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The Myth of Being "Like a Daughter"Author(s): Grace Esther YoungSource: Latin American Perspectives, Vol. 14, No. 3, Agriculture and Labor (Summer, 1987),pp. 365-380Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2633685 .

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The Myth fBeing "Like a Daughter"byGraceEstherYoung*

A smallgroup fdedicatedwomen s organizing omesticervantsnLima, Peru.Likethe maids they rganize, hesewomenmigratedt ayoung gefromheir ural, oorfamilies oworknmoderatendupperincome, urban families. Their efforts o organize the sector arefrustratedothby tructuralspects ftherelationshipfthedomesticservant o herfamily,s well as bythepervasive deology fthefamilysphere,which s sanctioned hroughollectivenstitutions.The ourneyyoungwomenmake from herural ourban ontext sfacilitatedhroughhemedium f thefamily s a socioeconomic ndideologicalform. hefamily as seeminglyniversal haracteristicsswell s aspects hat respecificoparticularlass andcultural ontexts.I shall argue thatthe diomof thefamily s inclusive,ust,and as a"natural" ge-baseddivision f abor and power, erves o structurerelationshipf nequality-indeed, xploitation-one powerfullyegit-imizedbythechurch ndthe state.But,themetaphor f thefamilysitself ontradictoryt least in its applicationto the conditionsofdomesticservice, omething hatemerges n the experienceof thedomestic ervants hemselves.Effortso organize hedomestic ervant ectorbeganin theearly1970s, uring period f ustained conomic rowthndstabilityf hePeruvianeconomy.The macroeconomic hangesoccurringn Peruserve to restructure he nature of the domesticdomain, therebychanging he character f the domestic ervant's osition.As thesechanges ccur, reativetrategiesor rganizinghe ector redemanded.*Since ompletinger esearchnLima,GraceEsther ounghas worked nMexicowithnonprofit exicandevelopmentgency nd with heFord Foundation. he is currentlyinvolvedwith a Chicago group of community ctivists, erviceproviders,nd publichousingresidents rganizing conference o address he priorities f women npublichousing.She is also a staff ersonat Travelers nd Immigrants id ofChicago. Thisarticles based on fivemonths ffield esearch arried ut n Lima, Peru,fromMay toOctober1984, ndwasmadepossiblebya grant rom he nter-Americanoundation.LATINAMERICAN ERSPECTIVES, ssue 4,Vol. 14 No. 3, Summer987 65-380? 1987 atinAmericanerspectives

365

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366 LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVESHavingmoved romheir amilies forigin, omestic ervants alkfine ine in their new patron families.They find themselves othmembers nd nonmembers;tanding imultaneouslyithin he amilialboundariesyet outsidethem. Their case exemplifieshe linkageofdomestic nd collective nstitutionshat re bondedbyan ideology fpaternalismnd dependency. his article emonstrateshat he ontouroffamilial oundaries nd the hanges ccurringnthemacroeconomiclevel in Latin America maintaindomesticservants n a marginalposition, henature fwhich s revealednthereality f heir ife ycles.The first artof this articleprovides discussionof thefamily'ssocioeconomic nd ideological haracteristics,ith particular ocuson its nherentdeology,whichmasks hetruerelations fproductiontherein.The second part demonstrateshe changes apparent n thedomesticservant ectoras a result of the recession n Peru. Therecession's ffectsn middle ncome arners oupledwith hegrowthfa vendor ector nteract o bringnew definition o thepositionof thedomestic ervant.As it is redefined,he cultural onceptionof the

domestic ervant's osition akeson a new form.FROM FAMILY OF ORIGIN TOPATRON FAMILY: SOCIALIZATIONAND MARGINALIZATION

Central o feministnalysisof the subordination f women s therelationship fthepublic,or politicoeconomic,phere nd thefamily.Whiletheanalysis s varied nd expansive, aisingssues oftheoriginandtheuniversalityfthedichotomy,ts relevancewith egard o thedomestic ervants nframingdiscussion f he nterdependencef hetworealms. acks 1975) and Rapp (1978) suggesthat hedichotomy fthepublicand theprivate pheres s specific o class-stratified,tate-organized ocieties.With he transformationfprestate ocieties, hedomestic phere eveloped s theheart f thereproduction,ocializa-tion, nd the maintenance f newgenerations, hile hepublic pherebecamethecenter or aw-making, olitical dministration,nd eco-nomicproduction nd regulationSacks, 1975).Women's ubordinatestatus s directly iedto their ocation n the domestic nd marginalsphere. ntegral o these analyses s the dominanceof ideology nmaintaininghedichotomyRapp, 1978).


