The present thesis uses as its primary source of inspiration Argentine author Abel Posse's El largo atardecer del caminante (1992), which boasts the historically-based, unconventional Spanish conquistador, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, as its main protagonist and narrator. I explore the juxtaposition of two opposing forms of metaphorical consumption in the novel. To highlight the first, I apply to the fictional Cabeza de Vaca the general concept of antropofagia cultural, or "cultural cannibalism," as described by Brazilian writer Oswald de Andrade in his "Manifesto Antropófago" (1928). I specifically examine the symbolic development of Posse's Cabeza de Vaca as the first latinoamericano via cultural anthropophagy. Over time, the life-altering experiences during the course of his wanderings in North and South America convert him into an antropófago cultural by virtue of his conscientious, metaphorical consumption of the Other. By extension, Cabeza de Vaca becomes a model for the first latinoamericano, wrought, not through miscegenation, but rather through cultural contact. The second kind of consumption, on the other extreme, is represented in the novel through sixteenth-century Spain and its quasi-literal, compulsive consumption and subsequent expulsion of the New World Other. This is seen through the optic of the fictional Cabeza de Vaca in his waning moments in Seville. Posse's rendition of Spain, as seen through his historically-inspired narrator, is representative of the metaphorical indigestion caused by a thoughtless consumption of products, practices, lands, and even people from the New World. I put on display the manner in which sixteenth-century Spain is portrayed in the novel as suffering a figurative bloating, consuming so much, so fast, seemingly growing large and powerful until it is ultimately revealed as being sick and weak.

This dissertation focuses on the representation of Ecuadorians in Spain between 2000 and 2015 in literature, film and the press. After enduring a decade of economic, climatic, and political problems, more than 175,000 Ecuadorians emigrated to Spain in 2001 alone (Herrera 2005). This process marked the beginning of a major migratory movement which has caused Spain to become a premier destination. The response to such migration has been disparate, yet both Ecuadorian and Spanish artists as well as the Spanish press have shown the different perspectives related to a discriminatory ideology. This dissertation focuses on three cultural products and three press articles which are analyzed using the theories of Critical Discourse Analysis developed by scholars Teun Van Dijk (1998, 1999, 2007, 2009) and Antonio Bañón Hernández (2002, 2003, 2006, 2008). On one hand, the dissertation examines the novels La utopía de Madrid (2013) by Carlos Carrión and Nunca pasa nada (2007) by José Ovejero, as well as the movie Prometeo deportado (2010) by Fernando Mieles; on the other, it focuses on three articles published in 1999, 2011, and 2014 respectively by El País, La Vanguardia, and El Mundo which present the Ecuadorian population as a main character. Finally, the conclusion provides an understanding of how the creation of these products has shaped an ideology in Spaniards’ minds throughout the years and what needs to be addressed in order to obtain equal social status among native and minority groups.

This autoethnography narrative examines my journey as a first-generation Mexican immigrant woman from birth, through completion of the doctorate degree at California State University, San Bernardino. The purpose in writing this autoethnography is to present a personalized account of my experiences growing up, in communicating between two languages, the structural and personal motivators behind maintaining a heritage language (Spanish), and to reflect, in my experience, how I have negotiated with multiple social identities, including ethnic, academic, and bilingual identities. In this self-study, I bring the reader closer to Mexican-American identity, language, and culture. Specifically, this qualitative analysis of Spanish Heritage Language (SHL) and identity will examine the following questions: a) How did I perceive and negotiate my bilingual identity?; b) What obstacles did I face when speaking English, Spanish or both?; c) What role does SHL have in identity development? I have chosen a qualitative approach, specifically an autoethnography, to answer these questions in order to add to existing literature rooted in the lived experience of Spanish heritage language maintenance. This approach allows me to be the researcher, subject, and narrator of the study, and allows me to reflect on my education as a bilingual and bicultural immigrant student. The autoethnographer’s subjective experiences (my stories) become the primary data and encompass looking at a culture through the lens of the researcher. While searching for themes written in vignettes, my journey is an account of two worlds, which coexist, in the infinite intricacy of language learning, speaking, thinking, and being.

Esta disertación conecta la teoría de la transculturación narrativa de Ángel Rama con la tradición intelectual latinoamericana que aportó sus características más distintivas. Las teorías de Rama fueron influidas por dos tradiciones latinoamericanas. Una es de carácter político y tiene su origen en la Reforma de Córdoba de 1918. La otra, de carácter epistemológico y se remonta a la década de 1930, cuando comienza el culturalismo en Latinoamérica. Mi investigación se ocupa de un grupo de intelectuales uruguayos que trabajaron en torno al semanario Marcha [1939-1974]: Carlos Quijano [1900-1984], Julio Castro [1908 -desaparecido en 1977] y Arturo Ardao [1912-2003]. También me ocupo de dos intelectuales brasileños, Antonio Cândido [1918] y Darcy Ribeiro [1922-1997], quienes continuaron con la tradición culturalista que inauguraron en Latinoamérica autores como Gilberto Freyre [1900-1987] y Fernando Ortiz [1881-1969]. Recuperar las redes intelectuales que acompañaron el proceso de articulación de la transculturación narrativa nos permite comprender mejor las tesis de Rama por dos razones. Primero, porque enmarca esta teoría dentro de algunos de los debates políticos y culturales más importantes de la Guerra Fría. Y segundo, porque se aproxima a la manera como Rama comprendió la historia latinoamericana y su coyuntura política y socio-cultural durante las décadas de 1960 y 1970. El objetivo de la teoría de la transculturación narrativa es describir el proceso por el cual las manifestaciones literarias latinoamericanas pasan de la dependencia a la autonomía cultural. Como el proceso descrito se despliega dentro de la estructura social, para comprenderlo es necesario analizar la interacción entre las obras literarias y la sociedad que las rodea, de esta forma las ciencias sociales --antropología, sociología, economía-- son instrumentos de análisis indispensables para comprender una obra o tradición literaria. Este marco general de análisis es descrito por Rama como el culturalismo. En el caso de Rama, una lectura desde los estudios literarios puede dar por sentado que el culturalismo fue tan sólo un método de análisis alternativo al estructuralismo francés. Aunque esta perspectiva sea en parte correcta, no es del todo precisa. El culturalismo al que se refiere Rama es el mismo que practicaron los cientistas sociales en Latinoamérica desde la década de 1930. Recuperar la historicidad de la transculturación narrativa no solo nos permite comprender la genealogía de esta teoría sino recuperar y hacer visibles algunas tradiciones intelectuales contra-hegemónicas que desarticuló la Guerra Fría en Latinoamérica.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 258-273).

University of Macau / Faculty of Law

University of Macau / Faculty of Law

University of Macau / Faculty of Law

University of Macau / Faculty of Law

University of Macau / Faculty of Law