The riddle of Cantinflas: essays on Hispanic popular culture

From one of our foremost cultural critics comes a provocative collection of essays on kitsch and high art in the Americas. Ilan Stavans examines the delightful if torturous relationship between a Europeanized elite and the hybrid masses in a continent he sees as imprisoned in the labyrinth of identity. In "Santa Selena," for example, Stavans explores the beatification of the martyred Tejana singer in the context of American pop iconography. His interest is not in Selena's tragic death but in the ways her fans have turned her into a heavenly body, shaping her afterlife as an endless fiesta of spiritual and commercial possibilities. Similarly, Stavans's portraits of Jos? Guadalupe Posada, Tina Modotti, Frida Kahlo, Sandra Cisneros, Cantinflas, and Carlos Fuentes are less about these luminaries than about what people have turned them into. His search is not for the idol but for the idolater, and for ways in which technology and the media refurbish reality. At times humorous, often cautionary, always incisive, this collection is evidence of Stavans's power to go beyond common assumptions and make us understand Mexican popular culture and its counterparts in the U.S. "I think he has one of the best grips around on what makes Spanish America tick and he is most sensitive about its relationship to the rest of the world."--Gregory Rabassa From One Of Our Foremost Cultural Critics Comes A Provocative Collection Of Essays On Politics And Popular Culture In Mexico And The Hispanic Community In The United States. Ilan Stavans Examines The Delightful If Torturous Relationship Between A Europeanized Elite And The Hybrid Masses In A Continent He Sees As Imprisoned In The Labyrinth Of Identity. In Santa Selena, For Example, Stavans Explores The Beatification Of The Martyred Tejana Singer In The Context Of American Pop Iconography. Similarly, Stavans's Portraits Of Jose Guadalupe Posada, Tina Modotti, Frida Kahlo, Sandra Cisneros, Cantinflas, And Carlos Fuentes Are Less About These Luminaries Than About What People Have Turned Them Into. His Search Is Not For The Idol But For The Idolater, And For Ways In Which Technology And The Media Refurbish Reality. This Theme Is Nowhere More Tangible Than In The Essay On Subcomandante Marcos As A Postmodern Incarnation Of Che Guevara And Abimael Guzman, A Mythical Guerrillero Whose Best Weapons Were Not The Bayonet And Hand Grenade But The Fax Machine And E-mail. Introduction / Allan Megill Hayden White Hans Kellner Franklin R. Ankersmit Georg G. Iggers Jerzy Topolski Jorn Rusen Arthur C. Danto Lionel Gossman Peter Burke Stephen Bann Ewa Domanska (self Interview) Postscript / Lynn Hunt. Ilan Stavans. Includes Index.