention to educate Teresa was different from just bring a sense of acceptance of a minority Mexican community.

Conclusion

Conclusive, Teresa is depicted as an elite fighting for inclusion to bring an end to exclusion of her race and low-class status her culture was experiencing. As maid daughter and employers’ daughter she maintains bilingual and bicultural status in the society. Carmen also help to end prejudices in that she explained that one can still mingle with EuroAmerican people without changing her roots. Lastly, Smiths family even though promoted social change by educating Teresa, they had ill motives of alienating her from her Mexican culture.

Work Cited

Romero, Mary. "Life as the Maid's Daughter: An Exploration of the Everyday." Feminisms in the academy (1995): 157