Pamela's Telenovelas

Hi everyone! Honestly, I didn't know what to write at first because telenovelas are a strange subject in my house. From my dad's side, I have an aunt that works for Televisa and because of that there is always some novela either mentioned or on the TV at her house. I grew up always interested about her days at work and what it's like to be in the center of the action. She is actually the one who introduced me to the telenovela I am watching El Privilegio de Amar and so far I really like it, but more on that later. On my mom's side we have no real connections to telenovelas. My mom always said like she didn't really pay attention to them but I remember really well coming home from school and seeing  Cuidado Con el Angel playing on the TV, which is where I fell in love with William Levy.

When Dr. Acosta-Alzuru talked about him today I almost fell out of my seat, no joke

 My family moved to the US when I was six years old and so the telenovelas I remember are the ones that played back home on Disney Mexico. One of the first was Complices Al Rescate, and that's probably the first album I learned all the way through. I think I was too young to see it air on TV.  The next big telenovela in my life and by far the most impactful was Rebelde.

I got this album the day it came out and I carried it from Mexico to the US. The first thing I ever bought with my allowance? A pair of black boots like the ones the characters wore.

 I was maybe about four years old when it became the thing to watch. Everyone at school was talking about it and we all sang the songs on the playground. But I actually have never seen the telenovela. My parents didn't think it was appropriate for a four/six year old to watch so I own all their albums but I never actually watched the show. I know some of you are gasping right now so I will let you know that I have recently started watching it on Netflix. It's been a struggle though because I am very impatient and I know how it ends. From there, I never really watched another (kids) telenovela until my aunt introduced me to a remake called Atrévete a Soñar. It's also been important to my childhood. Other than that, I've never really watched a "grown up" telenovela. 

El Privilegio de Amar is really good so far and I'm recognizing patterns we've talked about in class already. It follows the story of Luciana, who started as a maid but then was fired when she got pregnant with the daughter of the son of the family she worked for. After having to give up her daughter, she vows to become a powerful and independent woman. So far, the novela is focusing on her life as an adult, specifically when her past comes back to haunt her. It's very much a Cinderella story with a lot of potential to explore not only class structure/elitism but also racism, beauty standards and sexism in Hispanic culture. I am truly very excited to see how the story unfolds. So that's my very long summary and I'll keep everyone updated on what happens to Luciana!