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Socio-Autobiography (What my life is –what I make of it with the help of Biological and a Sociological Mix – A slice of my of life) Author: Nancy Gutierrez Written for my Sociology Class Culture and Society Instructor: Joan McGowan My family traditions and values have influenced my biological and cultural views and values. My life and career goals bear resemblance with my parents ‘ life and expectations influenced by class and culture. Yet have been structured by Sociological concepts. The older I become the more I clearly feel life is beginning to make sense.
Looking back at my childhood I feel as I was living life all while being contained. I was born in Texas and raised in Indiana, in a town where speaking Spanish was not permitted and no one spoke of differences. I grew up in what is considered middle-upper class society. My family values were dictated to me as if it was a pattern being cut out and these were rules I was to follow or I would not be recognized as “famila”. As I got older this caused me to developed many emotional issues. I suffer from depression and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). I concealed who I truly was in order to fit in to Social acceptance of Race and Gender.
I married at sixteen and was fortunate I married into family who was wealthy and patient enough so that I could seek out the best medical assistance and educational assistance to aid me. (TCO 3, 4, 5 ; 6) I didn’t know what to expect. I became pregnant and jumped right into the role of marriage I was exciting and happy. Becoming pregnant caused prejudice among my age group friends and I became isolated and discriminated against while still being in school. I was made to resign from cheerleading and other social groups because I was not a good representative of what children my age should be.
Without realizing I found whom I was married to, to be completely different than I whom I was, in thought and ways. The difference in religious views was not considered while dating yet was structured more too married life and rising of children. It dictated to us that Gender roles were to be followed and they were created by the Religious views that were to be enforced. I grew up in a home where 50/50 was the norm. Here I had no voice. Yet my new marriage brought with it a control and had a voice that spoke for me, so again my life curved into who others molded me into. TCO 3, 7) We started a life in Houston Texas and this was a very different setting then I was used to. For the first time I experienced Culture Shock and could not believe how this affected my emotions. I was brought up to think there were no differences in race. By this time my child was attending his first Kinder class. I remember a mother of one of the kids coming to me and telling me that “she did not feel she wanted my child to play with her child because it might create a lazy attitude since I was Hispanic”.
I felt this created intern in me a generalized discrimination against everyone who was not Hispanic around me and this prejudice kept me isolated for so long. They (KKK) use to hold rallies outside my house and I had no clue that these people were, until I was told we needed to stay inside. This was a very difficult adjustment; I had not considered changes from Indiana, would affect me so much. This was one of the reasons I experienced what is called culture shock, being away from my family and friends, being in a different culture and city really affected my emotions and I felt disoriented.
It was a very different environment from where I grew up. (TCO1, 2, 3, 4, & 5) Through the years I had many new and interesting friends, yet I still felt I was being discriminated against not so much that they still had a predigest against “my kind”. I felt they “looked down on me” at times. They had a negative attitude toward anyone that spoke the language, (Schaefer, 2009) they would often try to insult me by calling me “Mexican” or “Hispanic” which would offend me. I was not sure what offended me more, that they did not know the difference (without realizing I to was being prejudice against Mexican vs. Hispanic cultural) or the names.
All I knew was that they were making me wish I had been born into another culture just to fit in. I soon realized they were ignorant out of lack of Education on Diversity and Race. They were prejudice and they showed signs of being ethnocentric, they assumed that their own culture and way of life was superior to all others. (Schaefer, 2009) I took it upon myself to educate myself, realizing that change starts with me. (TCO 5, 6, 7 & 8) As I sit here and work my way backwards through life’s challenging faces, I have to also include if it had not been for those indifferences I would not have persuade change within y own life. My life at home became more and more challenging and I struggled to gain perspective of whom I had allowed others to mold me into. I became very defiant in the marriage and my husband at the time was very intolerant towards differences in change of what he was taught were gender roles that were set in stone. He became abusive and harsh towards my learning and educating me. Making it impossible to create a role model whom would teach my son that mind sets are breakable and it is better to challenge them if one feels they are unjust and used to hold one down.
