The I in the Other: Reflections on Contemporary Forms of Chicana Identity and in Art, Literature, and Popular Culture

Abstract

This thesis aims to argue that Chicana identity is self-constructed, and more specifically is built on defiance or internalization of cultural and social expectations. It illustrates main points through examples of Chicana experience and identity shaped by outside forces and perceptions, and will also examine cases of border identities being misrepresented and commodified, and I will also touch upon racialized and radicalized sexuality and attraction among Mexican-American and Latina women.In conclusion, this paper seeks to examine the Chicana experience from both an individualistic and societal perspective, taking into consideration multiple aspects of marginalization, cultural norms, and the effects of beauty-culture. Other than literary and art analysis, this paper also attempts to prove that popular culture and social perceptions trivialize the complex experiences and identities of marginalized women, and dismiss oppression and cultural narratives, while inadvertently helping to maintain portrayal of women of color as sexually desirable for being perceived as exotic, oversexualized, or submissive.