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 367These formulationsrovide frameworkor nalyzing he nterplayofthe onstructsfclass and genderwith hedominant deology fthefamily.However, hey ack an analysisof the relations f authoritywithin he domestic phere hatwouldbring nsight o theparticularlocation f hedomesticervant s a workern theprivate omain. uchinsight nto the internal structure f the family s necessarytounderstandhe ransitionhedomesticervantmakesbetween amilies,and hersituationn thepatronfamily. t is theapparent ontinuitybetweenfamily"f origin nd "family"femploymenthat horesherposition.Therefore,t s necessary odemonstratehoseaspects f thefamilyhat eemto stretch ross-culturallynd acrossclass, as well asthose thatare specific o the context romwhich he comesand intowhich he moves.Many rural,youngwomen migratingo Lima have traditionallyfound work in middle income homes. The growth n demand forservantshas come primarily rom hissector.As in much of LatinAmerica, hemiddlencome trata n Perudeveloped uringhe tage f

steady conomicgrowth rom hepost-WorldWar II perioduntil hemid-1970s. heservice ector rew oncomitantlysthemiddle ncomegroups rew. hegrowthndemand or omestic ervantsnLima from1940 othemid-1970s as in partdueto thegrowing umber fmiddleincomewomen ntering hite-collarerviceobs, such as governmentwork, ursing,ecretarial ork, eaching,ndthe ike.Thedevelopmentprocess in Lima took on a disparatenature,bringingmploymentopportunities or womenin white-collarervice obs while manualwork, sually illed y ower ncomewomen, ncreasinglyisappeared.Growthnthenumber ftheseobs, though mall,disproportionatelyfavoredmen.Lower-income omen ound mploymentntheunskilledend of the ervice ector, uch as domestic ervice Scott,1984).Theurban amilieshatyoungwomen nterreframed yboundariesthatseparatethemfrom hepublic sphere.Whereasboundariesofupper-class,rbanfamilies reextremelyecurenPeru,.middle-class,urban families endto be flexible.Such flexibilitys responsive omacroeconomichanges, s can be seen ntheparticular ituation fdomestic ervantsseenext ection).The boundaries hat eparate hepoor, rural familyfrom the public sphere, n contrast, re verypenetrable. hough manyparents referhat heir irls tay thome,theycannot supportthem,and domestic service s one of the fewopportunitiesvailabletoyoung, oorwomen.Theirpovertyncour-agesthem o leavetheir wnfamilial onfinesn searchofwork.


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 369

whom heworks, hehas earned o serve nd worknthehome, oenactthoseroles s part fherown personal dentity.3hough he mayhavedifficultydjustingo hernewpatron amily,4heacculturationf thefemale genderrole coupled withher own economic insecurity reimportant actors ropelling hetransition etween amilies.The domestic ervant's ntrancento her new family s throughheseiora (theMrs.,mistress,racting emale ead of hehousehold). t sthesefiora's oletobringher nto thepaternalisticrmsof thepatronfamily. he patron amily unctionsstensiblys a civilizing gent otransformer ural ustomsnto ppropriate rbanones.The sefiorastheprimary erson uiding er, nd t s shewhodirects nd teaches hedomestic ervant henature fservicen herparticular amily.Heryouth ndbackgroundmake thedomestic ervant articularlysensitive o the magesshemeets n the new context.She enters hefamily t a very oung ge,5unfamiliar ithurban ife nmiddle ndupper ncome amilies. hemoves nto n environmenthat s foreignoher. Here she s metwith ntirely ew concepts f appropriate amilylife.Apartfrom very omanticized otion, ural ife nd all its magesaredevalued nPeruvianociety. hough ll PeruviansmaybeproudofPeru's Incan heritage indeed,everyone rom ll socioeconomic ndcultural ackgrounds asadamant hat visit hefamous ncanruins fMachu Picchu), ural ndians oday re a marginalized roup n societyand areconsideredulturallynferior. womanwithmore han hree rfour hildren nd who straps n infant o herback is not a dominant,positive mage f mothernPeruvian ociety. omestic ervants'wnfamilies re notviewed as acceptablerolemodels.Theirfamilies rerootednpeasant elations fproductionnd organization, hereas heurban families orwhommostdomestic ervantswork are patternedafter hefamilytructurefthemiddle-class,ndustrialWest.Within hepatron amily,he servant ften ecomes ike oneof thechildren. heremayexistan ambiguousdivisionbetween he "real"children nd thedomestic ervant.A study fmiddle-class amiliesnLima states, A domestic ervantmight e treated ery ffectionately,andsheofteneemed o takeona status f tep-daughterr god-childnthe amily hereheworked"Anderson, 978:81).As a child, heoftendevelops filial elationship ith he efiora, hichs setwithin frameofduty ndrespect. hedomestic ervantwho defines erself ithinheboundaries fobedience ndrespecthat re delineated orhermay taywith family ormanyyears. ndeed, she is the deal maid, andherdevotionprovideshersomeprotection; ertainly erbasic needs are


