Women, Menand Persons
Women, Menand Persons
Managing GenderMeaningsinMiddleClass
Madrid
Britt-Marie Thurén
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©2025 Britt-MarieThurén
Coverdrawing by Ylva LópezCampos
Publisher: Books on Demand, Östermalmstorg 1, 114 42 Stockholm, Sverige, bod@bod.se
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ISBN:978-91-8080-976-4
THANK YOU!
Afterthirtyyears, expressions of gratitude mayseem outofplace. They areoverdue, evidently.But Idowanttothank everybody whomadethisbook possible.
Above allI am thinking of allthe individuals andgroups whoadmittedmeintotheir everydaylives or letmeinterview them.Theyare many andI am deeply sorry Ihavenot been able to thankthempersonally earlier. If anyofyou read this,pleasefeel assuredthat Ihavebeen thinking of you allthrough theyears.
Special thanks to thesocialclubI have calledAguafría. Andtothe colleaguesand friends whohaveread andcommented earlierversions of this book.
Thefieldwork period wasfinanced by theSwedish Research Council forthe Humanitiesand Social Sciences,HSFR
As always,the closestcircleoffamily andfriends have meantsoincrediblymuch. My dear sister Louise hasoffered constant supportand practicalhelp. So thebook is dedicated to her.
Is this book thirty yearslate? If so,why?
This book is about genderand change in abig European city.Madridwas whereI did anthropological fieldworkinthe early 1990s andthisbook presents ethnography and analysis of what wasa crucialperiodinthe culturaland social historyofSpain.
Afirst versionofitwas finished in 1994. So,yes,ina senseitislateincoming.
Life cameintothe picture. Privatelife, professionallife... so much happenedthatI had no time to finish thebook. "WhenI retire,"was my excuse andhope until retirement camein2007. Butthere were still tasksand dutiesthathad to be finished.And health problems. Theyearsslippedby.
In March2024, Ihappenedtosee themanuscriptlying there, in adarkcornerofa bookshelf.I decidedtoatleastread it through alasttime.
AndI liked it! It seemed it couldstill be acontribution. To gendertheoryabove all, andtothe ethnography of urbanlifeinSpain.And to thealwaysdiscussedbut usually postponedanthropological goalof"studying up",i.e.focus on powerfulsectorsof society, not just poor or marginal people.
Local circumstanceschange.Descriptions of them,oncewrittendown, stay thesame. So acertain imbalance is introduced by time.Theoretical thinking, however,buildson both oldand newdata.
SinceI wrotethe firstversion of this book, lots of issues have slid around on the culturalmap,gaining or losing in contentiousness. ButmostofthoseI describedare still thereand in similarrelations to each other. Still debated, still moving, still in search of useful explanations.Myintentionistooffer amoving pictureofinterestfor theanalysis of genderinSpain andinother countries,especially in similarperiods of change.
CONTENTS
I. Questions: AboutgenderinMadrid in the1990s
1. Introduction 9
To describe agenderorder
AMadrilenian middleclass
Theobject of study
Genderand discourse
Discouseand genderized space
1990 –and 1965
What is described?
Outlineofthe book
2. Thecity, themiddleclass, thewomen 29
City space
Classinsecurity
Education
Family corporateness
Classand opinion: background
Classand opinionaccordingtosurveys
Classand opinion: clusters
3. Women'sdays andplaces46
Aday in thelifeofCarlota
Aday in thelifeofMaría
Moving through worlds of words
Discourse as space
4. Modesofmanagement of meaning64
Theexperience of culturalcomplexification
La movida madrileña
Cautious andexpansivemodesofmanagement of meaning
Thecautious mode of m. of meaning
Theexpansivemode of m. of meaning
Twomodesinone society
II. Hedges:CautioustalkatClub Aguafría. IntroductiontoPartII 77
5. Club Aguafría as acontext forcultural work 78
Social clubs andClubAguafría
AwinterSundayafternoon –the conservative women
Asummerafternoon– anotherkindofwomen
6. Space, clothesand activities 95
To arrive in anotherworld
Club space
Clothing andbodies
Activities
Year round activities
Summeractivities
Winter activities
Familismand children
7. Cultural Fridays –civilizationand misogyny112
Series I: OldMadrid
Series II andIII: Oldcivilizations
8. Managing meanings at Club Aguafría 120
III. Expanding:Creatingspaces for talk. IntroductiontoPartIII 128
9. Awork-outsession anda chat in thebar 131
10. Abook club meeting138
11.A friendshipgroup 144
Catholic communities
Nosotros
Oneevening with thegroup
What is friendshsip?
