The imaginary between "la ausencia o el regreso". Migrants identities and stereotypes in the Altos de Jalisco region. Narrative analysis of Al filo del agua by Agustín Yáñez.

Abstract

The place of origin of the family of the novelist Agustín Yáñez -Yahualica- has an old migratory tradition to the United States. It can be called a transnational community, in which the migrant population is recognized as an active population, socially, economically and politically. Even so, migrants do not escape the negative stereotypes constructed by predominantly conservative members of the community. The migrant identity has been culturally constructed. Literature as a concrete cultural product allows us to trace the construction of migrant identity and stereotypes, in the case of Yañez's work, from one century to another, if we place ourselves in the period that the work reflects, and the current perception of the yahualiscenses. To establish the representation of migrants, at the dawn of the Mexican revolution, as a starting point for the development of stereotypes and identities of this group of the population, a narrative analysis of the novel Al filo del agua, was carried out, to know the elements with which they adhere to the social imaginary, perpetuating or resisting conventions. The actions of the migrant characters, their relationship with the social environment and their iconographic representation are analyzed. The identities and stereotypes found were compared with those recognized through interviews with some members of the community today. Thus, we can know two moments in the construction of the cultural discourse on migrants.