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".

Villareal's Pocho (1959) marks the emergence of the first Chicano novel. The protagonist, Richard Rubio's statement: "I do not want to be somebody. I am," not only functions as a reaffirmation of cultural and personal independence but reflects the power of language to constitute a "state of suggestive integrity" (Saldivar 18). Pocho is the quintessential Chicano novel and its influence is felt at several stages of Chicano fiction. Tomás Rivera's y no se lo trago la tierra (1971) commemorates a year in a life of a migrant worker family seen from the eye of an unnamed young boy. The book, besides its portrayal of physical and spiritual exploitation, testifies to la Raza's indomitable will to survive (Saldivar 20). Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me Ultima (1972) is another milestone in the evolution of the Chicano novel validating Mexican-American culture beyond the Southwest. Its protagonist, Antonio Marez is caught between the pressures of different parental expectations, as his mother wants him to become a priest and his father urges him to maintain the vaquero tradition of his family. Antonio's dilemma is solved by the appearance of Ultima, a folk healer who shows him the way to become a writer, thus a preserver of both traditions (Lauter 2583). The novel is rich in Mexican-American folk imagery introducing such elements as la llorona, the vailing woman of the rivers, and promotes the image of Antonio as Odysseus caught between the Scylla and Charybdis of the cloth and the lariat (Rogers 200). Oscar Zeta Acosta's The Revolt of the Cockroach People (1973) deconstructs the American legal system as "an arbitrary weaving of semantic threads created to hide the empty forms of notions such as 'justice' and 'natural rights" (Saldivar 23). Ron Arias' The Road to Tamazunchale (1975) is an example of the combination of North American literature with Latin American themes, as the protagonist Fausto is taken from East Los Angeles to Peru on a quest to reach his mythical destination. His description of Tamazunchale reminds the reader of Aztlán: "It is our home. Once we're there, we're free, we can be everything and everyone." 79