1.2 Identity & the Border

Migration and belonging

Contact between societies also happens through migration. Tomás Rivera's '...y no se lo tragó la tierra' portrays Mexican-American migrant farmworkers, their hardship, faith, and dignity.

Voice of a community

The novel's fragmented structure — many voices and moments — builds a collective portrait rather than a single hero, reflecting the shared experience of a whole community (la comunidad).

Afro-Hispanic identity

Nancy Morejón's 'Mujer negra' traces the history of an African woman brought to Cuba through slavery to freedom, reclaiming Afro-Cuban identity and voice across the centuries.

Key terms

'...y no se lo tragó la tierra'

Tomás Rivera — Mexican-American migrant workers

'Mujer negra'

Nancy Morejón — Afro-Cuban woman's history

la comunidad

the community — collective rather than individual focus

Fragmented structure

many voices building a communal portrait

Afro-Hispanic identity

reclaiming African heritage in Latin America

Try an AP-style question

Gloria Anzaldúa's concept of "la frontera" describes…

1. a hybrid cultural and psychological space
2. a rural farming region in northern Mexico
3. a strictly legal line between two nations
4. a Spanish colonial fort on the frontier