Summary 1 – Bretell and Sargent (2013): Chapter IX
The central tenet of this chapter is that gender and role of women is significantly important in rituals and religions of the society, especially in non-western countries. Women use rituals in an ethnographic perspective to exercise power and challenge the male superiority ideology. Men and women are also considered to play parallel roles in religious activities in the society. Bretell and Sargent (2013) use the example of Oaxaca in Mexico where women had prestigious and important role in religious role in cargo activities. Women also play an important role as religious practitioners, for example healers and shamans who showed extraordinary characteristics transcended the local cultural definitions of womanhood. For example, the Korean Shamans play important roles in religious systems by performing significant ritual tasks that complemented those of men (p.321). They acted as key pillars of the village and family religion. Globalization has also played an important role in influencing the religious lives of men and women in the modern world. For example, women and men in Israel played different and separate religious roles in the Jewish culture, but globalization that brought them to live in Israel ld them to localize their religious practices rather than eradicating them.
Bretell and Sargent (2013) also observe that religious change has caused a huge impact on the lives of men. For example, the Evangelical movement in EI Salvador led to the change of men’s live. Evangelism caused men to change their religious ways and embrace masculine behaviors related to God, family and faith. There is also an important tenet in this chapter which suggests that the idea of being male or female is learned through and shaped by cultural contexts. Religious symbols are used to transmit gender messages related to specific cultures. Lastly, the chapter suggests that the participation and leadership of women in religious rituals may challenge women’s culturally determined position in the society (p.322). It may also enhance the solidarity of women and members of the community.
Membership of women in congregations and ritual activities is clearly shown in this chapter to be an important aspect of cross-cultural gender issues. However, I had often thought that women have not been given any significant consideration in any activity; be it religious, social, political or economic. Traditionally, the role of women have been considered in non western world to be domestic, and they played little role outside the home. This is not the case in the tenets of Bretell and Sargent (2013) who argue that women are important in religious practices as both members and leaders.
Summary 2 – Bretell and Sargent (2013): Chapter X1
Chapter 11 talks about the role of gender (men and women) in the globalization of economies, especially in the developing world. There are two positions that explain the role of women in economic development. One of the positions held by Chaney and Schmink (1980) is that women are considered insignificant but capitalism can make them improve their economic and social status, especially through women participation in labor force. The second position was supported by Ester Boserup and suggests that the relative status of women declines with the advancement of capitalism, colonialism and globalization which have introduced domination. Egalitarian system of gender relations has been replaced by hierarchical system which marginalizes and removes women from economic and political positions in the world.
The impact of colonialism and capitalism is that they have broke down traditional social and cultural system, turning societies into market economies which undermined the role of women in the society. For example, the Andes women had rights to properties and power to organize labor. This was affected by Spanish colonization which introduced new property rights rules that sidelined women from participation in development issues and property ownership. They were also excluded from political and religious practices of the society.
This chapter also suggests that in some parts of the world women strongly resisted colonialism. For example, the Seneca women of Pennsylvania and New York fought against the attempts of colonizers to put their land in the hands of men and deny them the opportunity to play a role in politics (Brettell and Sargent, 2013). Furthermore, colonialism failed to demean the spirits and power of women in Trobriand Islands of Melanesia. The prosperity and economic position of women in various communities therefore withstood the waves of colonialism. Globalization and capitalism has also caused migration. In turn, migration has caused significant effects on the role and ideology of gender in the society. A great number of women have been engaged in international population flows caused by globalization and capitalism (Brettell and Sargent, 2013). Apart from being domestic workers in western countries, women migrants from developing countries have also participated in labor work by working in factories. Most industries in the western world have depended on mobile women for their labor. Globalization has also brought restructuring so that women and men engage in tourism sex relationships. Therefore, women have a significant role in the dynamics of the global economy.
As I understood gender to be a crucial topic in economic development, I think this chapter is correct in its views of gender and the global economy. As a result of globalization, the world has experienced capitalism that requires the participation of women in various aspects. It is a good way of explaining how women can interact with men to enhance global economic development in this era of significant labor force contribution. Participation of women in the labor force is truly an important gender issue from the globalization era.
Reference
Brettell, C.B. and Sargent, C.F. (2013). Gender in Cross-Cultural Perspective, Sixth Edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.
