On Identity, Place, Dignity, and Honor: The Madonnas of Echo Park (2010) by Brando Skyhorse

Authors

  • Amaya Ibarrarán-Bigalondo

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14198/raei.2014.27.05

Keywords:

Chicano literature, Space, Barrio, Identity, Masculinity

Abstract

Brando Skyhorse’s first novel, The Madonnas of Echo Park, set in Echo Park, Los Angeles, portrays the lives, thoughts and feelings of eight different and diverse characters. All of them expose their direct link to the space they inhabit: the barrio. Parting from the premise that the link between space and identity is inextricable, and the fact that the general living conditions and access to different resources is scarce in many U.S. Latino quarters, the aim of this essay is to observe whether the way the characters experience this space affects their personal identity and relation to dignity and honor. Particularly, the way barrio life affects and shapes the personality of male characters. For this purpose, we will employ Alfredo Mirandé’s conceptualization of Chicano masculinity, characterized by a strong sense of honor, dignity and pride, among other things. We thus will observe whether a tough environment produces tough men.

Funding

This essay is part of a project financed by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (code, FFI2011-23598) and the European Regional Fund (ERDF). It was also completed under the auspices of the research group REWEST funded by the Basque Government (Grupo Consolidado IT608-13) and the University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU (UFI 11/06).

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Published

15-11-2014

How to Cite

Ibarrarán-Bigalondo, Amaya. 2014. “On Identity, Place, Dignity, and Honor: The Madonnas of Echo Park (2010) by Brando Skyhorse”. Alicante Journal of English Studies / Revista Alicantina De Estudios Ingleses, no. 27 (November):79-90. https://doi.org/10.14198/raei.2014.27.05.

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Articles