Ends of Assimilation : The Formation of Chicano Literature

Ends of Assimilation examines how Chicano literature imagines the conditions and costs of cultural change, arguing that its thematic preoccupation with assimilation illuminates the function of literature. John Alba Cutler shows how mid-century sociologists advanced a model of assimilation that ignored the interlinking of race, gender, and sexuality and characterized American culture as homogeneous, stable, and exceptional. He demonstrates how Chicano literary works from the postwar period to the present understand culture as dynamic and self-consciously promote literature as a medium for influencing the direction of cultural change. With original analyses of works by canonical and noncanonical writers--from Américo Paredes, Sandra Cisneros, and Jimmy Santiago Baca to Estela Portillo Trambley, Alfredo Véa, and Patricia Santana-- Ends of Assimilation demands that we reevaluate assimilation, literature, and the very language we use to talk about culture. Contents 6 Acknowledgments 8 Introduction: Representing Race, Producing Culture:Chicano/a Literature and the Sociology of Assimilation 14 Ends of Assimilation 14 Disjunctive Histories 20 Assimilation as Ideology 23 The Formation of Chicano/a Literature 31 1. Becoming Mexican-American Literature 34 The Mexican-American Generation 34 “The First Mexican-American” 36 Pocho’s Racial Boundaries 39 Nation Time(s) in George Washington Gómez 48 Gendered Assimilation in Caballero 57 Chicano/a Politics of Reception 63 2. Quinto Sol, Chicano/a Literature, and the Long MarchThrough Institutions 69 Literature, Cultural Capital, Universities 69 Assimilation Sociology and Structural Inequality 73 Quinto Sol Literature and Chicano/a Cultural Nationalism 78 Literary Discourse in Estampas del Valle 84 Rethinking the University in Rain of Scorpions 91 3. Cultural Capital and the Singularity of Literature in Hungerof Memory and The Rain God 99 “Two Strong Men” 99 Hunger of Memory’s Symbolic Capital 102 Masculine Alienation in The Rain God 108 Neoliberal Assimilation 116 Transnational Sympathies 123 4. Lyric Subjects, Cultures of Poverty, and Sandra Cisneros’sWicked Wicked Ways 131 Feminist Boundary Crossing 131 “No Adelita nor Malintzín” 135 Cultures of Poverty 139 Recovering Mango Street’s Lyric Subjects 143 “The Big Rock Comes In” 148 Cisneros, Brooks, and “Bad” Women 154 “My Jewels, My Colicky Kids” 157 5. Segmented Assimilation and Jimmy Santiago Baca’sPrison Counterpublics 166 Segmentation versus Boundary Crossing 166 Segmented Assimilation in Martín 169 Rereading Baca’s Prison Poetics 174 Poetic Counterpublics 183 “The Poems are Signs that Tell Us Things” 187 6. Disappeared Men: Chicano/a Authenticity and the AmericanWar in Viet Nam 194 Remembering Viet Nam, Remembering the Movement 194 “The Buzz of the Reel” 198 Gods Go Begging and the Coloniality of Power 205 Border Thinking in Motorcycle Ride on the Sea of Tranquility 212 Besieged Authenticities in Their Dogs Came With Them 217 Disappeared Men 224 Conclusion 227 Assimilation “Is Now Condemned” 227 What Was Chicano/a Literature? 232 Notes 236 Works Cited 266 Index 282 Ends Of Assimilation Examines How Chicano Literature Imagines The Conditions And Costs Of Cultural Change, Arguing That Its Thematic Preoccupation With Assimilation Illuminates The Function Of Literature. John Alba Cutler Shows How Mid-century Sociologists Advanced A Model Of Assimilation That Ignored The Interlinking Of Race, Gender, And Sexuality And Characterized American Culture As Homogenous, Stable, And Exceptional. He Demonstrates How Chicano Literary Works From The Postwar Period To The Present Understand Culture As Dynamic And Self-consciously Promote Literature As A Medium For Influencing The Direction Of Cultural Change. With Original Analyses Of Works By Canonical And Noncanonical Writers - From Américo Paredes, Sandra Cisneros, And Jimmy Santiago Baca To Estela Portillo Trambley, Alfredo Véa, And Patricia Santana - Ends Of Assimilation Demands That We Reevaluate Assimilation, Literature, And The Very Language We Use To Talk About Culture. -- From Back Cover. Representing Race, Producing Culture: Chicano/a Literature And The Sociology Of Assimilation -- Becoming Mexican-american Literature -- Quinto Sol, Chicano/a Literature, And The Long March Through Institutions -- Cultural Capital And The Singularity Of Literature In Hunger Of Memory And The Rain God -- Lyric Subjects, Cultures Of Poverty, And Sandra Cisneros's Wicked Wicked Ways -- Segmented Assimilation And Jimmy Santiago Baca's Prison Counterpublics -- Disappeared Men: Chicano/a Authenticity And The American War In Viet Nam. John Alba Cutler. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Ends of Assimilation compares sociological and Chicano/a (Mexican American) literary representations of assimilation. __Ends of Assimilation____Ends of Assimilation__