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370 LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES

met, ndshemaydevelop ntimate elationships ith amilymembers.However, he deology f he amily, ith ts tress n the ommitmentof close kin, as well as on duty and devotion within he protectedboundaries, conceals the marginalposition the domestic servantoccupies ntheprivate phere. he definitionf hedomestic ervant s"like a daughter" s part of the efforto secure her dependence ndcontinual evotion othe amily. houghherwork s cloaked nterms flove and respect, he domestic servant's abor provides mportantmaterial enefits or hemembersf hefamily, articularlyhe efnora.Although he domestic ervant nd the senioramay be unitedby theduty o servewell thefamily's eeds, t s the domestic ervant's aborthat emoves he efiora romhe aborious hores f ooking, leaning,washing, nd ironing.The domestic ervant s an important tatussymbol or he eniora,s sheprovides orher eisure.Thoughshemaybe told she s a member, he domestic ervantwillnotbe allowed o follow he yclical evelopmentf real"children. hewillnever ealize hefull dultbenefits ffamilymembership.nherentto therelationshipfthedomesticwith hepatron amilysthat, s sheentered s a child, he remain s a child.To defineherself ithin heboundaries f hepatron amilymeans hemust egate er wnneeds san adult woman.She cannotexpectto live n a place apartfrom hepatron amily,ecausemost efiorasreferlive-inmaidwho savailableto them oth arlynthemorningnd late atnight.fshe haschildren,shewillnotberetained. tatistics how hat omestic ervantsontinueto be overwhelminglyingle,youngwomenwithout esponsibilitiesfchildren ndwho ive n thefamiliesnwhich heywork.The nature of the familywith ts diffuse nd fluidrelationshipsconcealsthehierarchyontainedwithin t.A strict ivisionoflaborbetweenhe real" hildren nd thedomestic ervant rings larityo theambiguous elationship. s Anderson1978: 81) points ut,

Whatwasnot mbiguous aswho ctuallyooked, leaned,nd ickedup after hom. he real" hildrenadexceedinglyight utiesnthehousehold. heir utywas todo as well s theyould nschool.Theempleadaemployee),n stark ontrast,itwhateverreparationorschool he ouldmanageroundhe emandshatweremade nherorrunningpecial rrandsesides er cheduledaily esponsibilities.Her aborprovides herealchildrenheprivilegefundivided ttentionto their ducation.Her liminalmembershipnthepatronfamily oes


