Conjugalidade em mulheres da camada popular

Abstract

This study aims at identifying the context in which the married life of popular layer women in Salvador, occurs, and to amplify comprehension of conjugality. Seven local women have been interviewed by using a qualitative studying approach. In order to do that, a semi-structured questionary that explores describing and identifying situations related to conjugality has been used. The method used for this analysis was the derivation of the interview contents, aiming at the creation of categories. The results were grouped in two main axis, which were subdivided in three categories: First axis: tensions context, with the categories: aggressiveness; maternity; ambivalence in the confrontation; and the second axis: ways of resolution, consisting of: the presence of the man; supporting web; ways of facing the conjugal situation; re-marriage. The interviewees reported romantic life experiences that led them choose their partners, struggling to keep their relationships, although based in week ties, leading to a traditional and successive marital idea. Pregnancy has shown to be an important generating source of marital problems, encouraged by the aggressiveness and violence between couples over jealousy, drug abuse and infidelity. Suffering from contradictory feelings and humiliations, they look for support among their family members, institutions, police departments and churches. Maternity shows to be the reason of changes in married life. However, it is not verbalized as the source of tensions in married life, and it is faced as part of conjugality. The frequent re-marriage or exchanges of partners have happened for of the need of economical supporting, for the education of their kids and for moral and physical protection. Therefore, these women seem immersed in a cultural context where traditional values coexist with modern ones generating models of conjugality to be better known.