Conflicts in Mexican textual visions of the United States : Octavio Paz and Oscar Lewis

145 Pages·2003·5.2 MB·English

by  Schramm, Eric Joseph

CONFLICTSINMEXICANTEXTUALVISIONSOFTHEUNITEDSTATES:
OCTAVIOPAZANDOSCARLEWIS
By
ERICJOSEPHSCHRAMM
ADISSERTATIONPRESENTEDTOTHEGRADUATESCHOOLOFTHE
UNIVERSITYOFFLORIDAINPARTIALFULFILLMENT
OFTHEREQUIREMENTSFORTHEDEGREEOF
DOCTOROFPHILOSOPHY
UNIVERSITYOFFLORIDA
2003
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thisprojectcouldnothavebeencompletedwithoutthelovingsupportof
mywife,Christine. StevenKrutprovidedthoughtfulrecommendationsonthe
study'scontent,aswellasimportanttechnicalassistanceandinvaluable
friendship. IwouldliketothankthestaffoftheLatinAmericanCollectionatthe
UniversityofFlorida,especiallyRichardPhillipsandJustinoLlanque-Chana,
whowentaboveandbeyondthecallofdutytohelpmewithmyresearch.
Idedicatethisworktomyparents,JamesandPatriciaSchramm;andto
mychildren,LarkinOliviaandMilanJames.
ii
1
TABLEOFCONTENTS
page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii
ABSTRACT iv
CHAPTER
1MEXICOANDTHEUNITEDSTAES(US):OCTAVIOPAZANDOSCARLEWIS1
Introduction 1
PazandLewis:Modernismand(AnEmbryonic)Postmodernism 1
Anti-AmericanisminPaz'Predecessors 17
Paz'EarlyWork 26
Lewis'PredecessorsandEarlyWork:TheBirthofthePopularVoiceinLatin
AmericanLiterature 30
RepresentationoftheUSinLewis'Work 46
Conclusion 48
Notes 50
2PAZANDTHEUS:ALABYRINTHOFMODERNISTAMBIGUITY 52
Introduction 52
"MexicanMiracle,"theUS,andOctavioPaz 56
TheUSinPaz'MexicanMyths 61
ModernistReconciliationofBinaryOpposites 69
LaterEssays:FromtheLabyrinthtoFreeTrade 77
Conclusion 81
3LOSHIJOSDESANCHEZ:WHOSEVISIONOFTHEUS? 82
Introduction 82
Lewis'ObjectivesandtheNarratorsofLoshijosdeSanchez 86
BacklashAgainstLewis'Vision 99
Conclusion 103
Notes 104
4THEUSIMAGEINMEXICANESSAYANDTESTIMONIALINTHE
AFTERMATHOFPAZANDLEWIS 106
Introduction 106
RecentVisionsoftheUSinMexicanEssay 108
TestimonialinMexicoAfterLewis 118
Conclusion:TheFallandFutureRiseofLatinAmericanTestimonial 125
Notes 130
WORKSCITED 131
BIOGRAPHICALSKETCH 138
in
AbstractofDissertationPresentedtotheGraduateSchoolofthe
UniversityofFloridainPartialFulfillmentoftheRequirementsfortheDegreeof
DoctorofPhilosophy
CONFLICTSINMEXICANTEXTUALVISIONSOFTHEUNITED
STATES:OCTAVIOPAZANDOSCARLEWIS
By
EricJosephSchramm
December2003
Chair:DianeMarting
MajorDepartment:RomanceLanguagesandLiteratures
ThisdissertationcomparesanintellectualMexicanviewoftheUnited
States(thatofOctavioPaz,inEllaberintodelasoledadandotheressays)witha
popularone(thatofthepoornarratorsofOscarLewis'LoshijosdeSanchezand
othertestimonials). Ideologicalimplicationsofthetwoliteraryforms'varying
processesofconstructionarediscussed. TheMexicanintellectualviewoftheUS
inthetwentieth-centuryislargelydominatedbytheanti-USstancepopularized
bytheearlymodernistasandfurtherpromotedinpost-Revolutionarycultural
nationalism. Paz'expressionisuniqueinthatitwhileitdepartsfromthiscritical
modernistastance,italsolooksatMexicanhistoryinmythicalandrather
fatalisticterms.Thisemphasisonmyth,aswellasPaz'incorporationofEuropean
modernisttechniques,especiallysurrealism,accentuatestheaestheticimpactof
hisworkandtendstodiffuseanddisarmthepoliticalcritiqueoftheUnitedStates.
iv
Inthisway,Paz'workparticipatesintheiuegodeimaRenesallowingMexican
governmentsbetween1945and1980topresentanationalistimagewithout
puttingUSinterestsindanger.
Lewis'testimonialsrepresentapioneeringeffortinthemovementtomake
audiblethevoicesofLatinAmerica'sless-advantagedmajority. Thetestimonial
movement,becauseitrejectsgrandnarrativeslikethedefinitionoflomexicano,
reflectsanascentpostmodernism,whichshouldtranscendtheManicheanview
opposingallclassesintheUnitedStatestothoseinLatinAmerica,andviceversa.
