Synopses & Reviews
andquot;andiquest;Entiendes?andquot; is literally translated as andquot;Do you understand? Do you get it?andquot; But those who do andquot;get itandquot; will also hear within this question a subtler meaning: andquot;Are you queer? Are you one of us?andquot; The issues of gay and lesbian identity represented by this question are explored for the first time in the context of Spanish and Hispanic literature in this groundbreaking anthology.
Combining intimate knowledge of Spanish-speaking cultures with contemporary queer theory, these essays address texts that share both a common language and a concern with lesbian, gay, and bisexual identities. Using a variety of approaches, the contributors tease the homoerotic messages out of a wide range of works, from chronicles of colonization in the Caribbean to recent Puerto Rican writing, from the work of Cervantes to that of the most outrageous contemporary Latina performance artists. This volume offers a methodology for examining work by authors and artists whose sexuality is not so much open as andquot;an open secret,andquot; respecting, for example, the biographical privacy of writers like Gabriela Mistral while responding to the voices that speak in their writing. Contributing to an archeology of queer discourses, andiquest;Entiendes? also includes important studies of terminology and encoded homosexuality in Argentine literature and Caribbean journalism of the late nineteenth century.
Whether considering homosexual panic in the stories of Borges, performances by Latino AIDS activists in Los Angeles, queer lives in turn-of-the-century Havana and Buenos Aires, or the mapping of homosexual geographies of 1930s New York in Lorcaandrsquo;s andquot;Ode to Walt Whitman,andquot; andiquest;Entiendes? is certain to stir interest at the crossroads of sexual and national identities while proving to be an invaluable resource.
Review
andquot;People working in gay and lesbian studies in Hispanic literatures or cultural studies will not be able to continue to work without this volume close at hand. andiquest;Entiendes? provides both impetus and standards for all subsequent work in the field.andquot;andmdash;Benigno Sandaacute;nchez-Eppler, Brandeis University
Review
andquot;This is a groundbreaking collection of essays on gay and lesbian topics in Hispanic literaturesandmdash;there is nothing that compares with it.andquot;andmdash;George Yanduacute;dice, Hunter College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York
Synopsis
" Entiendes?" is literally translated as "Do you understand? Do you get it?" But those who do "get it" will also hear within this question a subtler meaning: "Are you queer? Are you one of us?" The issues of gay and lesbian identity represented by this question are explored for the first time in the context of Spanish and Hispanic literature in this groundbreaking anthology.
Combining intimate knowledge of Spanish-speaking cultures with contemporary queer theory, these essays address texts that share both a common language and a concern with lesbian, gay, and bisexual identities. Using a variety of approaches, the contributors tease the homoerotic messages out of a wide range of works, from chronicles of colonization in the Caribbean to recent Puerto Rican writing, from the work of Cervantes to that of the most outrageous contemporary Latina performance artists. This volume offers a methodology for examining work by authors and artists whose sexuality is not so much open as "an open secret," respecting, for example, the biographical privacy of writers like Gabriela Mistral while responding to the voices that speak in their writing. Contributing to an archeology of queer discourses, Entiendes? also includes important studies of terminology and encoded homosexuality in Argentine literature and Caribbean journalism of the late nineteenth century.
Whether considering homosexual panic in the stories of Borges, performances by Latino AIDS activists in Los Angeles, queer lives in turn-of-the-century Havana and Buenos Aires, or the mapping of homosexual geographies of 1930s New York in Lorca s "Ode to Walt Whitman," Entiendes? is certain to stir interest at the crossroads of sexual and national identities while proving to be an invaluable resource."
About the Author
Emilie L. Bergmann is Associate Professor of Spanish at the University of California, Berkeley and a coauthor of Women, Culture and Politics in Latin America.
Paul Julian Smith is Professor of Spanish and Portuguese at Cambridge University. He is the author of many books including, Desire Unlimited: The Cinema of Pedro Almodandoacute;var and Laws of Desire: Questions of Homosexuality in Spanish Writing and Film, 1960andndash;90.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction / Paul Julian Smith and Emilie L. Bergmann 1
One. Re-Loading the Canon
Aldonza as Butch: Narrative and the Play of Gender in Don Quixote / Mary S. Gossy 17
The andquot;Fecal Dialecticandquot;: Homosexual Panic and the Origin of Writing in Borges / Daniel Balderston 29
Two. (Neo)historical Retrievals
The Argentine Dissemination of Homosexuality, 1890andndash;1914 / Jorge Salessi 49
Juliandaacute;n del Casal and the Queers of Havana / Oscar Montero 92
Three. Nationalisms, Ethnicities, and (Homo)sexualities
Community at Its Limits: Orality, Law, Silence, and the Homosexual Body in Luis Rafael Sandaacute;nchez's 'Jum' / Agnes I. Lugo-Ortiz 115
Toward an Art of Transvestism: Colonialism and Homosexuality in Puerto Rican Literature / Arnaldo Cruz-Malavandeacute; 137
Fleshing Out Virgilio Piandntilde;era from the Cuban Closet / Josandeacute; Quiroga 168
The Lesbian Body in Latina Cultural Production / Yvonne Yarbro-Bejarano 181
Four. Biographical Constructions, Textual Encodings
The andquot;Schoolteacher of Americaandquot;: Gender, Sexuality, and Nation in Gabriela Mistral / Licia Fiol-Matta 201
Disappearing Acts: Reading Lesbian in Teresa de la Parra / Sylvia Molloy 230
A Logic in Lorca's Ode to Walt Whitman / John K. Walsh 257
Five. Queer Readers/Queer Texts
The Look that Kills: The andquot;Unacceptable Beautyandquot; of Alejandra Piznarnik's La condesa sangrienta / Suzanne Chandaacute;vez Silverman 281
Lesbian Tantalizing in Carmen Lugo Filippi's andquot;Milagros, Calle Mercurioandquot; / Luz Marandiacute;a Umpierre 306
Six. Call to Theory/Call to Action
Virtual Sexuality: Lesbianism, Loss, and Deliverance in Carme Rierra's andquot;Te deix, amor, la mar com a penyoraandquot; / Brad Epps 317
Teatro Viva!: Latino Performance and the Politics of AIDS in Los Angeles / David Romandaacute;n 346
Nationalizing Sissies / Josandeacute; Piedra 370
Index 411
Contributors 427