Analysis Of Quinceañer A Road To Womanhood

Arman Medina
Jessica S. Furth
ENC 1101
Thursday, August 28, 2014
A Road to Womanhood A Quinceañera is every Latin girls' road to womanhood. No matter what the cost behind the gaudy extravaganza may be, it somehow finds itself to be overshadowed by the tradition that follows it. For this special occasion it may entail an exuberant party to make the quiñced attain the confidence of young woman much like a first communion or confirmation, but without a price tag. For some, this time might be a moment in their lives where everything is perfect, where that girl is put at the center of the stage, whether you are undersized, oversized, shy, or even outgoing. In reality the spotlight is only temporary and when the event ends and everyone
“...It’s about chastity. You’re promising god that you’re not going to have sex till you’re back at the altar, getting married” (Alvarez 53). A Quinceañera may be a religious matter but shouldn't that be free. If it is about God and chastity then this should be an event that one must take out a mortgages just for their daughters to feel like they have to stay abstinent. Society is putting a price on something that is supposed to be about purity and that is what I have a problem with. Its basically putting a price on how much her core and ethical values and our worth, so say if she doesn't have a Quinceañera does that mean that she should have the same amount of respect for herself as the next person who say does. Sure if a Quinceañera is within your budget by all means exploit that celebration, because it a wonderful event that makes a person feel special. However, my objection is simple, just because someone says that you can't have a Quinceañera just because of the cost should not mean that they are any less valued than someone who has had
More than four hundred thousand Latina girls get quinced every year, thats a huge market for profit. On average about five thousand dollars a person, thats two billion dollars a year being spent on celebrations. Alvarez says, “The point is that even working-class folks who don't have a whole lot of purchasing power are going to devote a significant portion of their resources to this one tradition.” (Alvarez 55). This is the part where Business is informing the tradition that everything comes with a price because as long as there is going to be a market for a tradition as large as two billion dollars then people are going to want a piece of it, thats just how business and marketing works now a days everyone needs to make their money somehow. With a growing market of one out every five teens are hispanic you can only imagine what the eight percent growth a year is going to do to that two billion dollars a