Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 1996. [Vol. 3.] Eger Journal of American Studies. (Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 23)

STUDIES - András Tarnóc: Ethnic Consciousness in Chicano Literature: The Voice of "La Raza".

in the heart of Anglos and his individuality is reminiscent of the Western hero. "Jacinto Trevino" continues to upset the traditional value structure of the Southwest as the protagonist remains the last person to defy the Texas Rangers, eluding their deadly grasp. 'The Disobedient Son," commemorating a young man's death warranted by his overpowering male ego probes another side of the Mexican-American ideal: the respect of one's family and the notion of compadrazgo, the idea that the psychological proximity of a family should be projected onto the social sphere. As the son must pay with his life for threatening to kill his father, who is intervening to stop an impending duel, the sanctity of the family is upheld. It is noteworthy that despite being predominantly a 19th-century mode of literary expression, the corrido survived to perpetuate more recent heroes of the Mexican-American community. "Remembering the President," mourning the death of John F. Kennedy, the first Catholic Chief Executive of the nation, not only reflects religious affinity but praises Kennedy for maintaining an emotional bond with the Latin American community. "The Ballad of César Chávez" celebrates the leader of the Delano grape strike, who continued the proud defiance of Cortez and Trevino with the power of non-violence, and his stand and personal conviction not only led to the success of the labor dispute contributing to the growth of la Raza

, or the Mexican-American people, but as Robert F. Kennedy's participation at a Delano mass invoking the Virgin of Guadalupe indicated, mainstream American acceptance of Chicano culture and society as well. The corrido as a product of Anglo-American cultural conflict concentrates on the Mexican-American hero. The paradigms can take the form of the vaquero engaged in an economic and cultural rivalry with the American cowboy, the rancher turned desperado achieving a moral victory over Anglo vigilantes, the politician whose decisionmaking process is motivated by an awareness of the needs of the greater community, and the labor organizer whose personal sacrifice and religious conviction earn a lasting victory for Hispanic Americans. 67