12. Dinnerinthe garden155
Thedinner
Comments
13. Nature andchange163
Change andwomen´s socialization
Choice andliberation
Men´shousework
Degrees of normativeconsensus
Womenand careers
Nature andeducation
Fathering
Strong women
Change andconfusion
Evolution
What do we want?
Comments
IV.Genderthemes1:Work
IntroductiontoPartIV 184
14. Talkingabout work 186
Womeninthe labor market
Domestic tasks: complaints andsomehelp
Seasons
Imageand choice
Themes around work
Covering theretreat
Work in focus
15. Thehousewife againsther will 206
Esperanza´sstory
Comments
16. Housewives on thedefensive 220
What about theclubwomen themselves?
Anecdotes froma mini-survey
Survey results
"Itdepends"– thoughtsabout what working means
Thedebate
Dinnerand jokes
V. Genderthemes2:Sexuality
IntroductiontoPartV 235
17. Theabsentpresence: conservative positions238
TheChurch duringthe "transition"
El Camino–one extremeofbody-hatred
Yolanda andher residence– body hatred
Marías –the intellectualCatholic version
Thebook club –inarticulateopposition
Main themes
18. Increasingly present: thenew hegemonic discourse254
Joking about it
Subversiveand acceptableoppositions
What can be said on TV must be accepted
Thenew ideal womanhas lovers!Magazines, government,teenagersand condoms
Hegemonicdiscourse
Left,right or person?
19. Sex, coffeeand cultural negotiation 269
In Rosa Marías'home Comments
VI.Anthropologicalwords 288
20. Summing up: Processesand power288
Wherewas it negotiated?
Arenas compared accordingtoclass
Howwas it negotiated? Dispositions
What wasbeing constructed? Themes
Negotiatingpower without mentioning it
Discourse maps.
21. Summing up: Models.306
Spanishmodern "Change"asa topic
FaustorGretchenorwhat-else-is-there So,whatistradition?
Arenegotiatedmodelofthe genderorder
Individuationata fast pace
22. Women, menand persons. 320
Pros andcons
Genderdiscourse andclass
TheMadrilenian middleclass genderorder Women, menand persons
APPENDIXES:
A: Work andanger 331
B: Theory andmethods 360
C: Conversations in Madrid 372
References 385 Notes 397
Part I: Questions: Aboutgender in Madrid in the1990s
Chapter1.Introduction
Spainwentthrough adramaticprocessofchange duringthe last half of the20thcentury Between approximately 1960 and1980, "everything" happened. Basiceconomic and social structures were transformed, so that arural societylivingmainlyonagriculture becameanindustrialsociety wheremostpeoplelived in bigcities. High ratesofilliteracy were transformedtoa surplusofuniversity educated persons.Not to speak of the transitionfroma long-lastingdictatorshiptosomething quite similartoother Western European parliamentarydemocracies
In such aconjuncture,ideas must change too. Even ideasongender, whichare usually among thedeep andresistant ones. Fewthings were takenfor grantedinSpain around 1990, andthiswas perhapsespecially true forgender. Issues like"thecouple",women's work outside thehome, divorce, abortion, sexuality,and so on were constantly on the agenda,inparliament, on TV debatesand in friendlyconversations at thecornerbar
It was, in otherwords,a situationofgeneral culturalinsecurity
Shared ideas,i.e.culture,are always continually negotiatedinany society. That is, they aretalkedabout andthus reproduced with whatever adjustmentstochanging circumstancesare calledfor.Moreorless, directly or indirectly,withwords or other symbols, in themode of debate or in otherwaysbut handled andmodified in interaction. Culture wouldnot be shared,and thus not culture,ifitwas not communicated,and communicationisnever unproblematic,there arealwaysdifferences of positions and opinions,thatiswhy thereischange. Butina situationlikethe one Spainfound itselfin, more negotiationwas calledfor.And genderhad become an especially prominenttheme in thoseculturalnegotiations.