WhilethelifestoriesoftheSanchezfamilyindeedrevealconsiderableacceptance
ofUSculture,itisapparentthatLewis'ownviewsoftheUSroleinMexico
substantiallyimpacthistexts. Similarcomplicationsresultingfromtestimonial's
dualauthorshiparestudiedinGabrielCareaga'sBiografiadeunjovendelaclase
media. Despitetheirflaws,thesetextsbyLewisandhisdisciple,Careaga,reveal
importantpopularperceptionsoftheUS. Inaddition,testimonial'sdifficulties
havecausedLatinamericaniststoengageinhealthyanalysisoftheirownpractice,
indicatingstrategieswithwhicheffectivetestimonialcancontinuetobeproduced.
v
CHAPTER
1
MEXICOANDTHEUNITEDSTATES(US):
OCTAVIOPAZANDOSCARLEWIS
theNorthAmericanworldblindsus
withitsenergy;w—ecannotseeourselves,
wemustseeyou CarlosFuentes1988,5.
Introduction
IexaminedvariousincorporationsoftheUSintoselectedMexicans'
descriptionsoftheirnationandthemselves,aswellasthewaythose
representationsareaffectedbytheirparticularliteraryformats. BecausetheUSis
oftenseeninMexicoasalandofopportunityandprogress,yethistoricallyhas
posedthesinglegreatestthreattoMexico'ssovereignty,Mexicanattitudestoward
thenortherncountryarevariedandcomplex. SuchobserversofUS-Mexican
relationsasAlanRidingandJorgeCastanedahavesummarizedthat,because
Mexicanpoliticiansandintellectualsdisdainthematerialistcultureandaggressive
politicsemanatingfromtheUS,thenationalidentitytheypromoteisfoundedon
antiamericanismo. Most"ordinary"Mexicans,ontheotherhand,maintaina
senseofadmirationforUSorganization,honesty,andaffluence.1 This
interpretationmaybeasimplification,butiscommonnonetheless. Toinvestigate
aspecificexampleoftheapparentdivisionbetweeneliteandpopularMexican
sentimenttowardtheUS,IevaluatedimagesoftheUSintheessaysofOctavio
Paz,oneofMexico'smostrenownedintellectuals;andinthetestimonialliterature
ofOscarLewis,whichrepresentsoneofthefirstforumswhereless-advantaged
1
2
Mexicanscanbeheardintheirownwords. Suchcombinedanalysispresentsa
broaderoverallpicturethanwouldresultfromthestudyofeitherintellectualor
populartextsalone.
AsilluminatingastheseworksareintermsoftheMexicanperceptionof
theUS,theyareperhapsevenmorerevealingofthestrengthsandlimitationsof
theliteraryformstheyrepresent. Idemonstratethatthemodernisttechniques
employedbyPazcreateadualeffect,appearingatfirsttomaintainthetraditional
MexicanintellectualdisdainoftheUS,whiletheoverallmessageofhiswork
reinforcestheperiod'spoliticalstatusquoofincreasingeconomicintegration.
TheduallyauthoredtestimonialliteraturesuchasthatproducedbyLewisoffers
anothercomplexity:theirresolvabletensionbetweentheinterestsofthepeople
interviewedandthoseoftheinterviewer. Itisdifficulttodetermineifthepro-US
attituderevealedinLewis'workaccuratelyreflectshisinterlocutors'opinions,or
istheresultofhisideologicalinfluence. AlthoughLewis'innovationsbroke
importantgroundintermsofdemocratizingliterature,assuringthatbothparties'
interestsareservedremainsoneoftestimonial'smostproblematicissues.
MexicanattitudestowardtheUSarenotconstant,butaffectedby
historicalfactors. TheworksIhaveselectedemergefromthe1950s(Paz),and
early1960s(Lewis),andrespondtoandreflecttheconditionsoftheirtime. AsI
explainindetailinChapter2,thestructuralchangesmadetopost-WorldWarII
MexicansocietyandtoMexico'srelationshipwiththeUSmakethisaparticularly
relevantperiodofstudy,withprofoundeffectsoncurrentconditions. Although
noneoftheworksconsideredheretakeintoaccounttherecent,dramaticchanges
3
inMexicanattitudestowardtheUS,theirconsiderableinfluenceistracedupuntil
thelate1980s.
