Citation

Wang H. Int. Migr. Rev. 2007; 41(3): 706-727.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, Center for Migration Studies, New York, Inc., Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1747-7379.2007.00091.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This paper explores how contradictory social structures influence power relations between “Vietnamese brides” and their Taiwanese family members. By analyzing two aspects of interaction between “Vietnamese brides” and their husbands’ families, i.e., how the families require them to integrate into Taiwanese society and what strategies they employ to escape from these constraints, we argue that contradictory social relations together with commodified marriage and liminality help them to develop strategies of escape into the “hidden space.” The development of these strategies indicates one thing: hegemony is never fully achieved – it is always negotiated and contested.