In this paper, it shall be examined how African American and Mexican American women writers have both developed highly innovative narrative strategies in order to establish their literary voice in which to express their experiences of being women belonging to an ethnic minority. Rather than attempting a direct comparison
between the works of African and Mexican American women writers, I shall focus on the methods writers of both ethnicities have used in order to establish two separate literary traditions of female expression. My observations shall be based on texts by Zora
Neale Hurston and Sandra Cisneros. Despite the fact that the works were written decades apart and thus also mirror major differences in the social and cultural development of the US, I will show that it is possible to draw significant parallels between them. Besides, the different contemporary reception of their work can be considered an indication of how much the American literary canon has changed in the
last decades of the 20th century.
Gender and race are important aspects in the works of both African American and Mexican American writers. Women writers of these two ethnicities have used different narrative devices to depict the themes of marginalization and discrimination, as well as issues of racial, sexual and artistic empowerment of women. The transgression of traditional gender roles and the questioning of gender boundaries and categories are a vital part of their works.
The quest for a collective identity is another frequent theme in the works of African American and Mexican American women writers. However, as is to be shown in this paper, the treatment of this topic can be considered one of the most crucial difference markers between African American and Mexican American women authors. In the following, a detailed analysis of Zora Neale Hurston's novel Their Eyes Were Watching God and Sandra Cisneros' prose collections The House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories will serve to illustrate this argumentation.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- I. Introduction
- II. African American Women Writers
- II. 1. The Harlem Renaissance - A Quest for African American Identity
- II. 1. 1. The Predecessors - Literary Production and Women Writers of the 19th Century
- II. 1. 3. Women Writers of the Renaissance
- II. 2. 1. Zora Neale Hurston - Biographical Note
- II. 3. 1. Contemporary and Posthumous Reception of Their Eyes Were Watching God
- II. 3. 2. Janie Crawford: Emerging Heroine of Their Eyes Were Watching God
- II. 3. 3. Dynamics of the Metaphor in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- II. 3. 3. 1. Storytelling, Communal Discourse and Verbal Empowerment in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- II. 3. 4. Race and Gender in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- II. 3. 5. An Alternative Reading: Voodoo in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- III. Mexican American Women Writers
- III. 1. Mexican Americans in US Society: the Beginnings of Chicano/a Literature
- III. 2. Chicana Feminism and Feminist Discourse
- III. 3. 1. Biographical Note and Literary Work
- III. 4. The House on Mango Street
- III. 4. 1. Narrative Structure and Perspective
- III. 4. 2. Style and Language in The House on Mango Street
- III. 4. 3. The House as Leitmotif
- III. 4. 4. Gender Constructions: Opera and Fairytales as Subtexts
- III. 5. Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories
- III. 5. 1 Narrative Structure
- III. 5. 2. Finding Voice: Code-switching and the Language Issue
- III. 5. 3. The Mericans – Marginality and Borderland Themes
- III. 5. 4. Subversion through Subtext: Womanhood and (Soap) Opera
- The establishment of a distinct literary voice by African American and Mexican American women writers.
- The use of narrative devices to depict themes of marginalization, discrimination, and empowerment.
- The transgression of traditional gender roles and questioning of gender boundaries.
- The quest for a collective identity within each ethnic group.
- The influence of historical and cultural contexts on the development of literary traditions.
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This paper aims to explore the innovative narrative strategies employed by African American and Mexican American women writers to establish their literary voices and express their experiences as women belonging to ethnic minorities. It focuses on the methods used by both groups to create distinct literary traditions of female expression, drawing parallels between their works despite their differing social and cultural contexts.
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The paper begins with an introduction that highlights the significance of the 2008 presidential election in the United States, marking a turning point in the recognition of racial minorities and women in politics. It emphasizes the importance of the Civil Rights Movement and the Harlem Renaissance in shaping African American identity and literature.
Chapter II focuses on African American women writers, particularly Zora Neale Hurston. It explores the development of the Harlem Renaissance as a movement for African American identity and the role of women writers in this context. The chapter examines Hurston's life and work, including her novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, analyzing its themes of race, gender, and storytelling.
Chapter III shifts to Mexican American women writers, discussing the Chicano Movement and the emergence of Chicano/a literature. It explores the challenges faced by Chicana writers due to the double barrier of sexism and racism. The chapter examines the work of Sandra Cisneros, analyzing her use of code-switching, metalinguistic discourse, and the theme of marginalization in her prose collections The House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories.
The paper concludes with a discussion of the significance of these literary traditions and their contributions to the understanding of gender, race, and identity in the United States.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The paper explores themes related to African American and Mexican American women writers, their voices, and their experiences of race and gender. Key terms include: Harlem Renaissance, Chicano Movement, vernacular, code-switching, marginalized identity, racial and gender empowerment, and the establishment of distinct literary traditions within each ethnic group.
- Quote paper
- Carmen Fuchs (Author), 2009, Race, Gender and the Vernacular in the Works of African American and Mexican American Women Authors, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/174347
