Weaving Identities: Construction of Dress and Self in a Highland Guatemala Town [Paperback]

Carol Hendrickson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0292731000 | ISBN-13: 978-0292731004 | Publication Date: 1995

Traje, the brightly colored traditional dress of the highland Maya, is the principal visual expression of indigenous identity in Guatemala today. Whether worn in beauty pageants, made for religious celebrations, or sold in tourist markets, traje is more than "mere cloth"--it plays an active role in the construction and expression of ethnicity, gender, education, politics, wealth, and nationality for Maya and non-Maya alike. Carol Hendrickson presents an ethnography of clothing focused on the traje--particularly women's traje--of Tecpán, Guatemala, a bi-ethnic community in the central highlands. She covers the period from 1980, when the recent round of violence began, to the early 1990s, when Maya revitalization efforts emerged. Using a symbolic analysis informed by political concerns, Hendrickson seeks to increase the value accorded to a subject like weaving, which is sometimes disparaged as "craft" or "women's work." She examines traje in three dimensions--as part of the enduring images of the "Indian," as an indicator of change in the human life cycle and cloth production, and as a medium for innovation and creative expression. From this study emerges a picture of highland life in which traje and the people who wear it are bound to tradition and place, yet are also actively changing and reflecting the wider world. The book will be important reading for all those interested in the contemporary Maya, the cultural analysis of material culture, and the role of women in culture preservation and change.

Editorial Reviews

Review

An exceptionally fine ethnography that focuses on the integral role that traje or Maya dress and cloth production plays in the lives of the people of Tecpán, Guatemala.... offers rich insights into the power of traje: as decorative clothing reflecting both individual tastes and the collective power of the Maya community, who regard cloth as more than clothing. For them, traje is the memory of their proud past and an integral part of their future. (American Anthropologist )

Product Details

• Paperback: 261 pages
• Publisher: University of Texas Press (1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0292731000
• ISBN-13: 978-0292731004
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #196,072 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Traje, April 11, 2002

By 

Beth Merida (Indianapolis, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Weaving Identities: Construction of Dress and Self in a Highland Guatemala Town (Paperback)

This book is good for those looking to learn about traditional Maya dress in Guatemala and how it relates to the lives of those who make and wear it. It is an interesting read, giving good insights to cultural aspects also. Although the research was conducted many years ago, this was an interesting and yet very shaky time in Guatemala, making the read all the more interesting.