Literatures of the Americas

This book is a study of gender and place in twentieth-century Chicana/o literature and culture, covering the early period of regional writing to contemporary art. Remapping Chicana/o literary and cultural history from the critical regional perspective of the Mexican American Southwest, it uncovers the aesthetics of Chicana/o critical regionalism in the writings of Cleofas Jaramillo, Fray Angelico Chavez, Elena Zamora O'Shea, and Jovita Gonzalez. In addition to bringing renewed attention to contemporary writers like Richard Rodriguez and introducing the work of Chicana artist Carlota d.Z. EspinoZa, the study also revisits the more recognized work of Americo Paredes, Mario Suarez, Mary Helen Ponce, and Rodolfo &quote;Corky&quote; Gonzales to reconsider the aesthetics of gender and place in Chicana/o literature and culture.