SACRED SITES: THE SOCIAL-SPIRITUAL AND FEMINIST PRACTICE OF CONTEMPORARY LATINA/O NARRATIVE BY JENNIFER M. LOZANO DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2017 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor Richard T. Rodríguez, Chair, University of California Riverside Associate Professor Siobhan Somerville Associate Professor Susan Koshy Associate Professor Lisa Cacho ABSTRACT “Sacred Sites: The Social-Spiritual and Feminist Practice of Contemporary Latina/o Narrative” identifies and reads an archive of established and emerging genres of Latina/o narrative—Chicano/a movement and women of color feminist print culture, “multicultural” women’s writing, young adult and science fiction narrative, and “world literature”—to show that the interplay among writing, representational politics, and spirituality can form a contested nexus for revaluing Latina/o cultural production and mapping Latino/a experience and identity in the context of global capitalism. By reading these texts in the context of their material and social conditions of possibility, especially within the university and literary establishment, I argue that the texts deliberately blur the boundary between symbolic/spiritual dimensions of cultural production and the physical/material politics of culture. I refer to this often gendered writing, interpretive, and political practice as “social-spirituality” and contend that it extends the political and artistic tradition of women of color feminism into the 21st century. As I show, this textual practice maps queer networks of affiliation and possibility beyond the more traditionally legible analytics of race, ethnicity, kinship, nation, and gender. As a result, social-spirituality also displaces neoliberal narrative tropes of authenticity, individualism, rationality, and transactional interpretive value. “Sacred Sites” also works to develop a social-spiritual method of reading to recover the often-obscured spiritual labor of writing and storytelling and its connection to cultural production, circulation, and reception off the page. Teasing out these connections, the project shows the way that even mainstream and well-circulated narrative works can generate material and imaginative networks that recalibrate Latino/a identity and culture though the very act of and approach to cultural production. Despite neoliberalism’s very real investment in Latina/o cultural ii work, this dissertation aims to show that attention to spirituality in contemporary Latina/o narrative can reveal and instigate different narrative strategies and identities that challenge the uneven distribution of power and imaginative possibilities of the neoliberal project. iii AKNOWLEDGEMENTS Although it is in good form to express gratitude in this section for the people and places that have sustained both this dissertation and myself, the truth is that there is not a single page of this project that fails to bear the mark of those referenced here. The seedling of this project began while I was yet an undergraduate at Texas A&M University where, if it were not for the few professors (Dr. Marco Portales and Dr. Howard Marchitello) who took the time to listen to and advise this shy Latina from the Valley, I would never have taken the first steps toward becoming a scholar and teacher in the university setting that was so unfamiliar to me. Even more, the academic community, family, and friends that I have been enriched by over the years at Kansas State University, the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and Colorado College have been invaluable co-conspirators in transforming this project from ideas and speculation into completed reality. Of course, ideas and speculation are also crucial components of scholarship, and I would like to especially thank my committee members—Professor Ricky Rodríguez, Professor Siobhan Somerville, Professor Susan Koshy, and Professor Lisa Cacho—for always leaving space for me to think in unexpected ways in order to discover what I needed to intellectually. Your dynamic classes provided these spaces for myself and for many others, and each of you has provided steadfast and timely support for the writing process, career development, and the emotional and personal pitfalls of academic life. Moreover, in my mind, there are few scholars more dedicated to supporting students of color and first generation students in higher education than the members of this committee and, to the end, I am eternally grateful for their rigorous, but supportive mentorship. A special debt of gratitude is also owed to my dissertation chair and advisor, Ricky Rodríguez. Without a doubt, Ricky is the reason myself and many other students iv survive the often-hostile environment of academia. Ricky has tirelessly read countless drafts of articles, chapters, conference papers, abstracts, and job materials with his characteristic incisiveness and generosity. He has been an advocate for my work as a scholar and teacher even at times when I was not. There are not enough or adequate words to describe the dedication he has shown to both this project and to myself. Beyond my committee, I would also like to thank Professor Gordon Hutner for the advice and mentorship he provided me during my appointment as the Assistant Editor of American Literary History, as well as Michael Cucher, Rashna Batliwala Singh, Luis Othoniel Rosa, Ingryd Robin, and Julie Novic at Colorado College who provided much needed feedback and encouragement at a time when I was far from family— academic and otherwise. As it turns out, the old Beatles lyrics: “I get by with a little help from my friends” could not have proven truer than over the eight-plus years of graduate school. During this time I met and befriended some of the most insightful, kind, and delightfully weird individuals. From K- State, Josh Pearson, Elizabeth Jett Bell, and Rebecca McCloud remain intellectual and social comrades. The “motley crew” at UIUC—Deborah Tienou, Patricia Sunia, Silas Cassinelli, Ben Bascom, Elyse Vigiletti, Noel Zavala, and many others—made the occasional drudgery of graduate school bearable and, dare I say, even enjoyable. For my dear friends outside of academia—Nina Olivieri, Ansley Galjour, Diana Dierks, Ursula Davila, Cheryl Mannel, Leila Hernandez, Annika Nicoli—thank you for providing me a respite from the pressures of the university, for literal shelter during my visits, and for much needed conversation and perspective. Again, without these folks to laugh, commiserate, and collaborate with, there would be little to no joy or inspiration behind this project or any other scholarly work I have pursued. Finally, I must also express the deepest thanks for my best friend and life partner, Levi Jost. He is my v toughest critic and most steadfast advocate. Levi read draft after draft of job and fellowship material and never failed to see the potential in each of them. I largely credit Levi with any modest success I have achieved, particularly within the last year of dissertation work where he took on the brunt of managing our day-to-day life while I completed the project. Somehow Levi manages to keep me on my toes while still providing me with unconditional love; I love you and am blessed beyond measure to call you my partner in both good and bad times. A special thank you is also in order for our daughter, Leah Simone, who we will get to meet soon, and who has given me the ultimate push to complete this project. I have a feeling that this is only the beginning of the many ways you will inspire me to do and be better. As the texts in this dissertation evidence, familia is nothing if not complicated. Nonetheless, I am wholeheartedly grateful to the familia I was born into—both nearby and distant—and those that have chosen and accepted me. My prima, Deb Paredez, I thank you for your advice and for being a role model of bravery, dedication, and engaged scholarship long before I entered this career path. I am grateful to my Jost family and especially to Kim Jost who has been patient and supportive of Levi and I’s career for what must have seemed like an eternity and for Sola Jost who always welcomes me as her own during our visits to South Dakota. And, of course, I am eternally grateful to my own parents who, not having any idea about the winding career path I chose, have supported me financially, emotionally, and physically without thinking twice. Dad (John Lozano), I am so grateful to you for introducing me to libraries and for instilling in me a love of learning that has lasted well-beyond our science experiment days of the early 90s. And, Mom (Gracie Lozano), there really are no words to describe all you have done to nourish and support me throughout this journey. Thank you for the many hours you have spent talking me down from the ledge, making me laugh, and just plain listening (without judgment) to vi me complain about the challenges in front of me. You are my most beloved “Gladys Kravitz” without whom nothing I have done in this life would be possible. I love both of you so much. Finally, I am thankful to the familia that has gone before us, both Lozano and Villarreal, who sacrificed and laid the foundation so someone like me could chase her dream. For all those mentioned here (and those forgotten), I praise and thank God. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION WRITING, READING, SPIRITUALITY & THE POLITICS OF LATINA/O STORYTELLING .........................