More from Piedra (I love his English, I think it is Cuban and under the influence of Golden Age Spanish, but the marvel of it is, it is ultra-perfect English): To become Hispanic was to acquire “literary whiteness.” The concept of the Hispanic “race” grew in print … but there are Afro-Hispanic writings throughout the … More Rapacious grammar
This might be my favorite article ever. It is classic and should be required reading for everyone. I am going to teach it. Spanish 402/502 — Summer/Fall 2013 Notes on José Piedra, Literary Whiteness and the Afro-Hispanic Difference Article NLH 18:2 (1987): 303-332 Accessed from our library via JSTOR Epigraphs: Unamuno, El lenguaje es la … More Piedra on Nebrija
This is to say that inclusivity does not resolve the problem of racial difference but functions to mask or render unspeakable the mechanisms of exclusion and hierarchization which still persist. The elasticity of the category Hispanic does stand in contrast to the less flexible categories that have operated in the United States or South Africa, … More Tres oraciones en treinta minutos
The concept of raza is thus not a merely a particular system of classification, but a racial order in which culture and cultural identity have an important role and the meaning of color varies. It is nonetheless administered by the state as racial, and despite its flexibility as a category, it remains inflected with questions … More Seis oraciones en treinta minutos
Some maritime images… Así es, y los relámpagos cubrirían tus trenzas y la lluvia entraría por tus ojos abiertos a preparar el llanto que sordamente encierras, y las alas negras del mar girarían en torno de ti, con grandes garras, y graznidos, y vuelos. –P.N. Axé.
I need a really good image of a great ship putting out to sea and I do not see the right one, so you will have to imagine it. I am embarking on a large solidarity project. As I am about to call for one in print, I have to model it. It involves wresting … More Le projet
MIND AND MATTER This is Mark Griffith. I had a class from him in translation as an undergraduate and then later, in graduate school, a reading class on Horace. He is a good professor but what makes him unique in my life is that he was the only person, student or professor, who without need … More On academia and cultural exceptionalism
Here is a good article on The Great Gatsby, the movie. Here is a fact from it that I did not know: “an ethnic-American man like Gatsby (born Gatz) would not have been considered “white.” Gatsby is German. I knew Norwegians, Swedes and Finns were ambiguously white, almost as ambiguously so as the southern Europeans, but … More How to read
A national magazine is taking my piece. Certain local officials did not know who they were dealing with at all, at all, and I am not finished yet. Axé.
I have to work on my NEH Letter of Intent this week. I am saying this because when I shut this computer down I will have to close the document, I am likely to forget about it. I have to remember IILI and LASA deadlines as well. Here is a lesson in logic by the … More La semaine
