Is Hispanic Literature Counter-Hegemonic?

The counter-hegemonic discourse is majorly centred on pushing or social change and ensure the ruling class act accordingly rather than for their benefit. The Hispanic literature also focuses on condemning slavery, labour exploitation, genre asymmetries and racism. It also focuses on challenging the government and ensuring that the people's right is upheld.

Articulating sovereignty is an essential question that various global governance practices and theories strive in answering. Familiarizing with the current and future global governance is quite fluid, while new tools are often needed to adapt to the ever-changing power relations. Most Latin American countries usually recognize the territorial rights of their indigenous citizens (Coletta & Malayna, 109). However, over time the Latin American critical thinking became more focused on the modernity paradigm. The global south faces a struggle between domination and coloniality logics. The domination and suppression pattern are pretty visible in the heart of modernity and thus the emergence of counter-hegemony.

However, there is excellent contradictions and possibilities in the region from the heterogeneous character. Understanding the hegemonic discourse critique aids in knowing about the cultural critic that led to the emergence of the hegemony notion in the 1980s. After the end of the cold war in the 1990s, the world embraces a new division on the global north and global south lines, unlike the first, second and third world. Over time the global south was denoted as DE colonial emancipated regions. Latin America was reiterated and preserved, and the ethnic and historic nature was neutral. Various frameworks have been set to rearticulate the sovereignty while also focusing on the global governance future. The hegemonic modernity critique results in relationality and plurality ideas vital in reshaping the modern political subject.

The Caribbean identity is essential in expressing the people’s ethos. Various historical contributing factors take part in formulating the many cultural roots of the Caribbean identity. Despite the European exterminating the indigenous population, the Caribbean literature denounces colonialism and domination (Igoudjil, 44). The Caribbean identity desires to establish an anti-colonial sentiment that dismantles the white supremacy hegemony. The uprising movement and rise of the civil right activists led to the light of the Trinidadian black power movement. Generating a Caribbean cultural process meant the renunciation of the western standard. The strategic intervention movement is crucial in shifting and shaping new identities vital in postcolonial epistemology. It is also effective in countering the Eurocentric narrative.

Most of the Caribbean writers use the colonizer's language to resist British domination. It has also initiated a necessary change within the Caribbean and African-American studies. The socio- political changes and literature modification reveals the interdependence of the two. Language is more than just a means of communication in the Caribbean. It can also act as a rebellion as there existed underground languages developed secretly. The linguistic hybridity brings forth a shred of clear evidence about the counter-hegemonic discourse in non-dominative knowledge.

Another counter-hegemonic movement is quite evident in the food sovereignty movement. It is a movement that aims at transforming the neoliberal food regime. The relationship between the peasant organization and the government is critical in establishing the struggles' nature guided by the food sovereignty discourse. These peasant organizations often struggle to retain autonomy from the state while shaping the counter-hegemony character (Henderson, 35). Most of these organizations struggle in implementing the reformist demands that would create a utopian demand frame with powerful principles. Food sovereignty is manifest as portrayed by various food sovereignty works. The political tool needs to be present while debating resource access even among Mexican peasant central.

The counter-hegemonic movement aims at transforming the neoliberal food regime’s underlying exploitation mechanism. It is a movement that also seeks to do away with the impoverishment, oppression and protect the vulnerable. However, there are threats along the way that leads to project stalling. The institutionalization of the Mexican peasant movement to ensure the ruling class is always on their toes when it comes to the peasants within the region.

If you believe Hispanic literature helps sustain or reject a particular order, such as machismo, racism, please justify?

Machismo

Various literature works continue to reinforce the depiction of Latino men in multiple aspects within society. The hegemonic masculinity is quite evident and has entrenched multiple portfolios, including literature, news media, religion and art. Its influence is apparent in the impact it has concerning the patriarchal hierarchy maintenance. Racism and hegemonic masculinity are societal phenomena with adverse effects on the mental health of women and men. It is because they also affect the political power and socioeconomic power of people. Men of colour, including Latino men's influence, is yet to be included in the cultural force and left out in discussions concerning inequality. These men often face battles that require them to adhere to western-European hegemonic masculinity and Latino expectations. The battle about machismo is also characterized as a masculine protest to respond to the humanly demeaning experiences and psychological torture that their ancestors had to endure during colonization. In modern times, machismo can be likened to another hegemonic masculinity version.

The Latino men have to persevere socioeconomic oppression and racism, which is excellent psychological torture for one to endure. It has also led to a heightened number of depression cases among Latino men who strive to gain dignity, respect and honour. It is a great sadness that can be expressed in the selected poems by Rosalia De Castro

“but… what a strident and magical howl The storm’s raucous voice brings?

