Thesis (M.M.)--Bowling Green State University, 2005. / Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 82 p. : music. Includes bibliographical references and discography.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, 2006. / Title from dissertation title page (viewed Sept. 13, 2006). Includes abstract. "Dissertation presented to the Faculty of the Brite Divinity School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biblical interpretation." Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Brite Divinity School, 2006. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 207-220). Also available via the World Wide Web.

This thesis explores the discourse of Mexicanness and its relation to the moving image, pointing to the intellectual discussion it has been subject to since the beginning of the twentieth century. Further, it takes narcoculture as a relevant and recent phenomenon that has the capacity of confronting and reformulating Mexicanness by virtue of its hybridity. This dissertation draws from History, Latin American and Mexican studies to deconstruct and describe a thorough picture of the impact, popularity and pertinence of these narratives in Mexican exploitation and theatrical film, as well as soap operas, which act as cornerstones of the liminal discourse of drug-culture in this context. At the same time, it locates the melodramatic logics of narco film and music as vital for the construction of the modern notion of the Mexican drug dealer as an incarnation of contemporary and contradictory Mexicanness. This thesis points to the connection between Mexicanness, northern Mexican and transborder culture, highlighting the cross-cultural influences that meld in the border and northern states and comprise a rich landscape for theoretical analysis.

This thesis analyzes resistance songs as key representations of the identity and political formation that took place during the 1960s Chicano movement. Examining particular musical traditions, this thesis highlights the value of placing songs of the Chicano struggle in national narratives of history as well as in the context of an enduring and thriving legacy of political and social activism that continues to allow the Chicano community to recognize and validate their current social realities.

This dissertation examines the link between sovereignty, law, community and (il)legal violence in 20th/21st century Mexican narratives associated with drug trafficking themes. The field of biopolitics provides ample pathways to explore the intersection of these concepts as they are portrayed in contemporary Mexican literature, music and film. Combining the theories of Michel Foucault, Roberto Esposito, Giorgio Agamben and Carl Schmitt, among others, this project analyzes the law and the sovereign, as well as the community and the narco within the spaces they inhabit as they enter in (violent) dialogue with each other. Furthermore, such relationship is viewed panoramically in three stages. First, I analyze the rise of a mythologized narco-sovereign and the creation of what could be conceptualized as Narcobiopolitcs, which materializes the moment the drug trafficker emerges into the Mexican collective imaginary and fights for a space for its own “community.” Second, narco-communities are allowed to thrive in the outskirts, cementing the figure of the narco-sovereign, a figure that challenges the power of the law. Lastly, the relationship between the law and the trafficker disintegrates due to an excess of violence and the communities they inhabit collapse, thus pointing to the fall of the (narco) community. The authors examined to explore these three phases are: Pablo Serrano, Yuri Herrera, Juan Pablo Villalobos, Gerardo Cornejo, Raúl Manríquez, Víctor Hugo Rascón Banda and Orfa Alarcón (literature); Gerardo Naranjo (film); Los Tucanes de Tijuana, Jenni Rivera, El Komander, Gerardo Ortiz and Los Tigres del Norte (music). The prologue provides a socio-historical context explaining the rise of drug trafficking violence in 20th century Mexico, as well as the current debate on narconarratives. It argues that such debate has yielded stagnating responses from academics and critics and specifies this project’s need to steer away from it. Chapter one offers the theoretical framework that will be utilized along the subsequent chapters in order to create a new space for dialogue surrounding these narratives. Chapter two analyses the rise of the mythologized figure of the narco-sovereign. The purpose of this entity is to create its own narco-community at the margins of the law, even though such community will always be under the Sovereign’s gaze. Chapter three showcases well-developed narco-communities who have managed to claim, through their narco-sovereigns, a space in their fight against the government institutions. Chapter four pinpoints the moment the relationship between legal and illegal violence collapses. This moment is portrayed in the narratives as the destruction of the community, with both entities (government and drug traffickers) responsible for such catastrophic downfall. Finally, the epilogue will conclude this dissertation by summarizing the main theoretical and analytical discussions, thus offering an opening to academic dialogue about narconarratives without the aim of sealing off the topic. Additionally, the epilogue will disclose research routes to undertake in the near future. / Spanish

This thesis examines the imagery of Jose Guadalupe Posada in the context of the Mexican Revolution with particular reference to the corrido as a major manifestation of Mexican culture. Particular emphasis is given to three corridos: "La Cucaracha," "La Valentina," and "La Adelita." An investigation of Posada's background, style, and technique places him in the tradition of Mexican art. Using examples of works by Posada which illustrate Mexico's history, culture, and politics, this thesis puts Posada into the climate of the Porfiriato and Revolutionary Mexico. After a brief introduction to the corrido, a stylistic analysis of each image, research into the background of the song and subject matter, and comments on the music draw together the concepts of image, music, and text.

This dissertation explores the theme of drugs in Spanish, Colombian and Mexican cultural production. A first part of this investigation consists of establishing the historical contexts of these cultural products within their respective country. In a second part, I theorize about the space that characterizes the drug narratives. A third part consists of analyzing the important recurrent characters in these narratives and, based on this analysis, developing a descriptive catalogue of archetypes.

This dissertation explores the theme of drugs in Spanish, Colombian and Mexican cultural production. A first part of this investigation consists of establishing the historical contexts of these cultural products within their respective country. In a second part, I theorize about the space that characterizes the drug narratives. A third part consists of analyzing the important recurrent characters in these narratives and, based on this analysis, developing a descriptive catalogue of archetypes.

This dissertation explores the theme of drugs in Spanish, Colombian and Mexican cultural production. A first part of this investigation consists of establishing the historical contexts of these cultural products within their respective country. In a second part, I theorize about the space that characterizes the drug narratives. A third part consists of analyzing the important recurrent characters in these narratives and, based on this analysis, developing a descriptive catalogue of archetypes.