The hyphenated existence is always looking for a place – usually settling for the margin, the borders of existence. Hyphens are difficult to define because they lay within two spaces, too much of one side to belong to the other. They are neither Cuban – for they have either been exiled out of their own country, forced to learn new languages and customs, or they have never been to the island but long to know it – nor are they American – because they are always viewed as the outsider, never truly fitting in. This begs the question – where can the Cuban-American find itself in literature? What lineage can it look to, to fulfill the desire of belonging, even if it never fully can?
Severo Sarduy, in looking for an ancestry for Cuban existence
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Looking at two novels by Ana Menéndez – In Cuba I was a German Shepherd (CGS) and Adios, Happy Homeland! (AHH) – I am searching for baroque characteristics that can explain new ways of thinking about how the Cuban-American exists in the context of the United States. I specifically look at themes that are the crux of baroque aesthetics: the Other, monstrosity, and parody. These themes can be looked at separately but it is important to mention that they are mutually constitutive as well – one cannot exist without the other. Menéndez, although her style is unlike Sarduy’s and Guillen’s, she uses different techniques to achieve the same results that these two men …show more content…
Cuban scholars like José Lezama Lima, Alejo Carpentier, and Severo Sarduy are vital theorists that define what the baroque has to offer as the ancestry of their writing. These theorists were writing at the time known as ‘El Boom latinoamericano’ – a resurgence of Latin American writing and writers. Suzanne Jill Levine writes, in the article “Jorge Luis Borges and Severo Sarduy: Two Writers of the Neo-Baroque” that “text as ‘tejido,’ as texture, of a text as an infinite weaving of texts appears” is an important aspect of the baroque aesthetic that Sarduy embraces during this time (30). This corresponds with what Salgado describes “the baroque function as a trope or adjective for the region’s complex ethnic and artistic mestizaje (‘racial mixture’)” (316). The mixture of race parallels the weaving of different stories or text within one text – the constant uncovering of new understandings within a text. In this movement the neo-baroque becomes explicitly about hybridity and postcolonial
Whether it 's for the music, people or food, Cuba is a popular and interesting place to visit. Cuba is located between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. At 42,426 square miles, Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean and the 105th largest country in the world. Cuba has a population of 11.1 million. Out of that 11.1 million, Havana is home to 2.1 million (Nation Facts). The official language of Cuba is Spanish, but English and French are spoken throughout the country. The most practiced religion of Cuba is Roman Catholicism, but a large number of people follow the Afro-Cuban and Protestant religions. The president of Cuba is currently Raúl Castro, which is Fidel Castro 's brother. The currency of Cuba is the Cuban peso (Cuba).
In the eighteenth Century, Colonial European and Mexican artists were fascinated with the emergence of racial blending within the Spaniard bloodline. Works of art began displaying pieces that portrayed three major groups that inhabited the colony— Indians, Spaniards, Africans and other ethnicities. This new genre of painting was known as Casta painting and portrayed colonial representations of racial intermarriage and their offspring. Traditionally Casta paintings were a pictorial genre that was often commissioned by Spaniards as souvenirs upon their arrival from New Spain (Mexico). And yet, why would such works have so much fascination despite its suggestive theme? It is clear that Casta paintings display interracial groups and couples, but they seem to have a deeper function when it comes to analyzing these works. These paintings demonstrate that casta paintings were created to display racial hierarchies within the era. They depict the domestic life of interracial marriages and systematically categorized through a complete series of individual paintings. It is clear that the fascination of these works reflected the categorizing of new bloodline that have been emerging and displays these characters in a manner that demonstrates the social stereotypes of these people by linking them with their domestic activities and the items that surround them as well. Despite the numerous racial stereotypes that are illustrated in these works, casta paintings construct racial identities through visual representations.
