Lugones defends Anzaldua's state of dualism and not multiple personalities. It is an important aspect for those living in states where cultures conflict and those at the borders. They are able to survive the multiple cultures by submitting into some, restating others and trying as much as possible to avoid others. As a person who lives at the border, Anzaldua's has to embrace pluralism, live to fit in each culture that she interacts with and seek solace in primary identity as a Mexican. I would agree with this kind of survival as it enables her to live within the environment without many struggles she goes about her businesses. The struggle to fit into several cultures is difficult as compared to choosing one personality to go by. It would have been easier if, say, she had chosen to resist the states imposed on her by the western culture. However, she has to learn how to fit in different situations. As a dynamic Mexican, pluralism is better as it identifies her with the very group that knows her childhood as well as the others. It also helps her identify with minorities as well as other groups in her day to day operation. She has to overcome the common, beating the unexpected to become a champion for the very meek in society. This essay focuses on an objection for Lugones perception that Anzaldua's dualism approach is the best for persons, especially those who live at borders and interact with others on a frequent basis.
Multiples-selves
In choosing dual states of a self, Lugones contradict the primary aim of a person, the ultimate desire of a self. As Lugones states, Anzaldua is caught in between two cultures, the Mexicans, and the Anglo. As a result, she has to put up with the known oppression of the Mexicans, then that of the Anglos and finally, and also fit in between the two (Lugones, 1992). The depiction as a plural self also makes one see the need for a better future, at times embrace it yet they still have to conform to other states (Cronin, 1997). In a nutshell, subscribing to the multiple selves proves autonomy and clear conscious of what they should do when faced with situations requiring tough decisions. Anzaldua is a Mexican and though she traverses country borders, the original identity does not change. Humans strive to have an identity when they come of age. The struggle for self-identity becomes null when all is thrown because of indecisiveness. Man and family are supposed to have an identity that distinguishes them from the rest of the rest of the community. As a mestiza, there is no changing one under any circumstances, and Lugones dualism is not accurate. Lugones (1992) also further states that Anzaldua sees the need to take personal responsibility and rise above oppression (Lugones, 1992). Also, Anzaldua makes a choice, the choice of becoming a lesbian and that sets her apart from the rest in her community. Her struggles for survival amongst the rowdy and intolerant groups are because she is a lesbian and a woman.
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The response she takes to face the oppression leveled against her comes from several stances. Although she bears a much big burden having to fend off religious, Mexican and Anglo – bred intolerance, it would be better if she approaches the issues with any personality, provided it is appropriate for the situation (Cronin, 1997). At times she keeps quiet whereas, in some moments, she expresses the desire to go up in arms and resist the oppressive nature of her environment. Anzaldua is fighting her battles from lesbian's point of view; her choice meets resistance from the people who approach issues with a narrow mind. The church and the people generally do not see a bigger picture even though they live in a metropolitan kind of setup (Lugones, p. 1992). The diversity amongst the people should have been used to promote love, peace, and tolerance. Instead, those who do not conform to the conservatism way of life are considered lost, they are rebuked, abused and taken trough all sorts of condemnation. In the end, she has to act, and in doing so, she chooses a solitary action, traversing the different borders to fit where she is accepted (Lugones, 1992). The borders are not permanent and there can be a shift, she has to be ready to shift too so that she not is left out in the odds, not knowing what to do. It is good to be proactive, always ahead of the rest, be it among the Mexican natives or the Anglos. Also, she has to adapt to a life where she understand the very many cultures of the people who conduct their businesses at the border
From her book, Borderlands, Anzaldua's ordeals come as a result of her choice as a lesbian rather than the predominant straight (Seif, 1997). Naturally, it is acceptable for the people to make choices that fit their agendas. Anzaldua has a preformed prejudice that it is the male domination that causes the many problems that she and other women experience (Seif, 1997). Anzaldua is abused severally, but the abuses are two levels in most cases. She is abused as a woman by the Mexicans and the Anglos. The abuse is caused by men, the Mexican and Anglo men. There is no need to blame the community for the abuses leveled against women. The blame should go to the men, those who always find a way to have a jab at women, demean them and leave them for to be discriminated against. This makes Anzaldua take multiple faces is order to accommodate, refuse, or rebel the oppression. She does that either as a female, the lower figure simply pushed about by men and as a lesbian. It is, therefore, a multi-faceted battle and not bi-faceted as expressed by Lugones. All the strategies that she developed; quietness and elegance, the holding onto fury and other mechanisms methods of protection should have been put up at multiple levels (Seif, 1997).
