The wetback manual laborer who ritually beats his wife to put her in place, be it from indignation or blind spite; the man who labors tirelessly to support his family and characteristically refuses outside help; and the artificially tanned muchacho who dons Armani Exchange to accentuate his gelled hair and near-skin tight pants are all ideas that seem to float, and somehow coexist, in modern conceptions of the Mexican male.
Of course, machismo finds root in all parts of Latin America and the Hispanic World: A hot-button term coined by U.S. academics to refer to, and over-categorize, males in gender relations south of the border. The "macho" was somehow different from the dominating male in other cultures - Stanley Kowalski's aggressive alpha-male persona was of the Polish variety, absent of the inherent Hispanic traits that would make him a natural. Even Ralph Kramden from the Honeymooners couldn't be justified for beating his wife; he didn't fit into the Hispanic category.
But as popular as the term has become, even "machos" are still made, not born. The original Spanish usage of the term machismo referred more specifically to pure sexism and chauvinism; attitudes rather than instincts in male conduct toward women. U.S. academics studying from the bottom-up - who filtered up their society-wide observations from field work and studies of the working- and poverty-ridden classes in Latin America - hijacked the term to categorize and oversimplify Hispanic gender relations. The academics who "discovered" machismo inserted ideas of excessive masculinity and virility into all social strata of Hispanic society and to the Hispanic male psyche.
Shortly after this seeming breakthrough in understanding Latin gender studies, U.S. academics complemented the concept with a seemingly subordinate female aspect, categorizing fundamental female tolerance, endurance, and even a dual saint/whore status as marianismo. "Maria," the virgin mother and saint of choice for most of Latin America, was the prototype for the Latin woman and her ability to rear children indefatigably while enduring the demands and caprices of her husband.
Although marianismo eventually fell to the waste-side, disproven by the same academic establishment that created them, the new machismo found its way into Latin American parlance in the 1990s. Intellectuals, journalists and academics within Latin America used it to refer to determined forms of masculinity in analyzing gender/sexuality, oppression of women and gays, and feminist literature.
Now although this article intends to show how the word machismo is problematic in generalizing Latin gender relations, it isn't to say that societal instances of male chauvinism and virility aren't present. Mexico's celebrated poet, writer and Noble Prize winner, Octavio Paz, expounded often on the theme of Mexican men "dissimulating," or not sharing their feelings with other males, putting on a tough male exterior to cope with relations and situations with others. His famous essay, "Mexican Masks," went further in exploring the origins of the macho male, citing Spanish literary precursors and the typical upbringing of a Mexican male, who is forbidden to perform household chores (left to the females) and cry before others.
But does the idea of the elevated male stray far from the cultures of other societies? Arab women are still not allowed to drive cars, and Japanese women are expected to quit their jobs as soon as they get married.
Nevertheless, machismo has been a concept powerful enough to make its way into common usage. The current president of Mexico, Felipe Calderón, recently blamed machismo for general discrimination in the work place for woman in Mexico. Mexican journalists often utilize the term to readily conjure gender inequity issues for readers.
But even in popularity, the term is far from a perfect category. The former Mexican president, Vincent Fox, received much flak for divorcing his wife, and for being a native son the state of Guanajuato, received rumors that his wife beat him, as all the women of his home state supposedly do to their husbands. And the metrosexual here, which in itself is already a contradiction to the tough, proud male, is more amiable and friendly in comparison to his American counterpart.
We can even entertain another categorization here, from what my experience has been; Latin Americans are a generally cordial people, especially to those that take interests in their culture. It may have been over-interest in Latin American, and the generalization of the complexities of gender relations, that ultimately led to faulty terms like machismo.
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