GENDER IDENTITY OF LATIN AMERICAN WOMEN IN THE MODERN U.S. CULTURE: LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL APPROACH

Abstract

The proposed research paper addresses the problem of intercultural Latina(o) identity transition in the course of integration into the American society which is investigated through the prism of interrelation of gender roles and linguistic patterns in written and oral discourse. As the given paper addresses the Hispanic gender identity, the author gives an insight into the deconstruction of the female gender national character or marianismo through assimilation in the American culture. The linguistic and discursive examples of identity switch are negotiated in the article. It is emphasized that children of first-generation immigrants in the U.S. while adjusting to the mainstream culture either retain their heritage gender ethic or attain Latina feminist aesthetics and reflect the concept of women's empowerment. At the core of the research is an exploration of transition of authentic Latina(o) identity into a dual or the mainstream American identity with regard to different gender roles in patriarchal societies and the American pro-feminist values. The paper particularly addresses first-generation immigration from Latin America, immigrants’ biculturalism and bilingualism, and how these factors shape their cultural identity.

The author explores the relationship between language and culture, and aims to contribute to international conversations about immigration, cultural identity, and assimilation. It is stated that self-identification may be different from the identification of the mainstream society. The assumption is that women’s empowerment and identity deconstruction of the dual culture citizens in majority of cases are accompanied by successful public individuality, while private individuality may be infringed.

It is intended to study the evolution of the Hispanic gender national character through the prism of biculturalism and bilingualism, using the data from fictional and non-fictional works of Latina/o immigrant writers. While the verbalized negative social attitudes are represented by the semantic derogation of vocabulary borrowed from Spanish, often Hispanic authors incorporate Spanish into their English writing and create playful linguistic hybrids of Spanish and English.