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 371not giveheraccessto thecultural r material apital of the middle- rupper-classfamily o which the real childrenare admitted.Theprogression fher wn ife ycle see next ection) s a living estimonyofherexclusion rom t.An often epeated omment ydomestic ervants hen skedwhat tis likeworkingn their atron amiliess,"I'm likea partofthefamily.They reatme ike was their aughter." ey totheir xplanations s apaternalistic otion mbedded n thewords, l trato the treatment).Because she s ina vulnerable osition nthepatronfamilynd is leftunprotected yinstitutionsutsidethefamilial phere, heaspectoftreatments almostas important s thewage she may or maynotreceive.6The dependent,paternalistic elationship he domestic servantdevelops in the patron family s reinforced y the church,whichsanctifiesheprotectedamilial nvironment.he Catholic hurch laysan importantole n egitimatinghe diomofduty nddevotion o thefamily.choolsthat ecruitnd train oungwomen obecomedomesticservants re administered ythe Catholicchurch. t is an importantmediatorn the ransition fyoungwomen rom heir ural o their ewurbanfamilies.Although t instills n important ense of pride indomesticwork,tsfundamentalmessageguidesdomestics o be agentsofharmony nd unitywithin heir atron amilies.7 ithin frameworkofduty nd obedience o God, theseyoungwomen re taught erviceandrespect o their atronfamilies o be.As a meansofconfrontingheir ependent nd insecureposition,domestic servantsbegan to meet informally,nd in some casesclandestinely,nthe arly1970s.Theygatherednneighborhood arksduring heir ree ourson Sundays otalk about their ituation. omemaidswhowent o schoolbeganto meet fter lass.Through haringinformation, slow processof consciousness-raisingegan as theydiscovered hat,while achgirl's ituation ad itsspecified haracter-istics, hey ll were ubjectto very imilar onditions n theirpatronfamilies. heybegan o dentify ith neanother; s workersnhomes,and as rural,ndianpeople.Structuralspects f he elationshipf hedomestic ervant ith erfamily,uch sthe mount f ime hemust eat theirervice,s well sthe deology fthefamilywhich eekstokeep maidsfromdentifyingwithother holas (derogatory erm or ndian) in the streetmpedesmaids' organizing fforts. heirworkdirectly hallenges hefunda-mental ature f he ervant's osition.As long s sheremainsgnorant


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of the mplicationsf herposition s a domestic ervant, he will notquestion ermarginal osition. nessence, he s restrictedothe owestrung f hepatron amily,lmost xcluded rom he amilial oundaries,a marginalarea, unprotected y outside institutions. nd as thePeruvianeconomic reality hanges, so too does the natureof herposition.

DOMESTIC SERVICE VERSUS VENDING:NEW OPTION OR LAST RESORTTheeconomic risis hatoccurredn Peru n1978 snowviewed s along, severerecession.8 he trend oward egmentationf the femalelabor force apparentbeforethe crisis see first ection) has beenexacerbated ythe risis.Theperiod 1972to 1981brought continueddecline n thenumber f manual obs availableto womenntheformallabor market, heresult n large measureofthecollapseofthetextile

industry-a female-dominatedector fmanufacturingFerrandodeVelasquez, 1984). For thefirst ime ince 1940,the actual number fwomenworkingnthe manual sectordecreased.Although henumber f obs forwomen ntheformal abor marketdecreased,verall,women's conomic articipationasgreatlyncreasedsince the crisis.The greatest ncrease has come in the sector"notspecified,"whichpointsto the ncorporation fmanywomen ntheinformalabormarketFerrandode Velasquez,1984).Reportsndicatethat t is particularly omen n thepoorest ectors fLima who areenteringhe nformalabormarket,whilewomenwith elatively igherincomes reenteringheformal ectors, articularlyn servicesSuarezetal., 1982).The lack ofopportunities orpoor women partfrom hose ntheunskilledend of the service sector or in the informal ector issubstantiatedna study fwomen ntheLima barriada shanty own),VillaSalvador.A random ampledemonstrateshat 7percentf hemwork utside hehome, hemajorityn thevendor ector. wo-thirdsfthembeganworking utside he homeduring heperiodofthecrisis.While66percent ad workednservices, rimarilyomestic ervice,ntheir arlyyears n Lima, upon formingamilies heybegan workingwithinhedomestic phere ftheir wn families. hemajorityfthosewhoreincorporatedhemselvesnto he abor market id so duringhecrisis ndas vendorsChueca, 1982).


