Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben
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15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page i transvestism, masculinity,and latin american literature Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui This page intentionally left blank Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page iii transvestism,masculinity, and latin american literature genders share flesh ben. sifuentes-jáuregui Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page iv TRANSVESTISM, MASCULINITY, AND LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE Copyright © Ben. Sifuentes-Jáuregui, 2002 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any man- ner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. First published in 2002 by PALGRAVE™ 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 and Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England RG21 6XS Companies and representatives throughout the world. PALGRAVE™ is the new global publishing imprint of St. Martin’s Press LLC Scholarly and Reference Division and Palgrave Publishers Ltd. (formerly Macmil- lan Press Ltd.). ISBN 0–312–29440–9 hardback ISBN 0–312–29441–7 paperback Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Sifuentes-Jáuregui, Ben.. Transvestism, masculinity, and Latin American literature: genders share flesh / Ben. Sifuentes-Jáuregui. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–312–29440–9 (hc.) — ISBN 0–312–29441–7 (pbk.) 1. Spanish American literature—20th century—History and criticism. 2. Transvestites in literature. 3. Transvestism—Latin America 4. Masculinity in literature. 5. Gender identity in literature. I. Title. PQ7081 .S56 2002 860.9'98'09045—dc21 2001044639 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright Design by Westchester Book Composition First edition: February 2002 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page v Contents List of Illustrations vii Acknowledgments ix Introduction Chronicle of Gender Foretold: Transvestism 1 and the Difficulty of Gender Chapter 1 Nation and the Scandal of Effeminacy: 15 Rereading Los “41” Chapter 2 Fashion’s Lost Word: Carpentier Writes Woman 53 Chapter 3 Gender without Limits: 87 The Erotics of Masculinity in El lugar sin límites Chapter 4 Transvestite and Homobaroque Twirls: 119 Sarduy on the Verge of Reading Structuralism/ Psychoanalysis/Deconstruction Chapter 5 Kissing the Body Politic: 151 Engendering Heterosexuality/ Screening the Homosocial - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright Notes 193 Bibliography 223 Index 237 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui This page intentionally left blank Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page vii List of Illustrations 1.1. “¡Fuerza Nueva para Hombres!” [“New Strength for Men!],” El Imparcial, November 20, 1901. 27 1.2. José Guadalupe Posada’s “Calavera Catrina,” or “Calavera de la cucaracha.” 29 1.3. José Guadalupe Posada’s “Calavera de un lagartijo.” 29 1.4. “Los Lagartijos,” lithograph in El Mundo, July 27, 1897. Rpt. in Cosío Villegas. 30 1.5a. José Guadalupe Posada’s “Los 41 maricones encontrados en un baile de la calle de la Paz el 20 de noviembre de 1901.” [The 41 faggots found at a dance on Paz Street, November 20, 1901]. Front, loose pamphlet published by A. Vanegas Arroyo, 1901. Zinc etching. 32 1.5b. Continuation of corrido “Los 41 maricones . .”Back. Description: Men sweeping street. 33 1.6. José Guadalupe Posada, “Los 41.” Description: Calaveras [Skulls] - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright dancing with orchestra. Zinc etching. 35 1.7. José Guadalupe Posada, “El gran viaje de los 41 maricones para Yucatán.”[The great trip of the 41 faggots to Yucatan]. Loose leaf published by A. Vanegas Arroyo, 1901. Zinc etching. 36 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page viii viii List of Illustrations 1.8a. Detail,“El feminismo se impone.”[Feminism imposes itself] 39 1.8b. José Guadalupe Posada, “El feminismo se impone.” 1907. Zinc etching. 40 2.1. Alejo Carpentier [Jacqueline, pseudonym],“S. M. La Moda,” Social XI 2 (February 1926): 63–65. 77 Copyright material from www.palgraveconnect.com - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsoe - PalgraveConnect - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page ix Acknowledgments lthough I have spent my professional life using words and ideas, I find myself at a loss at this moment of acknowledging and giving A thanks to so many people who have helped make this book possi- ble.“Thank you” doesn’t begin to express the overwhelming sense of grat- itude that I feel for the ideas and time and friendship that many have shared over the last years. I hope everyone knows how important our conversa- tions, debates, and humor have been to the development and completion of this book. First of all, my greatest thanks go to Sylvia Molloy, who has acted as a teacher, an adviser, and a friend, patiently guiding me throughout this pro- ject with her brilliance and example. Without her support, I would not have been able to write it. I thank my teachers at Yale, where this project began. My teachers contributed enormously to my understanding of liter- ature: Roberto González-Echevarría encouraged me to find the “Jacque- line” articles; Shoshana Felman and the late Hugo Rodríguez-Vecchini were important theoretical mentors. I am also thankful to Nicolas Shumway, James Fernández, and Josefina Ludmer for sharing their ideas and critiques of my work. I am incredibly fortunate to be part of the Spanish and Portuguese Department at Rutgers,with wonderfully supportive colleagues. I thank them for providing a vibrant intellectual and professional space where I am able - 2011-03-08 - PalgraveConnect Tromsoe i - licensed to Universitetsbiblioteket www.palgraveconnect.com material from Copyright to rehearse my ideas. I thank Mary Lee Bretz, Mary Gossy,Jorge Marcone, Susan Martin-Márquez, Tomás Eloy Martínez, Dámaris Otero-Torres, Marcy Schwartz, Thomas Stephens, and Susana Rotker (who we miss so much), who shared their perspectives, read parts of the manuscript, and provided insightful criticism. Also, thanks to Lawrence LaFountain-Stokes, 10.1057/9780230107281 - Transvestism, Masculinity, and Latin American Literature, Ben. Sifuentes-Jauregui 15374_fm_i-xii.qrk 12/10/01 9:47 AM Page x x Acknowledgments who has been a superb interlocutor on questions queer and Latino. Yolanda Martínez-San Miguel read the entire manuscript and made perspicacious suggestions and criticisms; I thank her for her generous and brilliant sup- port. I am especially thankful to César Braga-Pinto for his knowledge of theory,our friendship, and “pizza.” During the 1998–1999 academic year, I was a faculty fellow of the Center for the Critical Analysis of Contemporary Culture at Rutgers. I am thankful to all the Fellows for helping me rethink questions of nation as they relate to sexuality. I particularly want to thank Susan Buck-Morss, Kim Butler, Pedro Caban, Bruce Robbins, and Carmen Whalen, who shared with me their work and criticism. I am grateful for the support of Rutgers, which granted me a sabbatical leave, allowing me to complete this project; I especially thank Barry Qualls for his support. In the profession, I have met many enthusiastic and kind readers who have contributed greatly to the intellectual design of this book. I thank Henry Abelove, Jossianna Arroyo, Daniel Balderston, Will Corral, Martin B. Duberman,