An Examination of the Queer, the Macho, and the Ambiguous Male in Arturo Islas's the Rain God

Author

Delilah Marie Farias, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Date of Award

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

English

First Advisor

Dr. Caroline Miles

Second Advisor

Dr. Marisa Knox

Third Advisor

Dr. Cathryn Merla-Watson

Abstract

Mexican-American males are shaped by their cultural values, history, religion, and family values. They are measured by the standard set forth in machismo and are expected to act accordingly. Machismo is a concept that is deeply rooted in Catholicism, the Aztec culture, the Mexican-American nuclear family, and it is handed down in the upbringing of men and women. In Arturo Islas’s novel, The Rain God, he creates a representation of the three different identities that men are subjugated to. He creates the machista within the patriarchal character of Miguel Grande, the ambiguous male in his son Miguel Chico, and the queer macho in Uncle Felix. Since these men are all measured by the conventions created within machismo, they fail to show society who they truly are. Islas’s writings elucidates the stigma of machismo and how it allows homophobia to exist in an unbreakable continuum.

Comments

Copyright 2018 Delilah Marie Farias. All Rights Reserved.

https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/examination-queer-macho-ambiguous-male-arturo/docview/2103938357/se-2?accountid=7119

Recommended Citation

Farias, Delilah Marie, "An Examination of the Queer, the Macho, and the Ambiguous Male in Arturo Islas's the Rain God" (2018). Theses and Dissertations. 230.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/etd/230