Virginity in Mexico: The role of competing discourses of sexuality in personal experience

Abstract

Traditional Catholic prescriptions on sexuality are being transformed by the processes of secularisation and modernity taking place in Mexico, especiallyin urban areas, and affecting personal sexual experiences. This paper discusses the complexity of the relationship between competing discourses of sexuality in present Mexican culture and argues that Mexican sexual cultures are hybrid in nature. Drawing from group discussions and individual dialogues with 23 men and women aged 15–30, from both rural and urban communities in three parts of the country, this paper illustrates young people's dilemmas in giving meaning to their experience of sexual desire and activity in the face ofreligious morality, scientific discourses and gender-related cultural norms. This situation has offered women an opportunity to develop a sense of entitlement and young men to question dominant masculine images, to make autonomous decisions about their bodies and their sexuality, and to form more equal and meaningful relationships. However, improving the material conditions oflife, particularly in rural areas, is still needed to reduce constraints on the ability of young people to make choices when they act upon their sexual desires and feelings.