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The Meanings of Macho: Being a Man in Mexico City

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Anthropology should be so insightful. Gutmann, wife Michelle McKenzie and daughter spent a year in the colonia Santo Domingo from 1992-1993. The publisher calls this the "first detailed ethnography of machismo in Mexico." With vignettes and theory in hand, Gutmann carefully reviews the stereotype of "macho" with the finesse of a classical novelist. Again, the University of California Press demonstrates that academic work doesn't need to be boring!

Gutmann's endeavour to analyse the hegemonic and stereotypical notions of machismo, a most ambiguous term both in scientific and popular literature, results in a very comprehensive work where patient nuance is at the core of the engaging analysis. The demographic in the study is working class people (allow for the suggestion of other discourses of manhood to exist in other stratas of the society) in a part of Mexico City, and Gutmann manages to present the socioeconomic realities in which the lives recorded take place. It's an honest account, vitalised by the reflections and comments on personal experiences and emotions in the field. The writing is very seductive, inasmuch as the flowing and engaging style of the study evokes empathy on the part of the reader. The weaving together of chapters dealing with different aspects of his informants' lives (child rearing, division of labour, sexuality, alcohol consumption etc), is masterly done in eliciting the subtleties of the phenomenon that is being macho. Gutmann touches on morality, hegemonic discourses and practices relating to manhood and gendered values, the contestation of these and the emergence of new roles and identities located in the universe of gender. Drawing on concepts like contradictory consciousness, it might be suggested that the writer situates himself in the theoretical landscape where importance is given to actors' strategies and adaptation, however, never failing to outline the objective structures providing the explanatory framework for individual agency. A thouroughly enjoyable read, both for the insights it provides, and for the sheer way they are presented.