Such asituationisstrategic to describe,ifweare interested in how culturaland social constructions of genderinany societymight change.Anthropology offers thenecessary toolsfor adetaileddescription. So,for afeministanthropologist with along-standing interest in Spain, like myself,tostudy genderinSpain becomesanintellectualand political requirement.
This book is about thegenderorder in middleclass Madrid in theearly 1990s. 1 It was changing, andpeoplehad opinions on it. They discussedit, andtheir discussions influenced what happened. Thebook is about how theseculturalnegotiations worked, whotook part,where they took placeand what wassaid. Thepurposeofthisdescription is to scrutinizeprocessesofchange in thegenderorder,bothsocialand culturalaspects, andespecially thepower relationships involved.2
Thetitle of thebook refers to an idea that croppedupveryoften in Madrilenian conversations at thetime of my fieldstudy,bothongenderand othertopics. Theideawas that menand womenusedtobeverydifferent sortsofcreatures but that they were now becoming, or shouldnow become,moresimilartoeach other. They should not be women andmen,theyshouldjustbepersons.A "person" wasimplicitly thought of as ahuman beingwho takesonorisgiven rightsand dutiesmainlyaccordingtoother criteriathan gender. A"person" is asocialactor,a human beingwith sufficient dignity andresources to be able to occupy aplace in societyand be recognized in away that sheorhe considerscorrect andfair. Theideaof"person" wasa keysymbol in Madrilenian conversations,especially in thecontextofgenderwhere it referred to achange away fromrigidly dualistgenderdefinitions
GenderinSpain hasbeen much more studied in ruralthaninurban contexts.For a fewdecades now,however,a majority of Spaniardshad been livingincities. Therefore, I setout to do twostudies of theSpanish urbangenderorder,with similarquestions and methods, oneina workingclass environment, one in amiddleclass one.Asitturnedout, it wasnot possibletouse exactly thesamemethods nor to askthe same questions, because thecircumstances to be describedwerenot similarenough. Reality tends to destroysystematicresearch plans. With alldue considerationofthe differences,however, theresults of thetwo studies do speak to each other.
In thefirst project (Thurén1987, 1988),I endeavored to describe thegenderorder in a peripheralworking classareaofthe city of Valencia.I calledthe area Benituria. The focusofthatstudy wasonthe contradictions inside thegenderorder –contradictions among differentideas as well as contradictions between ideas andsocialorganization. Therewerealsogreat variations in opinions on genderissuesamong thepeopleof Benituria. Thesituationwas dynamic, so genderhad to change.The important difference of opinion formyinformantswas whetherone sawall change as improvement and desiredmoreofit, or whetherone wanted things to calmdowna bitorevenreturnto "normal"
In Benituria, too, "person" wasa keysymbol relatedtochange in thegenderorder Both in middleclass andworking classdiscourses, therewereconstant references to Enlightenment values like "rationality", "justice","self-realization" and"progress" and together they definedthe idea of "person".Yet,there were also clear differences accordingtoclass.
Thepresent book reports on themiddleclass project.Itcan be read by itself, but the design of thestudy is relatedtothe Benituriaone,and in theconclusions Iwill make some comparisons.The point of comparison is thedifferenceinclass, but thefocus is on gender, not on class. Class, likethe city,ispartofthe background.3
Madrid is abig city.Itisimpossibletosay anything about it focusing on one small group or even afew keyinformants, as anthropologistsdoinsmall scalesocieties. To concentrateondiscoursesis, apartfromother advantages,a wayofpartially solvingthe difficulty inherent in studying abig city;discoursesand contexts arenot infinitely many. Peoplehavecriteriafor recognizing andclassifyingdiscourses, andthe anthropologist can learnthem.