Sad…. vague… constant and aggrieved,

It falls, burning like fire, inside me.” (qtd, selected poems, Castro, 21)

Modern Latino men suffer from the colonial machismo adopted ideology. It was also a great hindrance to the Latino community advancement; thus, the Latino people hardly exploited their full potential when pursuing their various aspirations. Due to the existing tension between the different genders, there Latino male aspect is often mocked. Gay Latinos often find themselves at crossroads when they either act as traditional males or accept themselves as gay males. Sadly, they often live with potential homophobia originating from their community. It has also led to most Latino people identify as heterosexual also go through the same anxiety. The limited representation of these groups on social media has led to the formation of a particular caricature. A man's pride emanates as a response to powerlessness that showcases itself as cynical anxiety. The Latino men tend to internalize their failure or success in machismo.

In contrast, people tend to think that success is often measured by future material wealth. It is the man pride that limits these men from seeking assistance. It also acts as a great hindrance to attaining the necessary information on issues related to mental health. Machismo, hegemonic masculinity, and Caballerismo often have expectations that Latino mean feal they have to meet. However, it has resulted in numerous mental health issues resulting in heightened anxiety and depression levels. The Latino men also shy away from receiving medical care and hardly have any coping skills to life stressors. These men also go through extremely high levels of reluctance and stigma once they desire to seek help on matters of mental health. In his poem Jose Marti speaks about hiding his pain and not coming forth to describe it

“In my bold breast I hide The pain that ever wounds it:

The son of a people enslaved

Lives for them, falls, silent, dies” (qtd simple verses, Marti Jose, 275)

Understanding the harmful effects of stereotypes in modern society is vital in embracing diversity. It will enable people to embrace inclusivity rather than view certain cultures as unrealistic caricatures. People will also get a chance to have a different mentality viewpoint and be more open to the multitudes evident within humanity. Once this is embraced, the Latino men can also have equal opportunity to explore society while exploring their aspiration and accepting their flaws.

Machismo lives on within the Latino communities. It is paramount for Latino men to engage in exploring their ethnic identity and understand their community background. It will become quite helpful in developing a better coping mechanism to deal with any life stressors that they come across.

Racism

The racial barrier is a significant stumbling block that is quite evident among numerous Hispanic literature. The Mexican-Americans have minimal participation within the society and thus resulted in racialization. It has also resulted in educational disadvantage across various generations. The students also continue to face significant stigma and prejudice within their classrooms.

Racism has a significant impact, with a lack of diversity having a substantial effect on patients and midwives. Diversification would prove great benefit as it will address the issue of racism within the work profession. The racism effects are quite adverse as it affects how one identifies with their ethnic community. It also affects how different people interact with others without worrying what other people would think differently. However, with inclusivity all these pains and fear of failing to belong shall come to pass. In the poem the ineffable, found in women’s writing in Latin America anthology, Agustini Delmira expresses how the tortures shall come to and end miraculously.

“Oh, cruelest of tortures! Externally to bear this ache, this sterile, tragic seed

sunk in my womb like a ferocious fang!

But oh, one day to pluck it out a budding flower, inviolate and miraculous…’ twould be no greater

if in my hand I held the head of God” (qtd, the ineffable, Agustini 126)

Due to racism, people are bound to experience life-long trauma with limited ways to cope with stressful situations that they find themselves in. There is also the inability to account for the intergenerational trauma experience due to little documentation (Kirkinis, 2). People fear giving out their data due to rejection from the community within. The discussion on racism, prejudice and machismo continues to occupy social psychology year in year out. the extreme anguish brought about by racism can be seen as huge life blows that one can hardly comprehend. In the poem, the Black riders, Neruda & Vallejo selected poems the authors express about how tough life can be

“there are blows in life so violent- I can’t answer!

Were backed up in the soul… I can’t answer!” (qtd, the black riders, Neruda & Vallejo179)

Various perspectives seem to crop up while reflecting the culturally monolithic system that defines the Hispanic experience. The civil rights movement have minimal chances to access educational opportunities as well as venture into other professions. There is excellent institutional insensitivity among the Hispanics who wish to forge further beyond their ethnic outlook. The racial hybridity ideal also resulted in some misunderstanding due to irrational miscegenation fear. There is also structural inequity in various literary works while economic segregation which the ethnic group remain evident. The racism is also hostile and direct among Mexicans who also don't want to report the incidences due to fear. The Hispanics continue to face judgment due to their skin colour in different areas they choose to venture into always.

Racism and machismo are affronts to the social interest and the Latino men impediments.

Realizing full potential is yet a dream that needs to be achieved. It is time to focus beyond the dehumanizing effects of racism and masculinity within the Hispanic community. Through exposure, acceptance and learning to heal the wounds from the past, it can be significant progress into striving to achieve the needed goal within the society.