Uncovering La Malinche Adrijana Jerkic a Thesis
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INTERPRETATION OF ICONOGRAPHY AND ICONOGRAPHY OF INTERPRETATION: UNCOVERING LA MALINCHE ADRIJANA JERKIC A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS GRADUATE PROGRAM IN TRANSLATION STUDIES YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO APRIL 2015 © ADRIJANA JERKIC, 2015 ABSTRACT In historiography, the interpreters or translators who accompanied the principal actors in many historic events have little or no presence in written or visual accounts. La Malinche, an interpreter during the Spanish conquest of today's Mexico, is an exception to this. She is probably one of the most represented cultural icons in history. This thesis looks at La Malinche's representations in texts and images produced in the 16th century and from the 18th to 21st centuries. It puts those two semiotic modes in dialogue, exploring how they inform or contradict each other. To do so, I draw on Erwin Panofsky's Three Level Iconology and Iconography Method and María Calzada Pérez's Three Level Method. La Malinche's representation in texts and in images during the 16th century reflects how she was used as a symbol in the dominant Spanish discourse during that time. Her representation from the 18th century onwards speaks to how she was resignified and what purpose she served in the emerging nation building process in Mexico. Key words: La Malinche, interpretation, history of interpreting, Art History, Translation Studies, Critical Discourse Analysis. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my thesis advisor, Prof. Lyse Hébert, for all her support, generosity and guidance. Her course on Translation Theory in the Certificate of Spanish-English/English-Spanish translation was the first course I took upon my arrival in Canada and her passion and approach to Translation Studies has changed the way in which I perceive academia. Her humanity, enthusiasm, and devotion to teaching and research inspired me to start and pursue my own research. I will always be grateful for all I have learned, and continue to learn, from her. I would also like to express my appreciation to Prof. María Constanza Guzmán whose course on Experiences of Translation in the Americas opened my eyes to this fascinating topic, and is behind the conceiving of the idea of this thesis. My sincere gratitude to Prof. Ian Martin, Suzanne Langlois, María Constanza Guzmán and Lyse Hébert for generously agreeing to be on my defense committee. It is a great honour to have my work read by them and to receive their comments and guidance. I also wish to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all Glendon College professors whose devotion to teaching and research has enabled me to learn about many enthralling topics and encouraged me to continue broadening my knowledge. For that I must thank Prof. Marie- Christine Aubin, Qjinti Isabel Oblitas, Julie McDonough-Dolmaya, Alejandro Zamora, Esther Raventós-Pons and Martha Bátiz. A special thanks goes to Jacqueline Angoh for her kindness and help, as well as to Francesca Di Rosa for her invaluable support and generosity during all my years in Glendon. iii Likewise, I wish to extend my sincere gratitude to Michelle Letarte for her support and generosity. My gratitude goes to my friends who I have met through translation, and who have tirelessly accompanied me on this any many other journeys. For the laughter, support, travelling and countless "Translators do" moments I must thank Gabriela Rodas, Ixchel Aleph Cervantes Crespy, Maya Worth, Valentina Cova, Yanru Zhu, Alexia Papadopoulos, Hazar Al Kheder, Jietao Tang, Evelin García, Victoria Radvan, Sanjukta Banerjee and Janice Flavien. I have learned a lot from Jamille Pinheiro Dias and Thaicia Stona, and I would like to thank them for their support and generosity. My first steps in Toronto would have not been as joyous without Adriana Kolijn, whom I thank for all the music. I would like to thank Tania Pla Osca, Diego Arias Fuentes, and many others who are or have been part of the Spanish Resource Centre for all the cheerful moments and for allowing my Spanish side to thrive in Canada. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to baka Zaga whose endless optimism has helped me to become the person I am today, to deda Jova who inspired me to write, to Srećko for always being willing to help, and to my mother who has taught me to never give up and who is, and always will be, my greatest inspiration. Finally, I would like to thank Alberto for his unconditional support, for encouraging me to pursue my dreams and for being the best part of every journey I set out on. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgments............................................................................................................ iii Table of Contents .............................................................................................................. v List of Illustrations .......................................................................................................... vii Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One: Theoretical Framework ............................................................................ 12 1.1 Literature Review .............................................................................................. 15 1.2 María Calzada Pérez: Three-level methodology ............................................... 21 1.3 Iconology and Iconography ............................................................................... 27 1.4 Erwin Panofsky: Three-level iconology and iconography method ................... 29 1.5 Methodology ...................................................................................................... 33 Chapter Two: Textual representations of La Malinche .................................................. 39 2.1 La Malinche in text ............................................................................................ 39 2.2 La Malinche in 16th century texts ....................................................................... 42 2.2.1 The True History of the Conquest of New Spain. Bernal Díaz del Castillo .......................................................................... 42 2.2.2 The Florentine Codex. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún .............................. 60 2.2.3 Letters to Emperor Charles V. Hernán Cortés ......................................... 67 2.3 Textual approaches: after 16th century ............................................................... 72 2.3.1 Labyrinth of Solitude. Octavio Paz .......................................................... 75 Chapter Three: Visual representations of La Malinche .................................................. 80 3.1 La Malinche in images ....................................................................................... 80 3.2 La Malinche in 16th century images ................................................................... 82 3.2.1 The Lienzo de Tlaxcala ............................................................................ 82 3.2.2 The Florentine Codex. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún .............................. 91 3.2.3 Codex Azcatitlán ...................................................................................... 96 3.3 Visual approaches: after 16th century................................................................. 98 3.3.1 Visual representations during 17th and 18th centuries ............................ 100 3.3.2 Visual representations during 19th and 20th centuries ............................ 102 Chapter Four: La Malinche across images and texts .................................................... 111 4.1 Meaning made in texts ....................................................................................... 111 4.2 Meaning made in images ................................................................................... 115 4.3 Meaning constructed across images and texts.................................................... 121 v Conclusions ................................................................................................................... 129 Bibliography ................................................................................................................. 134 Appendix Images ....................................................................................................... 151 vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 1: The Lienzo de Tlaxcala: Overview ........................................................... 152 Figure 2: The Lienzo de Tlaxcala: Yliyocan ............................................................ 153 Figure 3: The Lienzo de Tlaxcala: Tecoaccinco ...................................................... 154 Figure 4: The Lienzo de Tlaxcala: Quitlaqualmacaque ........................................... 155 Figure 5: Juan de Flandes: Resurrection ................................................................. 156 Figure 6: Pedro de Berruguete: Prophet Ezekiel ..................................................... 157 Figure 7: The Lienzo de Tlaxcala: Temple scene ..................................................... 158 Figure 8: Juan Martínez Montañés: Virgin Mary .................................................... 159 Figure 9: Pedro de Berruguete: Annnunciation ......................................................