Gender and timing of guilt within argentinean migration process

Between 1999 and 2003 Argentineans lived an economic, social and political crisis that lead some of them to migrate, mainly to the United States and to Spain. There are few studies on Argentinean migration and even less those taking into account emotion and gender during the migration process. The aim of this work was to understand the relations between genders, guilt and the aspiration to act within the migration process. In order to consider this, I undertake an analysis of the expression of guilt within the narrative of Argentinean migrants in Miami (United States) and Barcelona (Spain). In-depth interviews and participant observations were conducted in both cities among Argentinean migrants. Findings show that expressing guilt is a way to perform gender through feelings and the aspiration to act. Indeed, only women in Miami experience guilt. Guilt in front of their impossibility to fulfil their gender role. Guilt in front of the geographical distance with the family. In Barcelona, however, neither women nor men, expressed guilt. This difference cannot be explained by the “system of regulation of the sensations”, specific to each context of destination, neither by the difference between Argentinean middle class category in Miami or Barcelona. Indeed, only the consideration of the time elapsed between migrant’s departure from Argentina and the two fieldworks can explain the fact that part of the women in Barcelona express guilt as a past feeling. In conclusion, findings show that feeling and expressing guilt allow migrants to temporarily stay attached to their homeland in a gendered way.