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 373

Perhaps npartdue to the ack of employmentpportunitiesntheformalabormarketnLima, thehistoric rend fpeople migratingoLima has changed. or thefirst ime ince1940, smaller ercentagefPeru's populationmigrated,9nd therewas a decrease n theactualnumber f people migratingo Lima.For thosegirls nd youngwomenwho continue o migrate oLima,domestic ervice emains ne ofthefew vailableemploymentptions.For a varietyof reasons, the vendor sector is not an attractivealternative.irst, heymusthavetheir wnaccommodation, hich srare mong heseyoungwomen.The majority fgirls eeking omesticservantworkmigrate lone or withdistant amilymembersYoung,1986) who are anxious for themto findwork n homes. Theirownfamilies, hethernruralorurban areas, are unableto support hem.Second, n order o enter he vendor ector, he servantmusthave acertain mount fcapital,which s a deterrent.Independent tudiesprofiling he domestic-serviceector nd thevending ector ndicate hat, lthough hewomenwho work nbothsectors remigrantsrom herural,highland reasofPeru,their ge,educational evel, nd familial tatus redifferent.endorsnLimatendto be older, esseducatedwomenwith heresponsibilitiesfchildren(Smith, 1980).The attraction f thevendor ector o a motherwithchildren, ho cankeepthemnearherwhile he works nd canchooseher own hours Arizpe, 1975), is not paralleled n the case of thedomestic ervant.While youngwomen continue to look to domestic serviceforemployment,ewerobs are available. Increasing umbers f familiesare unable to hirethem. The recessionhas negativelyffectedheearning owerof themiddle ncome ector,which ccountedforthegrowthn demandfordomestics' ervicesuntilthecrisis Figueroa,1982; Suairez t al., 1982). A random sampleof the middle ncomehousing development Residencial San Felipe" in 1970 showed51percent fthefamilieswith t least one domestic ervantAnderson,1978). My random ample of the same area in 1981 showed only25percentwith ervants. his evidence s substantiated y a report hatcompares hetype f familiesnurbanareas n 1974,before hecrisis,and in 1978, during hecrisis. t found an approximate 0 percentdecreasein thenumberof familieswith domestic servants nd anincreasen thenumber f xtended amiliesChuecaandVargas,1982).The decreasendemand or he ervices fdomestics asprecipitateda drop n theirwages.A comparison f heir ealwages n1974with hereal value oftheirwages n 1984 demonstrateshattheirwageshave


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fallen ynearly alf.Whiledomesticervants' ages refalling,heyrenotfallingt thefast ateofthoseof minimum ageearners seeTable1). Despite tsunattractiveness,hedecreasendemand nd concomitantdecrease nwages sforcingomewomen o look to other mploymentalternatives. s fewer omestics' ervices redemanded, hosewomenseeking mploymentn thesectorwho do not havethecharacteristicssenorasdemand10must ook to other ncome-generatingources.Fewopportunitiesreavailableto them partfrom hevendor ector.Theabsorption fthesewomen nto the vendor ector, hen, s a result ftheir xpulsion rom hedomestic ervice ector.The decreasein demand fordomestic ervants s a resultof therecession as comeparticularlyrommiddlencome arners,whichhasmeant restructuringf domestic hores, nsome cases bytheuse ofextended amily embers,uch s aunts rgrandmothers.hegrowthfthe nformalabor markets inpartdue to thedecrease n demandfordomestic ervants, s thosewomenwho enter nto ervice o notmeetthe prescriptionsf the ever-shrinkingemand. However, n largemeasure, he nformal abor market s composedof womenenteringlaterin their ifecycle as a response to the recession n hopes ofsupportingheir wn families. he economichistory fthemajorityfthesewomenwas tobeginworking s domestic ervantsor number fyearsbefore aving amilies, ndto then nter hevendor ector incethecrisis.The changing ature f hepatron amilies s they estructureays ocomplete omestic esponsibilitiesas a parallelchanging deologicalcomponenthat cts o reaffirmhe raditionalonceptionf heprivatesphere. omestic ervants re ncreasinglyiewedwithin he ontext fthevery isible endor ector, emoved ntirelyrom heprivate ealmofthepatron amily.Thevendor ector as had greatmpact n the ultural onception fthedomestic ervant ector.Whilethere refewermigrants oming oLima, many f thosemigrants ho have alreadymade theirhomes nLima are a veryvisible and vocal force n the life of the capital.Throughoutima,people ine he treetsellingheirwares n theblackmarket. here redailynewspapernd radioreportshat ell fvendors'attemptsoprotectheirllegalbusiness rom olicerelocation.Sefioras ell f ncreasingumbersfmaids eaving he ervantectorto becomevendors. hey tate hatmaidsnow seek heir reedomnthestreet. abor officials nd economists eport hatthe nformalabormarket sthe auseof a decrease n the upply fmaids,despite highdemandfor heir ervices.


