Vergüenza and Changing Chicano and Chicana Narratives

Abstract

Within anthropology, the role of vergüenza (shame) in maintaining “traditional” gender and family relations is well known. However, researchers have rarely focused on the ways that men and women have transformed and challenged the values associated with vergüenza. This article examines how Chicano and Chicana writers have reinterpreted vergüenza as part of their broader project of constructing borderland identities. It is shown how for Chicano and Chicana authors, such as Ernesto Galarza, Sandra Cisneros, and Gloria Anzaldúa, these reinterpretations are not only linked to social processes, such as migration, but also to the emergence of new understandings of culture and politics. The article concludes by noting that for anthropology, the study of vergüenza and changing Chicano and Chicana narratives offers new insights into understanding the cultural transformations surrounding the articulation of borderland identities.