Butonone condition–she hastomove around. That is difficult, because middleclass peopledonot just gettoknow each other, one hastohaveintroductions.And moving a lotbetween contexts entails arisk: one maynever gettoknow peoplewellenough to be able to interpretcorrectly.Onthe otherhand, anthropology hastodevelop methods that suit theconditions of bigcities, andofstudying up, andinmycase, Ihad lived in Madrid formanyyears, so Ihad contacts, Iknewmyway around andI hadwaysofjudging whereI was. Icouldgainbreadth without losing toomuchdepth
Andmoving around in middleclass Madrid,fromanelegant restaurant to ameeting in some more or less revolutionary association, fromthe university to agym class, froma tennisclubtoa department store, etc.,I didwhatall anthropologistsare supposed to do, namely do thesamethings thepeopletheystudy do. Middle classMadrileniansmove all around theircity,theyweaveinand out of varied contexts.Urban lifeislikethat, thereforethatiswhatone hastoknow anddescribe.
Butthe natives usually also have some social contexttheyreturntooften andfeel at home in.I found such acontextina social club of thekindmanyMadrileniansbelong to in ordertohaveprecisely that stable circle of friends that urbanlifedoesnot automatically offer. Some long-time friends introduced me to theirclub, whichI will call Club Aguafría. During thefirst half of fieldwork, approximately fromJune 1990 to March1991, theclubwas my main field. Then,and until theend of fieldworkinJanuary 1992, Imovedout in widening circles, usingold friends andthe snowball method to obtain contactsand introductions.There were allsorts of events –dinners with groups of friends,art shows, weddings,and so on. Ialsoparticipated in more long-lastingcontexts, such as abook club, agym class, agroup of womenwho visitedmuseums,and agroup whichhad originally been areligious so calledbasecommunity but whereall the membershad stoppedbeing Catholicsbut nevertheless wanted to continue as agroup.
In allofthese contexts Ilearnedwhatmiddleclass Madrileniansusually talked about andhow,inmixed companyaswellasinwomen-onlygroups.I also organized andtaped some group discussions anda numberoflifehistory interviews 4
Ifound that thetheme of genderwas presentinmostconversations,organized or spontaneous.Itwas plainthatgenderwas aprominentissueonthe culturalagenda.The
negotiationwas usually centeredaround thethemesof"work"(especially whether womenshouldworkoutside thehomeornot)and "sexuality"(is it good or bad? how much shouldbeallowedtowhom?whatproblemsare beingcreated by theongoing changesinattitudes? etc.). Powerwas seldom discussedhead-on, but Ifound that it was thecontroversyaround actually changing power relationshipsbetween thegender categoriesthatmadeother genderthemessoprominentand sensitive.
Themainpurposeofthisbook is to describe thewaysinwhich genderwas handled in differentdiscoursesand how thesewererelated to thepower structureofthe gender order.
1990 –and 1965
To understand Madrilenianlifein1990, it is necessary to have some idea of therange anddepth of recentchanges. They will be furtherdescribed in chapter2.But as an appetizer,togiveafeelingfor it,let me sketch ascenefrom1990, andcompare it with some factsand imagesfromthe mid-1960s
Imagineastreet in downtownMadrid. It is in theafternoon accordingtoSpanish definitions,around sevenPM; thereare peoplewalking brisklyonerrands andleisurely with friends,asusual,outside buildings that houseapartments, officesand shops.Along oneblock is abrick wall surrounding aschool.A largegroup of festivelydressedpeople is standing on thesidewalkthere.Morepeoplearrive.Carsstop, lettingout middle-aged women, then themen driveoff to find parkingspace. Themen areatthe wheel unless thereare compellingreasons forlettinga womandrive,and thewomen prefer not to have to walk very far, sincetheyare wearinghigh-heeled shoesand light jackets, anditisa cold andwindy dayinMarch.Somecouples standtogether,somegroups consistofonly womenoronlymen.The young peoplestand offtoone side.All arechattingeagerly Oneyoung maninanimpeccable grey suit andshoulder-lengthblack hair dashes about video-filming. Some adults remark that he looks very nice in asuit. Onecan presumethat they mean this as criticism,inspite of theirsmiles. They thinkthe young manusually dressestoo sloppily,and hislong hair worries them because they interpretitasan ambiguous gendersymbol.Hehimselfinterpretsitmoreasa symbol of youthand "progressive"opinions
Julia andAngelare celebrating their25thwedding anniversary, "the silver wedding" Therewill be areligious ceremony anda dinner. Julia andAngelhavefour daughters whohaveall attendedthe same privatereligious school,and they know theschool priest well, that is whytheyhavechosen theschool chapel forthe ceremony
About fiftypersons file into thechapelinnospecial order. Thereissomemusic,a regular Mass anda fewspeeches.Angelhimselfmakes aspeech to Juliawith afew light jokesand many but undogmatic references to marriageasa sacrament. Theeldest daughter,Ana,twenty-four yearsold,alsogoesuptothe microphone andmakes ashort
speech to thankher parents"forhavingmanaged to constructa marriagethathas lasted fora quarter of acentury.Thatisquite afeat.And if it weren'tfor that marriage, we wouldnot exist."A giggleand aglanceather sisters. Thepriestkissesher cheeks.
