Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
A sociedade norte-americana é um caleidoscópio de culturas e etnias, em constante interação. Para demonstrar como a literatura reflete esta realidade, selecionei vários autores: Toni Morrison, Rudolfo Anaya e Joy Harjo. Estes escritores pertencem a três grupos étnicos bem definidos (os afro-americanos, os chicanos, os ameríndios); têm lutado pela divulgação da herança cultural, fazendo da escrita um instrumento interventivo; são autores contemporâneos e conhecedores das grandes questões e dilemas da sociedade atual. O meu objetivo é compreender como os referidos autores percecionam a relação entre os grupos étnicos e a terra, nas suas múltiplas dimensões: o impacto da perda do espaço de origem, devido ao transporte esclavagista, à deslocação forçada e à migração; a reconfiguração da comunidade étnica quando transita do espaço rural para a zona urbana, e/ou do norte para o sul; as dimensões do espaço mítico (o mito da terra-mãe-deusa, o significado dos lugares mágicos); a terra e as mulheres que a representam (a griot, a curandeira, as deusas primitivas); o espaço da sexualidade; a viagem como um ritual iniciático; a perceção do espaço económico; o espaço histórico e a identidade em mudança. Ao longo desta dissertação debato criticamente estes aspetos, recorrendo à análise literária e à abordagem multidisciplinar: sociologia, história, economia, e antropologia concorrem para uma compreensão do texto no seu contexto.
The North American society is a kaleidoscope of cultures and ethnic groups in constant interaction. To demonstrate how literature reflects this reality, I have selected various authors: Toni Morrison, Rudolfo Anaya and Joy Harjo. These writers belong to three very distinct ethnic groups: the African Americans, the Chicanos, and the Native Americans; they have fought for the diffusion of their cultural heritage, using the written word as an interventive tool; they are contemporary authors, and aware of the great issues and dilemmas which prevail in present society. My aim is to understand how the referred to authors perceive the relation between ethnic groups and the land in its multiple dimensions: the impact of the loss of space of origin due to the transportation of slaves, of forced displacement and migration; the reconfiguration of the ethnic community when travelling from a rural to a suburban area, and/or from north to south; the dimensions of the mythical space (the myth of the mother-earth-goddess, the meaning of magical places); the land and the women that represent it (the griot, the sorceress, the primitive goddess); the scope on sexuality; the voyage as the beginner’s ritual; the perception of the economic space; the changing historical amplitude of space and identity. Throughout this dissertation I critically debate these aspects by resorting to literary analysis and to a multidisciplinary approach: sociology, history, economy and anthropology contribute to a more complete understanding of the text within its context.
The North American society is a kaleidoscope of cultures and ethnic groups in constant interaction. To demonstrate how literature reflects this reality, I have selected various authors: Toni Morrison, Rudolfo Anaya and Joy Harjo. These writers belong to three very distinct ethnic groups: the African Americans, the Chicanos, and the Native Americans; they have fought for the diffusion of their cultural heritage, using the written word as an interventive tool; they are contemporary authors, and aware of the great issues and dilemmas which prevail in present society. My aim is to understand how the referred to authors perceive the relation between ethnic groups and the land in its multiple dimensions: the impact of the loss of space of origin due to the transportation of slaves, of forced displacement and migration; the reconfiguration of the ethnic community when travelling from a rural to a suburban area, and/or from north to south; the dimensions of the mythical space (the myth of the mother-earth-goddess, the meaning of magical places); the land and the women that represent it (the griot, the sorceress, the primitive goddess); the scope on sexuality; the voyage as the beginner’s ritual; the perception of the economic space; the changing historical amplitude of space and identity. Throughout this dissertation I critically debate these aspects by resorting to literary analysis and to a multidisciplinary approach: sociology, history, economy and anthropology contribute to a more complete understanding of the text within its context.