Immigrants come to America, the revered City upon a Hill, with wide eyes and high hopes, eager to have their every dream and wild reverie fulfilled. Rarely, if ever, is this actually the case. A select few do achieve the stereotypical ‘rags to riches’ transformation – thus perpetuating the myth. The Garcia family from Julia Alvarez’s book How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, fall prey to this fairytale. They start off the tale well enough: the girls are treated like royalty, princesses of their Island home, but remained locked in their tower, also known as the walls of their family compound. The family is forced to flee their Dominican Republic paradise – which they affectionately refer to as simply, the Island – trading it instead for the cold, mean streets of American suburbs. After a brief acclimation period, during which the girls realize how much freedom is now available to them, they enthusiastically try to shed their Island roots and become true “American girls.” They throw themselves into the American lifestyle, but there is one slight snag in their plan: they, as a group, are unable to forget their Island heritage and upbringing, despite how hard they try to do so. The story of the Garcia girls is not a fairytale – not of the Disney variety anyway; it is the story of immigrants who do not make the miraculous transition from rags to riches, but from stifling social conventions to unabridged freedom too quickly, leaving them with nothing but confusion and unresolved questions of identity.
Torres used specific words to convey the emotions of how the boys felt concerning their heritage; the boys felt as if they were outside of the loop. Therefore, they did not know what they belonged to or where they fit in. Their physical traits did not match up with the culture that they were trying to identify with –the Hispanic heritage. Yet, they wanted to find a way to belong. Furthermore, the theme also contributed to the identity aspect of the characters. Through their diction, readers, like myself, were able to draw important subject matters. In addition to word choice and themes, Torres applied various amounts of literary devices to drive his messages home, consequently enabling readers to understand the point of the passage, without giving up more information than needed. Close reading this particular passage gave me a better appreciation for what authors write, how they interpret their emotions, and how they execute their
Mariachi has become the face of Mexican culture, and truly represents the music of Gonzales’ people. It is played in almost every occasion including funerals, weddings, quinceneras, parties, and marches. Gonzales explains this by saying, “Our art, our literature, our music”; He elaborates by naming mariachi under these categories. The author recognizes the significance of this music in his background. In one article, Collins states that “the only thing more Mexican than tequila is the mariachi” (Collins 1998). These words capture how immersed mariachi is in the author’s mores, therefore giving him purpose in mentioning it. Not only does mariachi define Mexican culture, it defines the beauty and soul of tradition.
Growing up in a Mexican-American family can be very fun and crazy. Having two different perspectives on two different cultures almost daily really shapes you to become a certain way as you grow up, which is what happened to me. Ever since I was about three months old I have been taking trips to my parents home town for a month time each time we have gone. Practically growing up in both Mexico and the United States for six years has really helped me understand my cultural background and the different parts of my whole culture, such as the food, heritage, language and culture.
As Ernest Hemingway significantly expresses his affection for baseball in the book Old Man and the Sea, Cuban-culture similarly displays the strong feelings towards the sport as well. Baseball first played an important role in the late nineteenth century and continues to show the same impact today. It created a substantial amount of influence on the culture and also played an important role in the political view-point. In order for one to completely acknowledge the impact baseball had on the twentieth century, they must first assess the history of Cuban baseball. Next, one must learn how baseball played an acknowledgeable role in the political system. Lastly, they must interpret how significantly the sport changed the culture of Cuba.
Authors from Mexican decent are often know for their Chicano literature. It can be dated back to the 16th century written by Spanish explorer Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca. Although, most Mexican American Literature is dated after 1848. During the Mexican-American war, when they annexed large parts of land that used to be Mexico. There are many trends to Chicano literature, most common theme of discrimination, finding identity, dealing with differences in culture and history. Especially emphasizing the Chicano culture and experience in the United States, many themes portrayed in most Chicano novels, consist of writing in “Spanglish” Spanish and English, involvement in migration, immigration and political stands.
