University of Kentucky UKnowledge Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies Hispanic Studies 2016 Indigenista Heroes and Femmes Fatales: Myth-Making in Latin American Literature and Film Megan O'Neil University of Kentucky, [email protected] Digital Object Identifier: http://dx.doi.org/10.13023/ETD.2016.256 Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation O'Neil, Megan, "Indigenista Heroes and Femmes Fatales: Myth-Making in Latin American Literature and Film" (2016). Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies. 29. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/hisp_etds/29 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Hispanic Studies at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 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Megan O'Neil, Student Dr. Enrico Mario Santí, Major Professor Dr. Moisés Castillo, Director of Graduate Studies INDIGENISTA HEROES AND FEMMES FATALES: MYTH-MAKING IN LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE AND FILM _____________________________________ DISSERTATION _____________________________________ A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky By Megan Ann O’Neil Lexington, Kentucky Director: Dr. Enrico Mario Santí, Professor of Hispanic Studies Lexington, Kentucky 2016 Copyright © Megan Ann O’Neil 2016 ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION INDIGENISTA HEROES AND FEMMES FATALES: MYTH-MAKING IN LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE AND FILM This dissertation explores myth-making in Latin America by focusing specifically upon four Amerindian and mestizo figures: Doña Bárbara, mestiza protagonist of Rómulo Gallegos’ 1929 novel; Anacaona and Hatuey, Taíno caciques who first appeared in Bartolomé de las Casas’ Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias (1552); and Andrés Chiliquinga, indigenous protagonist of Jorge Icaza’s Huasipungo (1934). The present analysis examines the evolution of these myths from their original appearance to literary and film versions throughout the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries in the Caribbean and Andean regions. The project focuses upon the ways in which artists have interpreted these myths, their embedding in society’s collective memory, and their mythical functions in anti- and postcolonial discourse. By breaking down each myth into its most basic structure, this project identifies the core connotations contained within that reveal each myth’s function as a cultural foundation in Latin America. It also examines how the versions of a myth depart from one another, thus underscoring possible critiques of the myth. Finally, it examines the ways in which some of these myths have become commodities, particularly in contemporary popular culture. By examining these figures as cultural myths—bridging past and present—, this research argues that a mythic- interpretive model proves effective as it leads us to a deeper understanding of the universal connotations contained not only within the stories chosen here, but the Latin American narrative as a whole. KEYWORDS: Myth, Postcolonial, Positivism, Indigenismo, Lévi-Strauss, Barthes Megan A. O’Neil April 25, 2016 Date INDIGENISTA HEROES AND FEMMES FATALES: MYTH-MAKING IN LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE AND FILM By Megan Ann O’Neil Dr. Enrico Mario Santí Director of Disseration Dr. Moisés Castillo Director of Graduate Studies April 25, 2016 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation could not have been accomplished without the support and guidance of many people. First and foremost, I would like to thank Dr. Enrico Mario Santí, whose guidance, attention, and patience throughout this entire process have had a profound influence on my writing and research, of which I will be eternally grateful. Special thanks to Dr. Yanira Paz for her guidance and encouragement, and her insights into Venezuelan culture. I would also like to thank Dr. Carmen Moreno-Nuño for her support throughout this project, and for guiding me in the language of film. To Dr. Erik Myrup, thank you for graciously accepting a position on my committee, and for your guidance in historical matters. Finally, I would also like to extend my gratitude to Dr. Moisés Castillo, my Graduate Director, whose incredible support and encouragement has helped me immensely throughout this process. I would also like to acknowledge the support of my friends and family and their unwavering belief in me. Special thanks to Jacob Neely for listening to me go on endlessly about myth. And especially to my mom, who not only supported me throughout this process, but whose interest in my topic has prompted her to read or watch almost half of the works in my dissertation. Finally, I would like to dedicate this dissertation to the memory of Dr. Ferne D. Garrett, my grandmother, who received her doctorate in 1972 and became an incredible inspiration to all of the women in my family. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iii Chapter One: Introduction: Myth, Culture and Community ................................................1 Myth and the Anti- and Postcolonial Debates .........................................................9 Myth and Anthropology: Indianismo and Indigenismo ........................................22 Chapter Two: Doña Bárbara and the Latin-American Femme Fatale: From National Allegory to Commodified Myth ........................................................................................29 Introduction ............................................................................................................29 Rómulo Gallegos’ Doña Bárbara (1929): Civilization and Barbarity on the Venezuelan Llano ..................................................................................................30 Versions of the Myth .............................................................................................51 Doña Bárbara (1943) and Mexico’s Golden Age of Cinema ...................51 Betty Kaplan’s Doña Bárbara (1998): Evolution of a Femme Fatale ......56 The Doña Bárbara Telenovelas: 1968, 1972, 2008 ...................................59 The Doña Bárbara Myth .......................................................................................64 The Monomyth, or the Hero’s Journey ......................................................65 The Myth of Civilization and Barbarity .....................................................73 Femmes-Fatales .........................................................................................86 Conclusion .............................................................................................................92 Chapter Three: (Post)Colonial Myth-Making: Anacaona, La flor de oro, and Hatuey, El primer rebelde de Cuba .....................................................................................................96 Introduction ............................................................................................................96 Colonial Spanish Myth-Making: Las Casas, Anacaona, and Hatuey ....................98 Versions of the Myths ..........................................................................................111 The Siboneísta School: Juan Cristóbal Nápoles Fajardo’s “Hatuey y Guarina” (1848-60) ..................................................................................111 Dominican Nationalism and Salomé Ureña de Henríquez’s Anacaona (1880) .......................................................................................................115 Hatuey in the Cuban Independence Period: 1868-1902 ..........................121 Hatuey and Post-Independence Cuba: César Rodríguez Expósito’s Hatuey: el primer libertador de Cuba (1944) ..........................................130 The Haitian-American Diaspora: Edwidge Danticat’s