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Young!/ "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 375

TABLE 1Servants'WagesnSolesComparedotheMinimum ageDomesticServants MinimumWageNominal Real Nominal RealDate (base=1 979) (base 1979)4

1974' 1,001 6,030 3,000 18,77319812 13,230 4,739 32,243 12,17219843 78,998 3,877 175,000 8,982SOURCES:1. Figueroa 1 977).2. Censusdata (August1981).3. Censusdata (August1984).4. INE (1983).

Thoughmuchachasmaids)continue obe "an incomparablehemefor lively irstonversation" etween eifrorasAnderson, 978:56),thenature ftheir onversation aschanged.Whereasbefore thewomenlaughed t thegirls' umpkinwayswithout ear hat nybodywouldbeoffended" Anderson, 1978: 56), now conversation enters on aperceivedhangenthemaids. efioras elate hat t s no onger ossibleto find "good"maid. The claimthatmaids no longer ctlikefamily,lacking espect or hose orwhom heywork. t ssaid that hemaidwillinherentlytealfrom erpatron amily. efioras elate hatmaidsnowmakeexcessive emands nthem orhigherwages, ormeat very ay,for heuse ofthecolortelevision,nd so on.Once viewed as a status symbol,the domestic servant s nowincreasinglyepreciated y potentialpatronfamilies.As increasingnumbers ffamilies owithoutheir ervices,hey ecomedefined s agroup hat annotbebroughtnto hepaternalisticrmsof thepatronfamily.nstead,neverymaid s seen he eedofa vendor, ccordingothosewho relate hatmaids nherentlyant o work nthe treet obefree rom heir efioras.Sefioras'discussions enteringn thedeparture ymaids from hestrict inesofobedience nd respect o theirpatronfamilies erve oreaffirmhe diom fduty ndrespectwithinhefamily.naddition,hefocusonduty ndrespect easserts henotion f thefamilys a sphereremovedfromthe exigenciesof the public one. As the flexibleboundaries f hepatron amily lacethedomesticervantutside heirborders,hey re resecured.Whether he s includedwithin he armsof thepatronfamily n itslowest ung, rexcluded rom t s a vendor, ermarginalization erely


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takesona newform. hough rucial oboth hepatron amily'ss wellas to society'smaintenance, erpositionretainsher as a marginalmemberf the ocialtotality.As a result f the recession nd its negative mpact on domesticservants'wages,womenorganizinghesectorhavebegunto focusonpetitioninghegovernmentorminimum ages nd minimum orkinghours, s well as forrecognitionf theirunion. Laws governinghesectorof domestic ervants upporther solationbylegitimizingheseparation fthefamily rom hepublic phere. his s apparentn thelaws thatrelate o theworking onditions fminors s well as in therecent overnmentegislation orminimum ages andworking ours.Although law governingminorswho work nformalettingstates,for xample, hat hey annotworkmore han ix hours day,domesticservants, largepercentage fwhomareunderage, re exemptfromsuch overage. he egislation overningervants laces their abor naseparate ategory, rguing hatbecause theirwork s restrictedo thedomestic phere,tshouldbeexcludedfromawsgoverninghe phereofbusiness ndprofit. he only awgoverningength f theirworkingdaystates hat heymusthaveeighthoursofrestdaily."The effortsopetitionhegovernmentor uchrightss a minimumwage and minimumworkinghours have been metby thefollowinggovernmental esponse: "the relation of dependencebetweentheemployer nd thedomestic ervant s eminentlyne of trustwhichimplies sense ffamiliaritynd adhesion hat hould xistbetween hedependent orker nd thefamily"CamaradeDiputados,1980,1981).Bydefininger abor partfromaborfor rofit,nd by tating hat herelationship ith hose who benefit romher abor s one of trust, hegovernmentegitimateshepaternalisticdeology fdomestic ervice.Thedomestic ervants leftna marginal nd unprotectedosition.

