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Social Fibers : Race, Gender, and Fabrics of Identity in Colonial Yucatán

Author
Davis, Samantha
Published
[University Park, Pennsylvania] : Pennsylvania State University, 2024.
Physical Description
1 electronic document
Additional Creators
Restall, Matthew, 1964-
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Restricted (PSU Only).
Summary
"Social Fibers" conceptualizes literal fibers of dress or textiles as an expression of the metaphorical social fibers of a multifaceted identity. By emphasizing certain social fibers, Yucatecans negotiated the limitations of Spanish colonialism and participated in a broader Atlantic world in surprising ways. The suppliers of these textiles were primarily Maya women; the process to produce textiles and their subsequent consumption crossed gendered, racial, and socioeconomic lines, revealing the warps and wefts bolstering Yucatecan society. Applying the concept of the literal fibers found in cloth, this dissertation characterizes fundamental, metaphorical threads of identity as "social fibers." This term encompasses gender, ethnicity and race, class, social status, and economic position. Yet, "Social Fibers" moves beyond intersectionality, identifying the critical nature of fibrous materials in the processes of identity formation and (re)presentation. How did the confluence of race and ethnicity, class and socioeconomic status offset gendered behavioral expectations in early modern Yucatán? By unraveling this paradox, "Social Fibers" reveals how women and people of color navigated gendered and racial hierarchies. In spite of the emphasis on cotton, cloth, and fibers, this is not a history of textiles. Rather, this dissertation argues that Yucatecans accessed literal and social fibers in response to their environment and the (limited) influence of the Spanish colonial government and the Catholic Church. Identities were not solely developed and defined by Spanish (male) expectations, but rather through a collaborative and highly localized process challenging the status quo. Yucatecans created space and agency that challenged the boundaries of Spanish colonialism. Ultimately, "Social Fibers" articulates the plurality of individuals who contributed to the development of gender roles in Yucatan. Yucatecans understood how multi-pronged identifiers allowed or restricted movement and permitted or discouraged certain behaviors. Maya and Afro-Yucatecan women deployed intersectionality to their benefit, circumventing the legal and social constraints implied by their racial, gender, and class identities. "Social Fibers" untangles the threads of identity as Yucatecans employed social fibers to their advantage, challenging modern understandings of privilege and oppression within a colonized region. An essential historical consideration of identity in early modern Yucatan, the significance of this dissertation lies in its ability to provide historical context to current questions surrounding the intersections of gender and race throughout the Americas.
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Dissertation Note
Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University 2024.
Technical Details
The full text of the dissertation is available as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file ; Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view the file.
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