A person should always stick to the choices that they make. Anzaldua made the choice of lesbianism and stuck to it (Betancor, 2012). It would have been better if she approached the different people as different as possible. She is interested in fellow women and she ought to stand her ground, fight for the rights of the same-sex minorities. Although she is a woman and faces other challenges as one, the same-sex case carries more wait for her. It is one that cuts across the various levels of prejudice. As a Mexican woman, little was expected of her in the contemporary world, and her choice goes beyond the perceived suppression (Keating, 2014). Furthermore, the religious sector is also another section that expects a different Mexican woman, one who abides by the church teachings and cannot indulge in behaviors categorized as evil. Finally, her own people, the culture in which she was born is also another avenue that she needed to prove her prowess and might. The context within which she writes is traditional and mythical. Traditional, not many people would have had the guts to come out as lesbians, and if there was, they would be met with violence. Anzaldua needs to prove that she has transcended the traditional points of view and can go a long way into freeing many other women who still live under men and are handled like property.
Anzaldua provides several "borders" that the women and the people who live "between" the Mexican and the Pro-Anglo cultures (Keating, 2014). The borders are many and the people who live among them have to adapt to a different style of life from the rest of the communities on either side. They have to learn to interact, mingle and share with both groups and themselves. A situation where one is of female gender and lesbian calls more than a double faceted figure to cut across the board. There are many challenges to overcome as a lesbian and then to live fighting for a place in the male-dominated world. Once the two are well secured, the same person, a lesbian, has to do more than a common man to fit into the world of many people from different corners if the world (Keating, 2014). The contemporary world within which Anzaldua lives is challenging and people, especially the minorities, have to take a pseudo-faceted life in order to survive. They smile and cry a second later, accept one thing and deny it a few minutes from the first spot, etc. Unless they take to lead such a life, they are bound to remain low, oppressed, discriminated against and used for gains by the men. Women are not simple creatures and their complexities can be seen better in the multi-faces when approached by different challenges. As Lugones (1992) says, women risk the chance of being overly exploited and that is the one challenge that should be overcome in due time. The problem would grow bigger, may be double, if not managed before it gets out of hand and affects the next potential victims.
Another reason as to why the woman in Anzaldua's borderlands needs to take a multifaceted choice it the financial, social, and political issues that run the country (Capetillo-Ponce, p. 2006). In such an economy the people who can own property are men. The bad thing for all women id that the male in Anzaldua's communities perceives women as their property.so they feel that they own them. The woman, on the other hand, strives to make ends meet and become a person of value in the society. They have to pass through the traps laid by men and reach better goals in life. She strives to increase her value and command respect from men of all types. That can only be achieved by taking onto the multi-faces and approaching them differently, one at a time. In so doing, the woman cannot take a narrow double face as Lugones proposes. She needs something better than that, more mechanisms to join important groups, free their colleagues from suffering, misery, and torture and earn a living in the same world that the man commands (Cruz, 2013). Also, the woman who takes a double hyphenated kind of life is supposed to be those who have advanced age and remain with a few more years to engage the lively and youthful populations that are always ahead of their times.