Theceremony lastsfor almost an hour,sopeopleget impatient,squirm,cough. About half take thecommunion. Finally thecrowd is letout into thefadingsunshine that still seemstogivesomewarmthafter thedampcoldofthe chapel.The mood changes instantly fromrestrainedcomportmenttofestiveexpectation. Offtothe cars, to driveto therestaurant!
There, hot andcoldappetizersare served in generous quantitiesalong with afree selectionofdrinks,while peoplestand around chatting, waitingfor everyone to arrive. Over an hour passesbetween thearrival of thefirst andthe arrivalofthe last –the usual problemsoftraffic andparking spacehit unevenly. Allthe menare in dark suits and white shirts.The womenwear mostly suits,too, but of afestiveand femininekind, in light colors andsoftmaterials,and they allwear bigearrings
Everybody sits downatone long table. Thereisplentyoffood, much is left on the plates.The quality is good, but thequantity is also important to make theoccasion festive.
Thereare no speeches duringthe dinner, onlysomejoking verses,composed collectivelyduringthe dinneratone corner of thetable andread aloud. Thewomen comment on eachother's dressesand talk about theirchildren. Some of themen make jokeswith asexualinnuendo of thetype that aremadeatweddings,and Angelsaysina loud voice that he is having alot more funtodaythantwenty-five yearsago, because he wastoo nervous then
As soon as thedessert hasbeen served,the young peopleget up to leavefor "their atmosphere", i.e. bars anddiscotheques. Unlikethe others,Ana walksaround thetable to kiss allthe guests good-bye andsay sheissohappy to seethemthere.The women comment that sheissucha nice girl,and someone says that sheisplanning to getmarried soon. Hercourteous behavior andthe women'scommentshelptoestablish herasalmostadult.
Anaisstudyingengineeringand hasone year to go. Hersisters study business administrationand medicine.All four plan to work,and allfour plan to getmarried and have children. Thethree oldest go out almost everynight andsometimes stay out until early morning. Julia andAngeldonot likethatatall, but they cannot stop them,theysay, because allyoung peopledothatnowadays.
Julia andAngelgivemea ride home. At one thirty thereisstill heavytraffic,but at leastitisfluid.Wemove between high office buildings,beneathmany-coloredneon signs,wedrive past groups of youngsters standing outside bars with liter-sized beer glassesintheir hands;wetalkofdrugproblemsand robberies,and we comment the latest Woody Allenfilm.
AndI remember when Ifirst cametoMadrid26yearsearlier, in 1964. It wasa dimly lit city,then, with littletraffic.Hardlyany privatecarsatall, as amatteroffact,only taxisand buses andsomegovernment carswith flagsonthe hood. Therewerenodrugs andfew robberies but policemen everywhere.Young couples whotried to steal akissin thestreet were promptly admonished.The parkswerefenced andlockedatnight.The back streetswereusually not asphalted. Neither waselegant Plaza de España.
Thecity hasbecome hotterinthe summerwith allthe asphalt. Andithas become warmer in thewinter, too, with allthe central heating. Irememberback in 1965 that one couldtellwhenone walked past abuildingwith central heating, because therewouldbe likea breathofwarmair acrossthe sidewalk in front of it. In thosedaysI wasalmost always late forwork, sinceitwas hard forme, one of theveryfew womenatthe bus stop, to scufflewith themen.Noone stood in line. Onebus afterthe otherwouldfill up anddrive offand thoseofusleftonthe side-walkwouldget more andmorenervous and wonderifour bosseswoulddiscount theday's salary
Now, in 1990, thereare enough buses so that peoplecan awaitmoreorlesscalmly theirturn. Thereare plenty of womenworking andstudying. Allmiddleclass dwellings areheated andsoare allofficebuildings.Betterquality stores andoffices even have air conditioning.