I learned I had to go around rather than through for the time being and found Educational programs that would aid me in making this possible. I played along with his gender and religious mind sets and endured all the discrimination until I was allowed to work outside the home. Once there I was quick to gain courses of racial and gender diversity. Educating me to gain knowledge of what was real and what was not, what was legal and what was not so that I could better base my decision on religion and what I would be “punished” for what was acceptable. TCO 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ; 8) We would spend much time visiting our closest friends and there family. Who were family’s that were very religious. I was not permitted to practice the Catholic religion regardless if this was my practicing religion as a child. So I was very ignorant to many of the Catholic experiences. I remember meeting up with a group at the place I work at and discussing religious beliefs. It was amazing to join in a conversation where I was not made to feel oppressed by the majority but valued as a person with different beliefs.
I decided to join them and go to church with them. The people were caring and very understanding which was not what I was use to, at my church we were made to feel the Gender difference. Woman sat on side and men sat on the other side. If you were a married woman you sang only with the married group and if you were not regardless of age you would sing with the youth? There were times when we were told it was better for a rock to speak then a woman. So attending a church where a woman lead a service was not only shocking but liberating.
I knew women were capable of doing so much more than just raise children and serve men. (TCO 3 & 7) I was able to enjoy and learn more about other diverse religious views of other individuals, and experience the history of their different gender roles and culture. I have since learned other languages and seen the world in a different way from what I thought it was. This led me to want to explore life more as an individual. (TCO 1, 2, 3, & 4) After working at this dynamic place I followed it up with moving into my next stage in life with a different company.
As life taught it also demanded my lessons lead me to perform in different scenarios in my life and contribute to different settings. Forcing to me acknowledge the ignorance and need for diverse teachings by way of questioning and bringing up flaws in what was thought of a perfect way of life. I found a great job with wonderful benefits as a Program Coordinator for a University and at this moment in my life was when I began to realize the “reality” of the economic issues our society is facing. The job taught me to how the economic system works in the business community.
My work and moral ethics were challenged when I finally decided to return and pursue my education, I felt unnecessary pressure from my boss, but at the same time felt the need to continue this journey. I found out I had cancer and was with child at the same time. Since I was four months along I decided I was going through with my pregnancy and challenged my health to stay with me. I experienced social control through not only my employer but also through my doctor. All I knew was I wanted to leave the world a better place than when I came into it.
I want to be a professional woman someday. If I don’t earn my degree I won’t get as far as I want to get in life. I already have the work experience and I would like to match that up with what is required to obtain a better job and status. The job and school has given me the opportunity to experience and explore social control. (TCO 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8) When I decided to head back to school to gain my education I decided on Sociology. This type of learning has interest me for a while and I find myself learning about myself more so then any other time in my life.
I have been searching out different aspects of the life, and am realizing how very fortunate I am to have the freedom to explore these vs. the changeling racial and gender discrimination people around the world face. I appreciate and understand a little more of what my life has been in the past, and have dreams of what it will be in the future. This Socio-autobiography assignment has been a challenge. However I am very grateful because it has given me the opportunity to reflect on my life experiences and I believe it will allow me to explore the numerous social influences that have formed who I am, as a person, today. Writing his socio-autobiography has allowed me the opportunity to explore the interconnection between biography (a slice of my life), the social structure and culture. It has been a pleasure to share my slice of life with you Dr. McGowan. My life is now lived in remission, divorced and remarried so I have so many different dynamics in it that I can’t help to think I stumbled upon something I was meant to learn a while back. By reflecting back on my life experience I now see the socio interactions I had. I would not change a thing, as those experiences opened my eyes and helped me view society and culture in a different manner.
I definitely see myself altering my behavior patterns, including norms and values over time, this is called social change. (Schaefer, 2009) I am pleasantly surprised I have become an independent thinker. And now serve as a role model to not only those around me but also to my children whom without their assistance I would not have a reason to think outside the box. (TCO 3, 4, 5, 6, ; 7) References Schaefer, R. (2009). Sociology: A Brief Introduction. (9th edition) Avenue of Americas, New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.