Life as the Maid’s Daughter

Teresa, the daughter of a domestic worker, responded ambivalently when her mother's bosses referred to her as "one of the family" in Mary Romero's story "Life as the Maid's Daughter." On the one hand, she valued the feeling of approval and inclusion that this title gave her. She, also, was keenly conscious of the class and ethnic inequalities that remained between her and the other members of the family.

Teresa’s education had some advantages. One benefit of Teresa's education was that it exposed her to a broader variety of chances and experiences than she might have had access to in a less affluent home. She was able to attend elite institutions and engage in recreational activities, for instance. She also became more exposed to a broader variety of cultural and social practices, as well as a feeling of social connection and affiliation.

Teresa's education also had drawbacks, such as feelings of exclusion from her own working-class family and neighbourhood as well as the upper-class society of her mother's bosses. As she was acutely conscious of the disparities in power and wealth between her and her mother's bosses, she also battled feelings of remorse and betrayal. Furthermore, Teresa had to navigate contradictory social standards and demands from various social realms, which could be challenging and perplexing.

References

Romero, Mary. The Maid’s Daughter: Living Inside and Outside the American Dream, New York: New York University Press, 2011. Print.

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