4. Rolando Hinojosa: Klail City Death Trip Series

The novelistic project of Rolando Hinojosa—known as the KCDTS, or Klail City Death Trip Series¹—encompasses seven published volumes to date.² Although it may appear that each book stands as an independent unit, the narrative coherence evident throughout Hinojosa's novels supports Rosaura. Sánchez' observation that they make up "a unitary text with a macrostructure within which are articulated microstructures (that is, the individual volumes)" ("From Heterogeneity" 76). This narrative unity is organized along a series of complex stylistic features such as multiplicity of narrators and characters, fragmentation of time, and variability of point of view ­in addition to the blending of diverse literary, folkloristic, and his­torical discourses.³ Yet the narrative's apparent simplicity may puzzle readers who first enter the aesthetic world of the fictional Belken County.

Yolanda Broyles suggests that in Klail City y sus alrededores "we are invaded by a feeling that the townspeople are in truth speaking for themselves instead of being narrated" (119). This impression of collectivity is particularly evident in the Spanish narratives (Estampas del valle, Klail City y sus alrededores, Claros varones de Belken, and Mi querido Rafa). In contrast, the works written in English, where the settings portrayed are primarily non-Chicano (Korean Love Songs, Rites and Witnesses, and Partners in Crime), convey a markedly different effect, as the two protagonists, Jehú Malacara and Rafa Buenrostro, gradually distance themselves from activities in the Chicano community and enter into an Anglo-American public sphere.⁴

Following the literary tradition of Mark Twain, García Lorca, and Juan Rulfo, among others, Hinojosa renders the grammar and modulation of popular speech into writing. Although Hinojosa accomplishes this task apparently with little effort, it is a difficult balancing act that requires translating oral conventions into literary terms,

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a procedure that involves reinterpreting the functions and values of variant artistic and social contexts. This transit from one discourse to another in the KCDTS, however, requires familiarity with those conflicting planes of discourse at which the Anglo and Mexican cultures meet. Such exchanges involve a debate over alternative normative values, and in the imaginary world of Belken County—as is wont to occur in other cultures—the debate is expressed through comic or satiric discourse. Only someone like Hinojosa, a lifetime participant and observer of a traditional border community, would be capable of registering the cultural complexities implicit in the tales of Klail City.⁵

Hinojosa's varied literary indebtedness, however, must not be disregarded. The invention of an imaginary Belken County, for example, is a thinly disguised attempt to represent the Mexican communities of the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, in the manner of Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County. Hinojosa has acknowledged his admiration for Faulkner in unequivocal terms: "Anyone who writes is going to have to read Faulkner," and he credits the Mississippian for his own inspiration to write: "When I read The Unvanquished—which in some ways parallels what I am doing with the Mexican Revolution in my work, as well as the coming together of different cultures here—I saw what I wanted to do later on" (Saldivar, Hinojosa Reader). There are also references to a great variety of authors and works in many languages.⁶

A plot in literary fiction, as a self-contained entity, ought not require readers to go beyond textual boundaries in order to recover essential aspects either in the meaning or in the motivation of its characters; it would indeed represent an authorial failure to omit essential clues in a narrative.⁷ In the Belken County saga, however, plots and characters at the surface level appear fragmented, disconnected, and incomplete. But this is only a postmodernist appearance. Rather, as Broyles has pointed out, it is an attempt to imitate traditional culture: "In a strongly oral culture, locutions are not linear but circular: spoken words happen in many places at the same and at different times, but they recur. They return from mouth to mouth to revive a life experience, an event.... The medium is memory and the instrument is voice. Memory both constitutes and transmits culture" (120).

The role of the reader in the KCDTS (or the reader of any literary text) is largely that of a mute receptor of textual flow, unlike audiences of traditional genres who customarily engage in a give-and-take exchange with oral performers. Therein lies a central distinction between literary and oral transmitters; the fundamental ex-

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perience of oral folk is dialectical: in helping shape their tradition they are informed by that tradition, and as carriers and transmitters of local history they are actively engaged in its preservation (Ong 41). In adapting the speech conventions of oral culture to his narrative, Hinojosa provides the reader with relevant pieces of information. That is, whereas in a traditional setting, it is assumed that the listener possesses sufficient data to interpret the meaning and significance of the events and characters, the reader in the KCDTS becomes a semioral receptor acquiring essential information by methods resembling those employed in oral performance.

In a tight-knit oral community, mnemonic procedures help maintain a sense of history and self-identification (Leal, "History" 102). Family chronologies and genealogies help to identify important characters and to assess the significance of the events in which they participate. A sense of collectivity, thus, is recreated by Hinojosa through a multiplicity of characters whose interrelated lives are subject to public scrutiny. The reader, therefore, must play a role similar to that of an observer in a traditional (oral) culture who is simultaneously a witness, a judge, and a jury in an incessant public normative game.

