What are 'Borderlands Narratives'?

Narratives are stories: stories we hear, stories we tell others, stories we tell ourselves. Sometimes these stories are old ones, and may sound familiar. Sometimes these stories are brand new, stories that have emerged in our own lifetimes. The stories we will discuss on this site are stories of and about the Mexican-U.S. borderlands, that frontier zone in which people live, work, and play. We will be responding to our sources and to each other's views on this site, and we invite YOU to join us in our discussions and explorations.

A disclaimer: We are not experts! In addition to reading (or viewing) this collection of narratives for the first time, we are all in the process of learning about this unique cultural space and its history. Please use caution when reading OUR narratives, and make sure to cite us: http://www.borderlandsnarratives.blogspot.com/

This blog has been constucted by Professor Geneva M. Gano's American Studies class at Indiana University, Bloomington, in Spring 2010 and Spring 2011. Responses to our posts are welcomed!

Monday, February 14, 2011

The Problem of Speaking for Others

Here we have a cartoon, drawn by Ashcan artist John Sloan, which indicates his interest in a political aesthetic of Anarchism and a critical stance toward bourgeois commercial consumption.  In this image, titled "Indian Detour," we see tourists avoiding what D.H. Lawrence described as the trap of "making the Indian and his 'religion'... a sort of public pet."  At the same time, we can visually comprehend the "problem of speaking for others" that Linda Alcoff discusses in her groundbreaking 1991 essay, "The Problem of Speaking for Others."  What is being learned or experienced here?  Who even cares?  Consider this image in the light of Edward Said's claim that "far more than they fight, cultures coexist and interact fruitfully with each other."


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