CONCLUSIONThe dependent,paternalistic elationship he domestic servantdevelops n thepatronfamily as characteristicsffeudal economicforms s well as those of the modern capitalistworld. Collectiveinstitutions,oth he hurch ndthegovernment,nhance dependent

paternalism,ndseem o mpede he ntrancento hefamilialphere fsuchaspectsofmarket abor relations s wagecontracts rminimumworking ours. hese nstitutionsromote nideology f wo eparate,


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 377independent,nd secure ealms, hepublic ndprivate; hey ender heposition of the domestic ervant, he patronfamily's east powerfulmember,nsecure ndvulnerable.As thePeruvian ocioeconomic eality hanges, hedomestic ervantis increasinglylacedoutside hepatron amilynd s becoming artofan ever-growingrban underclass.While in the patron familyherposition is concealedby the familial deologyof dependence andpaternalism-an deology trengthenedythechurch ndgovernmentregulations.Whetherhe s within ts boundaries r outside hem,hersituation sone ofdependencendeconomic nsecurity.hecontradic-tion inherentn the idiom of the family, n idiom that promisesprotection nd familialsecurity, s apparent n the realityof thedomestic ervant'sife ycle.As a poor, ndian,migrant oman, hehasfew opportunitiesor securing er own economic ndependence ndstability.hould shehave a family, er ituation, xacerbated yPeru'srecession, ecomesmore difficult s her opportunities arrowevenmore.

Domestic ervants'rganizingffortsontinue ofocus na slow ndsteadyprocessofeducationand consciousness aising s a meansoffinding collective olution o their ituation,nd ofproviding upportto one another.These efforts ndicate that domestic servants reconfrontinghefundamental ature f their ituationna manner hatseeksto change heunderlyingauses oftheir xploitation; owever,implications fthisfor heir uture emain ncertain.

NOTES1. Such boundednesss very iteral n ts mplications. ensusofficialseported hatthe most difficult ata to obtain were from he verywealthy trata,whichhad theirelaborate ystemfgates, ntercoms,nd multiple omestic ervantsodeter ny ensusofficial.2. Scott 1984) uggests hat hedependence fwives n husbandsnthe bourgeois"family orm, herewomen re not xpected o work utside hehome, smoreprominentthan n the "popular"family orm.But Rubbo and Taussig 1983) argue that peasanthousehold uthoritarianism"s pronouncedn theruralColombiancontext.3. See AnnOakleyfor discussion f the "female'spreparation ordomesticity,"which cts "as a common enominatornthe ocialization f women" 1974: 113).4. See RutteGarcia 1973) forpersonal estimoniegf domestic ervants' ifficultiesduring heir irstewmonths.


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5. Whereasmen tend o migratewhen hey rebetween he agesof20 and 24,themajority fwomenmoving o theurbancenters re between heages of 15 and 19(Ferrando eVelasquez,1984).Contraryothe pinion f omeresearchers,hotheorizethatgirls'youngerge at migrations because theymigrates spouses ndarethereforeoften oungerhan heirmale ounterpartsAramburfi,981), heyoung emalemigrantsare single nd migrate ith istant amilymembersYoung,1986).6. Domestic ervants' agesvary reatly.n 1984 hey anged rom to150,000oles($42 permonth),with n average f78,000 oles $22 permonth; asedon dollar-to-solexchange ateofAugust 2, 1984).7. See,for xample, a Repz2blica,eptember , 1984, or roclamationsy eadingCatholicbishops o a gatheringfapproximately,500 omestic ervants egardingheirrole n their atron amilies.8. Until hemid-1970s eru hadrelativelytable nflation,etween and 11percent;growthn realper apita ncome veraged etween .5percent eryear nd3 percent eryear.The crisis aw nflationn 1979 umpto68 percent,rossnational roduct ell o-1.5percent,ndreal ncomen1980wasonly lightlybovethe1971 evel see Figueroa, 982;WorldBankEconomicReport,1984).9. In 1972,24 percent3,700,000people)ofthe populationmigrated;n 1981, 2.2percent3,767,000 eople)migrated.ima absorbed 9 percentf hemigrantsn 1969,56percent n 1972 (1,842,000people), and only45 percent n 1981 (1,695,150people;Arumburut,984: 1).10. Sefioras'demandsare veryexplicit.A labor officeof the statethatplacesdomesticervantstates,The available nformationermitss to affirmhat hewishes fthe mployersre very efinedwith espectothe haracteristicsf he abor n thehomethat hey reseeking; .e.,they refer oung r younger,dult, inglewomenwith omedegree f education primarychoolcompleted), ne to threeyearsofexperience, otattendingchool,whodonothavefamilial esponsibilitiesyoung hildren),ndwho anbe a live-inervantn thehome oftheemployer"DGE, 1981).11. See Velazco Caro (1982) for a more completediscussionof the contrast nlegislation overninghe ector fdomestic ervicewith hatgoverning inors.