Anawouldnever sitathomewaitingfor herboyfriendtocalltocheck if sheisthere, theway Julia didwhenshe wasyoung. Thefirst womanengineer in electronics (Ana's specialty)graduatedin1965.
Julia comesfromanupperclass family.Her father wasa prominentbusinessman in a coastaltown, andtheylived in one of thebesthouses of that town.Still, sheremembers that shehad onlytwo summerdressesand twowinterdresses, besidesthe school uniform. Angelcomes froma middleclass family,rural civilservants. Allhis brothers gottostudy at university (not thesisters), but forthistobepossiblethe family hadto make many sacrifices,suchaseatingmeat anddrinking wine onlyonSundays
In 1965, middleclass andworking classlives were more differentfromeach other than they arenow,and thelong term security fora middleclass familythenwas much betterthanthatofa workingclass family in 1990. Butthe material comforts were less. Therewerenowashing-machines.There were fewrefrigerators (and usually ice-boxes, notelectricones),and no cannedfood, so womenofall classes(or theirmaids)wentto market everyday.Cannedfood andcentral heatingwerethingsthatsymbolized thegood lifeinthoseforeign countries allthe tourists camefromand that hardly anySpaniardhad visited. "Spanish cans!"peoplelaughedwhentheycracked eggs to make dinner. "Spanish central heating!"saidpeoplewhentheyhad ashot of redwineoranis-flavored spirits before going to work on acoldmorning.
They jokedabout it, yes. "One must laugh in ordernot to cry" wasa commonsaying. Inever hear it anymore.
In 1965, Franco's portraitwas everywhere.A smallgreyish picturebehindglass in a narrowframe hung from thewalls of bars andschool rooms, offices andhospital entrances.In1990, socialistprime ministerFelipeGonzález gave paternal explanations of thecountry's ills on theTVnewsalmost everyday.But in public places,his portrait appeared mainly on posters around electiontime.Ingovernment offices,there was sometimesa bigcolor photographofKingJuanCarlosI.
When Ifirst cametoMadridin1964, it wasmonths before Imet anyone whohad ever heardofPicasso.In1990, middleclass peoplehad to be able to talk about Ingmar Bergmaninorder not to risk social ridicule,and they hadtoatleastpretend they had been to ParisorLondon.
In 1965, agood middleclass lifewas to be able to letyour children study beyond primary school (atleastthe boys), andtohaveamaiddressedina uniform. In 1990, a good middleclass lifewas to be able to send each one of your children, boys andgirls,to study abroad foratleastone year,preferablytothe UnitedStates, andtohaveawellequippedhometowhich you couldinvite your friends with pride. Impeccable clothing wasasimportant in 1990 as it wasin1965.
In 1965, theUniversity of Madrid hada cafeteria whichservedcheap meals, where youcouldhaveasmanyhelpings as you wished of thefirst course,which wasalwaysa nourishing soup with cheap vegetableingredients, so you wouldnot go away hungry, but youcouldonlyhaveone servingofthe main course,which wasusually one fried eggora smallpiece of unaccompaniedmeat or fish.Water wasservedinmetal pitchers.In1990, studentssat in thebarsall around theuniversity areas eating pizzas,fried shrimp or cuttlefish anddrinking beer
In 1965, adaringthing to do foryoung middleclass peoplewas to go to a"club", whichwas adarkplace wherethe waiters wouldnot sayanyhing if couples kissed. But thegirls hadtobehomebeforeten o’clock. In 1990, adaringthing to do foryoung middleclass peoplewas to geta part time jobwhile studying in ordertomove in with a boyfriendorgirlfriendinspite of parents' protests
Julia hadnever worked outside thehome. When shegot married, shetook it for grantedthata woman'srolewas to be agood mother anda good wife.She still said so in 1990, if asked, but shetook it forgranted,too, that herdaughterswould getgood jobs andearngood money.
In 1965, an averageSpanish womanwouldgivebirth to around four childrenduring herlifetime.In1990, shewouldhavefewer than two.
