I, Rigoberta Menchu (first half)

 Week 7: I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala

Menchu's novel was so interesting to read, both structure and content-wise. I've never read a book that was created from recorded interviews, and the oral element shone through in the syntax and also the narrative being in first person, which really drew me in to her story, perspective, and experiences as a reader. In comparison with the other texts that we've read so far in the course, this was the first one that followed the life events of one specific person, which not only taught me in-depth about being Indian and indigenous in Guatemala and the prejudice that comes with that, but also communicated that although this is one person's emotional struggle with racism, colonialism, and identity as Indian and indigenous, there are hundreds of thousands of others who have similar experiences who didn't get the opportunity to leave situations like in the fincas or share their stories. In short, for me personally, this text is the most powerful of those that we've read, because we get to know Menchu and her life and journey, and understand how her life is just one example/part of the bigger picture of the struggle of bicultural identity in Guatemala and Latin America as a whole.

On a similar note, one of the most interesting aspects of the first half of the book is how her upbringing, switching from Altiplano to fincas throughout the year, mimics the complex navigation of her identity. Altiplano is where she feels at home, practicing ceremonies and traditions and heavily revolving around nature, but every couple months she is constantly taken away from this safe space to the fincas where her and her family are exploited, abused, and starved; although at this point she hasn't experience life outside of these 2 worlds, I think that the fincas represent the constant prejudice, discrimination, and racism that marginalized communities face that interrupt their lives and can take away their sense of self. Menchu's description and narration of her growing up and realizing that there's more than just the Altiplano and the finca and having hope for a different world and people, only to be extremely mistreated at her job in Guatemala City due to her heritage, was especially impactful to read and I think it aligns with one of the major themes from Arguedas' book: colonization is an open, never-ending project.