Domestica

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the book written by sociologist Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo. It explores the questions of class and the possible existence of a feudal system in the United States. Feminism, immigrant culture, and economic class stratification are examined in this paper in relation to domestic workers.

From the Paper:

"The fifth surprising point that is found in this book is the idea of a trend in domestic employment having "global" origins as well as globally encountered economic consequences. It seems almost as if it has once again become necessary to connect the "worker" with the economic structure such as what Marx attempted to do in his description of capitalism. The idea of globalization does not seem congruent with a "rehash" of basic macroeconomics. Apparently, however, the two are aligned and the relationship between them is alluded to in the book, Domestica: Immigrant Workers Cleaning and Caring In The Shadows Of Affluence. There are three areas in which the sociological aspects of study are relevant to the reading of this book: feminism, immigrant culture and economic class stratification; in the vernacular: sexism, racism and classism. The driving force is the combination of feminism and racism, or how immigrant women can impact the social changes necessary for gender and economic equality."

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