The Pursuit Of Chicana Identity Through Reconstruction Of La Malinche's Image In Sandra Cisneros' Caramelo

With a rich and prolonged cultural heritage,Mexican American literature plays a crucial role in expressing Chicano's sense of self in a white society.As a Chicana writer,Sandra Cisneros is good at depicting the lives of women on the borderland,presenting multiple voices to create new models of femininity outside roles of mother and wife.With Celaya Reyes as the main narrator,Cisneros' novel Caramelo tells the history of Reyes clan for generations,from great-grandparents to Celaya and her six brothers.This title comes from an unfinished rebozo("a long garment mostly used by women of Mexico")handed down from the female ancestors in family,which is the Mexican national cultural symbol.It weaves not merely both sides of the border,but also the past and the present into integrity.In Mexican history,La Malinche's image is as fragmented as modern Chicana's.Originating from the Indian woman who served the Spaniards as a mistress and interpreter during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire,the historical and mythical mother has always been condemned as a traitress.But she is also the foundress of the whole nation by mothering the mixed-blood son.Therefore La Malinche has become not merely a controversial figure,but also the scapegoat for many mistakes in Mexican history.New interpretations of La Malinche's image will bring reflection upon the national root and reconstruction of the national identity.By examining the Reyes' history striding across the Mexico-U.S.border,recording the experience of Reyes women and presenting the third generation's predicaments in contemporary American society,Cisneros breaks the traditional myth of La Malinche and reconstructs a new Chicana identity.Caramelo has been studied from the perspectives of narrative technique,symbolism,feminism and post-colonialism,etc.Reading it under the guide of concepts from Gloria Anzaldua's Borderlands theories through the lens of the reconstruction of La Malinche's image,this thesis proposes that contemporary Chicana's pursuit of identity should take history as a point of departure to explore more possibilities of identity by breaking the restrictive and traditional image of La Malinche.Centered on La Malinche's image,this thesis starts from the fragmented Chicana identity in reality caused by racial,social and cultural conflicts,as well as the virgin-whore dichotomy in Mexican patriarchal society.Because La Malinche exists as the root of these conflicts,an appropriate interpretation of her image is critical in solving Chicana identity crisis.The second part examines Cisneros' re-inscription of the La Malinche and the creation of new image from the perspectives of her three conventional identities:mother,lover and daughter.Guided by concepts in Anzaldua's theories of Borderlands,the last part explores more possible facets of La Malinche and her mestiza("woman with mixed racial ancestry")descendants outside the traditional roles.They are not only the bridges connecting different worlds,but also the creators of history.In this sense,only by properly understanding La Malinche's image can Chicanas find the potential identities beyond Borderlands.