#BoTB: Por Mujeres Como Tú (aka The Mexican Chauvinist Anthem)

Welcome to another Battle of The Bands! Get your sombreros and your bottle of tequila, because it doesn't get any more Mexican than this.

Us Mexicans, we take the sombrero very seriously.

When I say serenade, what's the image that comes first into your head?

a) Moonlit night, starry-eyed Juliet on her balcony, starry-eyed Romeo below singing sweet songs of everlasting love with a soulful guitar?

b) A broken-hearted drunk with his staggering-drunk buddies shouting up abuse at an empty balcony?

A, right? Of course. That's the image perpetuated by Tom & Jerry and black & white movies of the 1940's. And, in truth, it can be like that.


But, more often than not, at least in Mexico, it's B. Though, admittedly, the abuse comes (thinly veiled) in the form of a song. A ranchera song, ideally. (Which is the correct name for what the rest of the world calls mariachi music.)

In Mexico's macho culture, men aren't supposed to show emotion (other than anger... anger isn't just acceptable; it's respected). Unless they're drunk. Which is why, when heartbreak strikes, the dude will go out and get bombed in order to have an excuse to bawl his eyes out. And to go wail his heartbroken-ness up to a silent window. Which explains the prevalent popularity of ranchera music.

"... We're set. Call her."

Ranchera literally means, as you might've guessed, from a ranch. It is unsophisticated music, both musically and lyrically, although several have pretty powerful poetic lines. But they use simple language and popular (as opposed to classically poetic/romantic) syntax. And they basically boil down to this:

You broke my heart, you were unfaithful (or somehow betrayed me and my righteous love... the point is, it's your fault), but... I WILL SURVIVE. (But I'll keep suffering. You just won't see it. Ever. I won't give you the satisfaction. Pass me another Kleenex. And the tequila.)

Today's song, Por Mujeres Como Tú (1998, written by Fato for singer Pepe Aguilar), is a prime example of this macho, entirely chauvinistic pathos (translation in italics):

Sing us a song about stoic forbearance in heartbreak, Pepe.
Photo credit: The Grammy Museum

Me estoy acobardando y lo ha notado,

I'm becoming a coward and she has noticed,

y eso no es muy bueno para mí,

and that doesn't bode well for me,

si quiero retenerla entre mis brazos

if I want to keep her in my arms

será mejor que no me vea sufrir.

it's best that she doesn't see me suffer.

Estoy estacionado en los fracasos,

I'm parked in my failures,

y hoy voy a remediar la situación.

and today I'm going to resolve the situation.

Será que siempre he dado demasiado

Maybe I've always given too much

y en el exceso siempre salgo dañado.

and in the excess I always get hurt.

Por mujeres como tú, amor

It's because of women like you, love

hay hombres como yo,

that men like me exist,

que se pueden morir por dignidad

who will die for dignity

mordiendo el corazón.

biting their hearts.

Por mujeres como tú, amor

It's because of women like you, love

hay hombres como yo,

that men like me exist,

que se pueden perder en el alcohol

who can lose themselves in alcohol

por una decepción.

over a broken heart.

So... In order to keep her, he will hide his suffering. He will "remedy the situation"... How? By "biting his heart"? And, somehow, through all this the sense remains that it's her fault. "Because of women like you"... But like what, exactly? What has she done? Nothing!

(Chauvinist pigs.)

You know what the worst part is, though? That women in Mexico (yes, myself included, before I soaked up some healthy European level-headedness) see these songs as tributes to their feminine wiles. So the whole thing is a vicious circle, feeding on itself.

(Chauvinist pigs, I say. Both men and women.)

**End of Rant**


Contender #1: Pepe Aguilar (the traditional ranchera)

If the video above doesn't work, maybe this one will. (Thanks, Lee! You're a hero for noticing, and finding a solution!)

Contender(s) #2: Poder Del Norte (the Norteño or banda version, typical of the northern states)

So. What do you think? Do either of these match your idea of heartbreak music? What sort of picture do these versions paint for you? Which one feels closest to the image of a guy sitting at a cantina methodically downing a bottle of tequila? Can you, with your fresh perspective, can make sense of what the woman in the song has done to drive this man to "bite his heart"? And, finally, your vote: you're at a small village in Mexico with only two bars, and you're dying for a cold beer. At one place they're playing the Pepe Aguilar version, at the other the Norteño one (both on repeat, no chance of escape). All else being equal (such as the price of beer and general company), which bar would you go into?

(As a side note, I used four lines of this song in THE MIRACLE OF SMALL THINGS—and, as publication date grew closer, the publisher asked me to provide copyright info. You wouldn't believe the hassle it was to get it, and to figure out whether we could use it or not. If you're interested in the ins and outs of the legal ramifications of quoting a freaking song in a book, or if you're just interested in reading about my consistently clueless decisions, here's a post on that.)

Had fun listening? Hop over and visit these other Battle of The Bands participants; excellent face-offs happening there. And a huge thanks to Stephen and FAE for keeping the Battles going!

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Thanks for the visit, and happy Sunday!