REFERENCESAnderson, eanine1978 "The middle lasswoman nthe amilynd the ommunity:ima,Peru."Ph.D.dissertation,ornellUniversity.Aramburd, arlosEduardo1981 Migraci6nnternanel Peru.Lima:AMIDEP.1984 "Migraciones transformaci6nocio-econ6mican el Perul."AMIDEP.Arizpe, ourdes1975 Indigenes n la ciudad de Mexico: el caso de las "Mari'as."Mexico City:

Sep/ etentas.Bourque,SusanC. andKayWarren1981 Women f theAndes.AnnArbor:UniversityfMichigan.


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Young / "LIKE A DAUGHTER" 379Caimara e Diputados1980 1981Dictamen e a Comisionde Trabajo y ServicioCivil, n osproyectoseleyno. 117 y 787; en virtud el que proposen ue se reconoscan ara las trabajadoresdel hogar, os obreros e la actividad rivada.Reg.No. 1017-IP,Proy 117 y 787.CERA (Centrode EstudiosRuralesAndinos)1982 Basta: testimonios.usco: "Bartolomede las Casas" ySindicatode Trabaja-doras del Hogardel CuscoChueca,Marcela1982 "Mujer,familiaytrabajo en Villa Salvador." Paper presented t the eminar

"Ana'lisis promoci6n e aparticipacione amujer n a actividadconomica," ima.Chueca,MarcelaandVilma Vargas1982 "Estrategias e sobrevivencia e la mujer n la actual crisisde la economiaperuana." Paper presentedt theCongresode investigacioncerca de la mujer n laregion ndina.AsociacionPerut-Mujer,niversidad atolica delPeru,AMIDEP.DGE (DireccionGeneralde Empleo, Ministerio e Trabajo yPromocion ocial)1981 Situaci6n cupacionaldel Peru. nforme 980. Lima (October).Estudio del Banco Mundial1981 Peru: principalescuestionesy recomendacionesn materia de desarrollo.(April27).Ferrandode Valasquez,Delicia1984 Participacionconomicade amujeren l Peru'analisiscensal1940-1981.NE,USAID.Figueroa,Adolfo1982 "El problema istributivondiferentesontextosocio-politicos economicos:Per(u, 950-1980." ima: CISEPA, Pontificia niversidad atolicadel Peru'.Figueroa Galup, Blanca1977 "La domestica n Lima metropolitana." ima:AMIDEP.INE (Instituto acional de Estadistica)1983 Perti: ompendio stadistico, 982.Lima (July).Oakley,Ann1974 The Sociology fHousework.Bath,England:PitmanPress.Rapp, Rayna1978 "Family nd class ncontemporarymerica: otes oward nunderstandingfideology." cience nd Society 2 (3): 278-300.Rubbo,AnnaandMichael Taussig1982 "Up off heirknees, ervanthood n southwest olombia." Latin AmericanPerspectives0 Fall): 5-23.RutteGarc'ia,Alberto1973 Simplementexplotadas.Lima: DESCO.Sacks,Karen1975 "Engels evisited: omen,he rganizationfproductionndprivate roperty,"in R. R. Reiter ed.), Toward an Anthropology f Women.New York: MonthlyReviewPress.Scott,Alison MacEwen1984 "Economicdevelopmentnd urbanwomen'swork: he ase ofLima, Peru," nRichardAnker nd CatherineHein eds.)Sex DiscnrninationndSex SegregationnUrbanLabourMarkets n the ThirdWorld.LO.


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380 LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVESSmith,MargoLane1980 "Women's areers n Lima, Peru: domestic ervice nd street ending." aperpresented o theAnnual Meeting f the AmericanAnthropological ssociation.Suarez, Flor,VilmaVargas, nd Joel Jurado1982 "Cambio en la economia peruanay evoluci6nde la situaci6n e empleode lamujer." aper presentedt the eminar Analisisypromoci6n e aparticipacione amujer n la actividad con6mica,"Lima.Velazco Caro, Elena1982 "La problematica el menor rabajadordomestico n el Cuzco." Tesis para

optar l grado de asistenta ocial, Universidad an Marcos, Lima.WorldBank Report1984 Peru: Country conomicMemorandum 984.Young,Grace Esther1986 "Incorporating n analysis of gender o the study f migration:hecase ofPeruvianmigration atterns."MigrationNews2 (April-June).

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