Everything you ever dreamed of: romance, gender and travel in Mexico

Abstract

This thesis focusses on intimate relations between Western women and Mexican men situated in a tourist town in Baja California Sur. Based on five case studies of North American women, the thesis explores relations of power. Relationships between Western women and non-Western men have been characterized by social scientists as subverting the traditional dominance relations. This thesis seeks to explain how the women and men negotiate the difference in power by exploring how relations of power are influenced by material, cultural and moral resources. Lastly, the thesis explores gender identity negotiation. Do Western women actually negotiate gender roles? Or are they forced into adopting Mexican gender roles? If so, how do they contend with the differences in gender role expectations?