From Anzaldua's experiences and the world she lives in, it is evident that the competition for few resources is very high and challenging (Mbaye, 2015). A woman, who approaches such competition with traditional meekness and unfounded humility, playing second fiddle to men, cannot grow beyond what they are. It requires a person who can make their decisions, is proactive can take on the male in the corporate world, imposing themselves at the top level engagement. Resources are the main source of conflict in the world today and whoever gets control of the resources is the king of the place. Those who miss on the resources have to either buy or go find something else from other places. If the woman in question has no adequate education and capabilities, theirs would be to benefit from what the men have chosen as the best for themselves (Capetillo-Ponce, p. 2006). Lugones suggestion of a double hyphenated self would be inadequate to maneuver around the world in which almost everything requires a new face. One has to keep changing their personalities to suit their situation and revert immediately after.
The hybridity of the borders dwellers and the infiltration of people from different parts of the world is more than a necessity for people to embrace (Betancor, 2012). For example, Anzaldua uses two languages in her book, Spanish, and English, and people use such dualism to state that she ought to have adopted a double-edged personality. However, there are more to how she writes than the languages used. She also delivers her message in different styles such as the use of prose and poems. The fact that she uses different styles and languages in delivering her message also shows how she can assume different roles at any time (Capetillo-Ponce, p. 2006). She is not restricted to what is traditionally accepted and her determination breeds non-conformity to her advantage. The multi-styled and multilingual writing add another perspective to the whole person, giving her more and colorful strides. It is with aggressive that the women are able to surpass tradition, reach their goals, command respect and employ other people. That way, they can be listened to by the very men who would not stop to hear them out.
Anzaldua should embrace multiple personalities to reach her goals. She has to fit in different cultures (the native and contemporary), overcome religious condemnation and succeed in a world dominated by men. The double-hyphenated personality cannot help her as she has to keep changing to suit the situation. In cases she meets conflicting sides at the same time, she would have to satisfy all of them, and that can be achieved better with the multiple rather than double personalities. Such a situation like hers requires people who are proactive and a quick decision maker, a person who is flexible enough to know and solve the needs of people in the hours of need. Anzaldua has to take the multiple personalities in her quest to get what she wants, identify herself with specific groups and engage people from all the sides. It can be said that she has to take the identities of each group and interact with them as their own. In a world where the man dominates, it is not easy for a woman to choose one personality or double personalities and relax. It is a changing world in which she has to keep with the pace of change, always scheming and projecting the future so that she stays safe and planned. Also, Anzaldua uses different styles and languages when writing her book, something that probably depicts her pluralism and a being beyond double hyphenated personality. The changing shows that she can cope with different demands, commands, situations and needs. In as much as dualism would be good, multiple personalities help Anzaldua in her daily life. She speaks English and Mexican, fitting very well among the English in the United States and the Latinos in Mexico. Hers is also a case of identifying with minorities such as women and lesbians, all this in an unwelcome environment with little support and contempt.
References
Betancor, M. H. (2012). Anzaldúa and" the new mestiza: A Chicana dives into collective identity. Language Value 4 . (2), 38-55.
Capetillo-Ponce, J. (2006). Exploring Gloria Anzaldúa's Methodology in Borderlands/La Frontera-The New Mestiza. Human Architecture 4 . 87.
Cronin, M.E. (1997). Richard Paul, Gloria Anzaluda, and Mestiza Consciousness: Shifting the Borders of Critical Thinking.
Cruz, C (2013). Notes on Crossing Disciplinary Borderlands: Anzaldúan Pedagogies and a Defense of Experiential Knowledges Keynote Address El Mundo Zurdo Conference Society for the Study of Gloria Anzaldúa.
Keating, A. (2014). Mesoamerican Mythmaking as Queer (Ed) Visionary Hermeneutics. The Cambridge History of Gay and Lesbian
Lugones, M. (1992). On Borderlands/La Frontera: An Interpretive Essay. Indiana University Press. Hypatia , Vol. 7, No. 4, Lesbian Philosophy pp. 31-37
Mbaye, J. F. (2015). Musical Borderlands: A Cultural Perspective of Regional Integration in Africa. City, Culture and Society 6 (2), 19-26.
Seif, H. H. (1997). A Weave of Sexuality, Ethnicity and Religion: Jewish Women of the San Francisco Bay Area Embracing Complexity.
