Chicana Sexuality and Gender

“Chicana Sexuality and Gender is a complex and multifaceted rendering of major Mexican cultural and religious female icons and figures in contemporary cultural productions.” - Camilla Fojas, NWSA Journal

“Chicana Sexuality and Gender is the first full-length study of Chicana literature to analyze oral histories as narrative representations along with fictional writings and visual artists’ representations. This study offers one of the most thorough discussions of the archetypes of La Malinche, La Llorona, and La Virgen de Guadalupe as well as the lesser known Mexica goddesses. . . . Debra J. Blake makes a great contribution to Chicano/a studies, feminist theory, cultural studies, and literary studies.” - Nadia Avendaño, Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies

“Blake brings a new perspective to Chicana Studies through these oral histories and her own analysis of the meanings of these figures on the lives of these women. . . . Chicana Sexuality and Gender is a much welcome addition to the canon of Chicana feminist theory.” - Monica Teresa Ortiz, Feminist Review blog

“Blake makes an important contribution not only to the literature on Chicana identity and sexuality, but also to the field of oral history and audience interpretation analysis. Chicana Sexuality and Gender is informative, well written, and enjoyable for anyone in the fields of Chicana/o Studies or Women’s Studies, as well as for anyone grappling with the methodological problematics of ethnography or interviewing.” - Amanda L. Morales, Journal of American Ethnic History

“Blake’s study presents new and exciting possibilities for scholars in literary studies who long to enflesh literary theory with lived experience and for oral historians who are considering their own ‘border crossing’ into literary studies. More importantly, this study sanctions a space in the trajectory of Chicana feminist scholarship for the inclusion and scholarly consideration of the voices of working-class women and nonprofessional intellectuals.” - Larissa M. Mercado-López, Oral History Review

“Debra J. Blake makes a great contribution to Chicano/a studies, feminist theory, folklore, and literary studies. Much has been written on La Malinche, La Llorona, and the Virgin of Guadalupe but Blake’s study is one of the most thorough, perceptive, and brilliantly argued.” - María Herrera-Sobek, author of Chicano Folklore: A Handbook

“Debra J. Blake’s approach to the discussion of the archetypes of La Malinche, La Llorona, and La Virgen de Guadalupe, and her inclusion of other lesser-known figures, allow her to go beyond the mere rehashing of the same old discussions as she introduces women’s voices whose very existence questions the archetypes. By including and analyzing personal narratives collected in a series of interviews, the author explores the real-life existence of these figures in contemporary Chicana lives. This scholarly and illuminating text offers a fresh view of these often oversimplified images and icons found in Mexican female iconography.” - Norma E. Cantú, author of Canícula: Snapshots of a Girlhood en la Frontera