The simile of Pedranos
Pedranos are compared to peasants. The work of early ethnographers was to study the livelihoods and cultures of the peasant communities. The author writes, “Early ethnographers studying peasants, like Pedranos, depicted women as passive victims. What they saw appeared congruent with Western conceptions of family, economics, and politics, i.e., men controlled public offices and women did low status child care and housework.”
The simile of Chenalhó
Chenalhó is a community with unique cultural conceptions and gender relations compared to others. The author writes, “For example, a mindset based on rationality and prediction does help one understand life in communities, like Chenalhó, where people do not draw strong lines between visible and invisible realms of experience.”
The simile of water
Chicha is compared to water by the author. For instance, the author writes, “A chichería cannot be painted except with colors from hell. In it reign all types of abomination, blasphemy, Jura-mentos (evil pacts or vows), and inquities, robberies, lewdness, fights, murders, all this originates from selling chica, and with it one drinks like is water.”