OctavioPaz'Ellaberintodelasoledadisconsideredthefinestanalysisof
nationalcultureinMexicanintellectualhistoryand,foritsrefinementofworkby
earlierthinkerssuchasAntonioCaso,JoseVasconcelos,andSamuelRamos,the
culminationoftheMexicanquesttoexpressthenation'sidentitythrough
literature. NumeroussucceedingMexicanessayists(includingCarlosMonsivais,
CarlosFuentes,andGabrielZaid)haveindicatedtheirimmensedebttoPaz'
thought,strengtheningMartinS.Stabb'sassertionthatPaz'wasthemost
dominantvoiceintheMexicanessayinthesecondhalfofthetwentiethcentury
(Stabb,"TheNewEssay"47-49). ReferringspecificallytoEllaberinto,Paz
scholarEnricoMarioSantiwritesthat"yaseaparaexaltarlooparasituarsecontra
el,practicamentetodalaensayisticamexicanasobrelaidentidadnacional
publicadadesde1950hatornadoencuentaellibrodePaz"(128). Becauseofits
tremendousstatureandtheinfluenceithashadonthenationalidentitydiscussion
inMexico,Ellaberintoisatleastonevalidsourceofintellectualsentimenttoward
theUS. ThefactthatitwasPaz'encounterwithUSculturethatgeneratedhis
musingsonMexico(Ellaberinto147),andthattherelationshipbetweenthetwo
countriesisoneofthetext'scentralthemes,makesitaparticularlyappropriate
choiceforthisstudy.
InadditiontoEllaberinto,IexamineOscarLewis'LoshijosdeSanchez.
TheSpanish-languageeditionofLoshijoswasreleasedin1964,althoughitwas
firstpublishedinEnglishtranslationin1961. Composedofthefirst-personoral
4
historiesofapoorMexicoCityfamily,whichLewistape-recorded,transcribed,
andeditedbeforepublishingthemalongwithalengthyintroduction,Loshijos
representsapioneeringeffortinthewidespreadmovementtomakeaudiblethe
voicesofLatinAmericanswhowouldnototherwisebeheard. AlthoughRicardo
Pozas'JuanPerezJolote(1948)wastheregion'sfirstsuchwork,Lewis'useof
thetaperecorderwasrevolutionary,actingasaprimaryinfluenceonsuchwriters
asMiguelBarnetandElenaPoniatowska. Thesewriters,inturn,wereimportant
contributorstotheLatinAmericantestimonialmovement,whichreceivedits
greatestacclaimin1983withMellamoRigobertaMenchu(1983). Testimonial
narrativerepresentsthemostlogicalliterarysourceforthekindofpopular
sentimentthisstudyseekstoevaluate. TheSanchezfamilymemberswhonarrate
LoshijosindeedprovideavastlydifferentperspectiveoncontemporaryMexican
societythandoesPaz. Castaneda'sandRiding'sassertionthat"average"
MexicansaremorelikelytoadmiretheUSthantodisdainit,appearstobe
confirmedatnumerouspointsintheSanchezstories.
TheSanchezcaseoffersauniquesetofconditions,however,sinceLewis,
theproject'sdirector,wasbornandraisedinNewYork. BecauseaUScitizen
compiledthisoftenacerbicallycriticallookattheMexicansocialcondition,the
MexicanpublicationofLoshijosgeneratedenormouscontroversyandsome
virulentlynationalistreactions. Thequestionofwhowasmostresponsibleforthe
wordswasattheheartofthedispute. Thecollaborationbetweencompilerand
narratorintestimonialalwaysbringsupanumberofinterestingandimportant
questionsregardingtheirauthorship. Infact,theargumentthatpopularor
subalternsubjectscanneveraccuratelyrepresentthemselvesintestimonial
literature,becausetheirvoicesareinevitablyappropriatedbythecompiler'sinthe
promotionofeconomicinterest,haspersuasivelybeenmadeatleastsinceGayatri
Spivak's1988"CantheSubalternSpeak?". Thedebateispointedenoughwhen
thecollaboratorsshareanationality;itbecomesevenmoreproblematicwhena
NorthAmericanintellectual,representingscienceandknowledge,"mines"the
lifestoriesofpoor,semi-literateorilliterateLatinAmericanworkers. Project
Camelotoffersanexampleofhowinformationobtainedthroughanthropology
andothersocialscienceshasbeenusedtomaintainUShegemonyinLatin
Americaandotherregions.2 Theissuesinvolvedindeterminingthevalidityof
testimonialdiscourse,andthegenre'sviabilityasaliteraryform,areaddressedat
lengthinthisstudy,butitisimportanttorecognizehereLewis'workasa
forerunnerinthepromotionof"ordinary"Mexicanviewpoints.
—
Theuniquenessoftestimonialdiscourse itsdualauthorship,andthefact
thatthenarrators,whousuallyhaveneverbeeninvolvedintheprofessional
productionofliterature,basetheirstoriesonlimitedpersonalexperienceinstead
—
ofwell-readworldliness maycausethecomparativeanalysishereofPaz'and
Lewis'workstoappearproblematic. Lewis'testimonialworksarenotessays,but
theessayissuchaflexibleandinclusivegenrethatitmayinfactbelogically
connectedandcomparedtootherhybridandexperimentalformslikethe
testimonial. TheparametersofPaz'owngenre,theessay,havebeennotoriously
difficulttodefine. MartinS.Stabb,aprominentscholaroftheHispanicessay,
remindsusofthegenre'smostfundamentalformalfeatures:"theessayisa