The Contemporary Mexican Chronicle
Theoretical Perspectives on the Liminal Genre
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Diverse perspectives on the “chronicle”as a literary genre and socio-cultural practice.
Description
The crónica, or chronicle, which crosses the boundaries between fiction and nonfiction, literature and journalism, is a highly polemical and widely read form of writing in Mexico and throughout Latin America, where it plays an influential cultural, social, and historical role. For the first time, this book addresses the theory and practice of the chronicle in twentieth-century Mexico. Contributions by Mexican writers such as Carlos Monsiváis and Elena Poniatowska and essays on a wide range of texts and authors provide diverse perspectives on the chronicle as a literary genre and as a cultural and social practice.
Ignacio Corona is Assistant Professor of Spanish at The Ohio State University and the author of Después de Tlatelolco: Las narrativas políticas en México (1976–1990). Beth E. Jörgensen is Associate Professor of Spanish at the University of Rochester and the author of The Writing of Elena Poniatowska: Engaging Dialogues.
Reviews
"It is amazing that there are almost no studies of the genre of the 'crónica.' The radical reformulation of the essay format and sharp analytic commentaries about contemporary Mexico have made crónica one of the most signal genres of the late twentieth century. This book provides a thorough introduction, tracing the crónica's historical roots, giving a very well conceived argument about the contributions of the contemporary crónica, along with close readings of specific texts. This volume fills an important gap and will become a standard reference." — Debra A. Castillo, author of Easy Women: Sex and Gender in Modern Mexican Fiction