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Final Reflection

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  Throughout this course I was able to explore a wide range of topics that were nothing short of devastating as a woman myself. The topics related to gender, violence, resistance, and representation across Latin America. One that stood out to me due to growing up in California and having access to this knowledge, was Frida Kahlo. I specifically remember learning about her but what spoke to me truly was when I visited San Francisco for a family vacation and that was the trip that I learned about Frida Kahlo’s work and her legacy, her life, and tragedy. It changed how I viewed being a woman at a young age and how much you speak with no words through art. Coming back to that topic in this class felt like coming to a full circle and I really enjoyed that time in the class. The number of films we had access to paint the picture about women’s rights, femicide, violence, etc. I did my research project on Femicide, and it was probably one of my favorite research projects I have done in my ...
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Exploited Women and Workers

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  After watching the movie and doing my own search, I am nothing short of disappointed that these conditions are so normalized. How harm has been normalized by global supply chains, how persistent and strong these women workers are. The movie specifically highlights on the women in Tijuana maquiladoras, through personal footage and video diaries. This gives the movie more depth and more truth, there is no Hollywood dramatization, it’s the ugly truth. Women workers are hired in large numbers, and they are viewed as less than, docile, not as expensive has men workers. They receive low pay, sexual harassment, and limited access to labor protections. Laws that were created and should be put in place but are not because they are women. Not only does this type of work bring that list of problems but health problems soon follow. There have been higher rates of miscarriages, low birth weight, occupational illnesses, that are linked to chemical exposure and the unsafe and unjust work cond...
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The Things We Lost in The Fire

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In my own opinion, Enriquez's collection is framed in the horror genre because it is nothing short from the truth. It isn't your typical supernatural horror of the unknown, but of some may call it body horror. Real social events are depicted, and I think it's important that light is shown on the ugly truth. Because oppression is ugly. Horror allowed the author to not shy away from harsh things, about misogyny, neglect, poverty, femicide. Horror allowed her to make what is usually hidden, visible. I think if I were to write on this topic my own personal trauma would be a mixture of horror myself, and nonfiction. I would blatantly share the facts and the harsh reality, like what Enriquez did, because history is horrifying in some lights. Maria would be the character I choose because she was a woman who resisted and stood up to her beliefs. She used herself as a political statement to get her word out there. People don’t realize what is going on behind their rose-tinted gl...
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The Inn

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“The Inn”, a novel by Mariana Enriquez, merges real life trauma with supernatural horror in a great blend, as well as highlighting the stories and history of Argentina’s disappeared. Personal and National trauma is revealed in the novel through the dictatorship’s violence and Rocio’s father losing his job, leading to their relocation as well as the girls’ personal sexual awakenings. The trauma the girls endure is generational and filtered down from their parents to them.   To be completely honest, I think horror is a great way to narrate the past. I think what should be done less often is the sugarcoating of history. The way that Enriquez highlights the differences between the two sisters. One being more comfortable in her sexuality but receiving backlash where the other sister feels as if she must protect her from the harsh realities of their lives. Enriquez takes the people of dictatorship and paints into monsters, giving the reader emotions like fear, anxiety, and dread, to ...
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Introduction of Me

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  My name is Paige Clair, I am 23 years old and was born and raised in California before I moved here to Florida two years ago. I love being at home and spending time reading, watching videos, enjoying time with my family, cooking and baking, which is for sure a form of love language for me. I am taking this class because of foreign culture credits but the class has a deeper meaning to me than that. I chose this class because I felt that it was something that was going to be inspiring for me as a women. I am not Latin American but to care and want to learn about other cultures has always been something important to me which has only fueled my reasoning behind enrolling in this course. 
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Of Love and Shadows Ending

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     Of Love and Shadows was an ugly and raw depiction of the realty of dictatorship in Chile under the reign of Augusto Pinochet. Through this novel as the reader, I was immersed into the life of the women and families affected by this brutal government. It depicts military dictatorship and the regimes tactics and protocols that inflicted so much harm on innocent civilians. From arrests to torture. Due to the government, the society of Chile during this time became so divided and led to people who deemed not affected by the government to turn a blind eye and remained ignorant. This is highlighted heavily in the novel, which was a great detail to include. On the other hand, the author paints the picture of families who were very active and stayed aware of the reality of what was happening. Throughout the novel it is also highlighted the censorship on journalism and depicts how cruel the government was, people still resisted and stood for what was right. US policies aren’t...
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Private and Public Violence

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Second part "Shadows"           In the eye of the reader, Irene, from "Of Love and Shadows", lives a very different life due to her social status that provides her with privilege. Therefore, she faces no political violence like Evangelina. As a reader, Irene accepts the cruelty of the government because of how powerful they have become. She has grown comfortable; therefore, she is oblivious to life outside of her own. Due to her not being exposed to this violence firsthand, she differs from the other characters. From the perspective of other characters, they are deeply affected by the violence. For example, when Evangelina’s body was discovered. This solidifies to the reader the true violence of the government, all whilst destroying the image Irene knew her government to be before. In the case of Francisco, he knows what is going on and does not seem phased. He faces injustice just like most of the people who have to suffer from the harsh government. Although th...
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