Since before I was born, my Hispanic heritage played a huge role in who I am and what I have achieved. My great-grandfather immigrated to this country with the desire to provide his family with a better future than his own. My grandpa grew up in Texas on the boarder of Mexico and traveled to Blue Island, Illinois as migrant crop worker. This desire passed down by my grandparents and my great-grandparents has played a tremendous role in propelling me to where I am today. Each generation sought to make the the lives of their children better than their own. My grandma received the opportunity to live in the country of opportunity from her father, and my grandpa paid for my mom to get an education. My mother pushed me to do my best in school and
The Statue of Liberty is an American icon because it symbolizes freedom, success, and the power of this nation. This image is what the U.S stands for to the outside world. Foreigners strive to move to America because of its wealth and acceptance towards all races and ethnicity. “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents” recounts the story of how Carlos Garcia, Laura Garcia, and their four girls move from the Dominican Republic to the United States to escape a dictatorship, and establish a new life in flourishing New York City. Many unexpected culture shocks await them in their new country. Although the girls find it difficult to adapt at first, they soon begin to assimilate and Americanize. On the other hand, “The Struggle to Be an All-American Girl” by Elizabeth Wong illustrates the life of an Asian American having to embrace two entirely different cultural identities. Both the Garcia family and Elizabeth Wong's family have to deal with two opposing cultures without losing too much of their heritage. The book and the essay are similar in that characters in each story lose much of their original tradition. However, they are different in that the families move to the states for distinctive reasons, and the cultural preference of “The Struggle to Be an All-American Girl” is more evident than that of “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents”.
Erika Lopez’s Flaming Iguanas addresses various constitutions of American identity, including ethnicity, gender, and sexuality. The protagonist, Jolene, is illustrative of how these constitutions of identity are complicated as she travels west. In particular, traveling westward typically consists of white men who reject the constraints of middle class life and decide to get on the road in hopes of finding selfhood. Flaming Iguanas demonstrates that gender, class, and ethnicity tie into the ability or inability to finding one’s self of self. Therefore, Jolene is unable to find her true sense of self because she is a woman. Lopez directs her readers’ attention to situations in her protagonist’s life where her mixed ethnicity, and ambivalent
With assertive shouts and short tempers, the prominent character, Ricardo, is characterized as a feisty townsman, doing nothing except trying to protect his town and its members from the judgments of the western world. For example, the characterization of the “‘…quaint’” man is exemplified through the simplicity of his life and the fact that he is “‘…employed’” and is full of knowledge, not a “‘cow in the forest’” (55, 29, 32). Ricardo desperately wants to establish the notion that he is not a heartless, feebleminded man, only an indigent, simple man striving to protect his friends and family from the criticisms of callous cultures. Incessantly Ricardo attempts to make it clear to the photographer the irritation elicited by his prese...
My cultural identity, is Haitian American. My parents come from a country of beautiful landscape and valleys of the hidden treasures of knowledge, diverse people, and rustic towns. My parents walked up steep plateaus for water, laid in grassy plains for peace, and dive into the sea for cooling in Haiti’s humid heat. Although, I come from a culture of deep history, the first country to gain independence in the result of a successful slave rebellion, my parents knew the plague of suffering Haiti’s battle with will not recover through the poverty, unemployment, and illiteracy. As Haiti fought through its demons, my parents fought to provide plentiful opportunity for their family and immigrated to the United States of America.
In writing this evolving story 3 major points served as a preamble. This cultural production is not the actual results of the new awareness, rather, is imposed by the European imaginaries during the time of Spanish exploration and colonization in the sixteenth century. Moreover, this presented art was a heterogeneous mixture of many communities that invade in the region and have never been monumental. Another important aspect is that the Latino Art and the related culture are dynamic and mutable. The art has expressed from of the immigrants and intersect across various styles and susceptibilities. In short, this art is not depicting the actual form of Chicano cultural values
In the 1940s, a group of Latin American writers published works which incorporated new techniques. ...