In 1965, amarried Spanishwoman couldnot,bylaw,signa contract,opena bank account or obtaina passportwithout herhusband'sexplicit permission. Abortions and contraceptives were forbidden, andmanywomen didnot know they existed. Thelaw said that amarried man'sdutiesweretoprovide forhis wife andchildren, anda married woman'sdutiesweretoobeyher husband andlivewhere he establishedthe family residence. Awoman whohad alovercouldbesenttoprison, but aman whohad alover
couldonlybetaken to courtifhehad takenhis loverhomeand made hiswifewaiton her. Divorce didnot exist; separations were rare andverydifficult to legalize.
In 1990, thelawsonmarriagewereapproximately thesameasinother European countries,and closeto30% of adultwomen hada jobora businessoftheir own. Rape wasnolongera "crime againsthonor"but a"crime againstsexualliberty", whichmeant among otherthingsthata victim didnot have to claimvirginity in ordertoprove rape.
During theFrancoregime,homosexuality wasincludedina lawonvagrancyand socially dangerous behavior that permittedpreventivedetention. In theearly 1990s,a law on homosexualmarriagewas proposed.The public debate includedsomethorny religious issues around marriageasa sacrament, but by 1994 theattentionfocused more on whetherhomosexualcouples shouldbeallowedtoadopt children or not Spainhad become adifferent country in the1990s.Madridwas adifferent city.Young peopledid not know very much about thoseold hardships, even though many of the changeswerequite recent. ButJulia andAngeland theirfriends hadlived in bothworlds. They were onlyabout fiftyyearsold,but duringtheir adultlife, thelastquarter century, theirsurroundings hadchangedasmuchasthings changedinSwedenorEnglandin, say, ahundred years.
Anacannot be understood without understanding Julia.Nor can Julia,asshe is today, be understood without knowingsomething about Ana. This book will be mainly about womenofJulia's age, because they spannedthe period of thechangesthatwereever presentinanything Madrilenians said or did, but we must keep in mind that womenof Ana'sage were alreadycomingintoadultlifeand beginning to change majorstructures in it
To describe agenderorder
Idonot pretendtodescribe"thesituationofwomen in Madrid." Such agoalwouldbe theoretically untenable.Around 1990, afterabout twodecades of intensework,5 anthropology of genderhad arrivedata point whereitwas no longerconsidered useful to asksweepingquestions about conditions that might influencewomen's status overall. Therewas growingconsensus that allgenderordersare shaped by many specificlocal conditions,thattheyare varied andthattheymustbedescribed in painstakingdetail before we can return to generalizing andhypothesis-building. Thetheoretical challenge nowwas to developmethods andconcepts forbetterdescriptionsand finer-grained analyses
Butifweare feminists,and if feminismmeanstocriticizeand trytochange such partsofthe genderorder that we consider negative, then we must not abandon thegoalof understanding thesocialprocessesthatproducedifferences in power
Thefocus must then be on relationshipsbetween womenand men, andpossibleother gendercategories, not on anycategorybyitself. Thefirst step is to identifyasymmetries,
Madrid in the 1990swas alivelyplace. This book presents ethnographyofhow gender meanings were changing. The context is middle class; with comparisons to similar issues in aworking classarea
Urban ethnography about gender change of Valencia.
The analysis is based mainly on speech in natural situations,since talkingisone form of doing.The
Madrilenianconversations were full of examples from allwalks of life and personal situations. Thehistorical moment was one of change fromanauthoritarian society to amore democratic one. Theselarger circumstances wereoften symbolizedinterms of
Acommonidea in Madrilenian discussions wasthat womenshould become persons. This use of the concept "person" has littletodowithindividualism or psychology. It was ratheraneverydayway of expressingoppositiontoessentializedand hierarchical categorizations.The phrasemeant thata "person"isanactivehuman being whorefuses to be categorized by others,whereas a"woman"must behavesothat hergender is clearly contrastedtothat of a"man".And this,itwas thought, places women at a disadvantage. But there were also thosewho thought
historical and socialbackground is also described. gender issues. that awoman mustbea "woman"first. bothSweden and Spain.
The author is aretiredprofessor of Social Anthropologyand Gender Studies.She is acitizen of Allrights reserved