The narrative begins as Jehú Vilches, grandfather of Jehú Malacara, muses on the request of his son-in-law-to-be, Roque Malacara, for his daughter's hand in marriage. Vilches recalls his own experience years before when as a young man he stood before his father-in-law-to-be, Braulio Tapia, to ask for the hand of his wife, Matilde. Vilches wonders, "¿A quién vería don Braulio en el umbral cuando él pidió a su esposa? " (I wonder whom did Don Braulio see when he asked for his own wife?) (EV 16). The reader will discover the answer to this rhetorical question later on:

Braulio Tapia, natural de El Esquilmo (ahora Skidmore) Texas, nació
en agosto de 1883; a Braulio lo criaron Juan Nepomuceno Celaya y una
tia materna, Barbarita Farías de Celaya, ambos de Goliad, Texas....
Braulio apareció en lo que ahora es Belken County en 1908 y se casó 1
dos años después con Sóstenes Calvillo, hija única de don Práxedis
Calvillo y Albinita Buenrostro. De éste matrimonio nació Matilde; ésta
se casó con don Jehú Vilches y tuvieron una hija, María Teresa de jesús,
que se casó con Roque Malacara. (EV 122)

[Braulio Tapia, originally from El Esquilmo (now Skidmore), Texas, was born in August 1883; Braulio was raised by Juan Nepomuceno Celaya and a maternal aunt, Barbarita Farías de Celaya, both from Goliad, Texas....

Braulio first arrived in what is now Belken County in 1908 and two years later married Sóstenes Calvillo, only child of Don Práxedis Cal­villo and Albinita Buenrostro. This marriage had an offspring, Matilde;

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she married Don Jehú Vilches, and they had a daughter, Maria Teresa de Jesús, who married Roque Malacara.]

As can be expected, the elders are the keepers of collective memories. This explains the impatience on the part of the aging peers of Cipriano Leal when he fails to recognize the names of well-known local people:

¿Quién es ese muchacho, Genaro? Se llama Rafa Buenrostro. ¿De cuáles Buenrostro?
¿De los de Julián? No, éste es de jesús Buenrostro al que llamaban don jesús. Ah, sí; murió joven.
¿Ese fue el que trabajó con el viejo Burns?
No. Ese fue Julián. Don Jesús tenía unas tierras cerca del Carmen.
¿Donde se echaron a los rinches?
Ahí mero.
Ya, ya. A don Jesús le decían El Quieto.
¿El Quieto?
Sí; újule Leal tú ya no te acuerdas de nada. (EV 50)

[Who is that boy, Genaro? His name is Rafa Buenrostro.
From which Buenrostros? From Julián's?
No, he is the son of Jesús Buenrostro whom they called Don Jesús. Oh, yes; he died young.
Is that the one who worked for Old Man Burns?
No. That was Julián. Don Jesús had some land near El Carmen.
Where they messed up the (Texas) Rangers?
Right there.
OK, OK. Don Jesús was nicknamed "The Quiet One."
The Quiet One?
Yes; wow, Leal, you don't remember anything.]

This dialogue between Echevarria, Castañeda, and Leal, at the cantina of Lucas Barrón, El Chorreado, is a good example of the oral/literary techniques employed in the KCDTS. Hinojosa blends the various speaking voices without identifying the speakers; instead, the context indicates the identity of each contributor to the conversation. Such exchanges convert the readers into quasi-oral listeners, embedded in a community context that provides congruence and helps enhance the background and character of Rafa Buenrostro. It is a technique also employed in re-creating pertinent data on the uprooted life of Jehú Malacara:

Ah, ése es Jehú Malacara. ¿De los Malacara de Relámpago?

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Esos meros. Este es de Roque el que se casó con Tere.
¿La de las maromas?
No, hombre. La de las maromas era Peláez, hija de don Camilo y doña Chucha. La madre de este muchacho era hija de don Jehú Vilches.
El yerno de Don Braulio Tapia.
Andale... ya caigo.
¿Tú conociste a don Braulio, Echevarría?
Cómo no, aunque yo era mucho más chico.
Este muchacho trabajó con los Peláez en las maromas y lo medio crió don Victor.
Buena persona, don Victor. (EV 50)

[Oh, that's Jehú Malacara.
Related to the Malacaras of Relámpago?
That's right. This boy is Roque's, the one who married Tere.
The one from the circus?
No, man. The one from the circus was a Peláez, daughter of Don Camilo and Doña Chucha. The mother of this boy was daughter of Don Jehú Vilches.
The son-in-law of Don Braulio Tapia.
OK... I get it.
Echevarria, did you know Don Braulio?
Sure I did, although I was much younger.
This boy worked in the circus with the Paláezes, and Don Victor al­most raised him.
Don Victor was a good man.]

Hinojosa's employment of oral devices in the structure of his narrative is particularly evident when he re-creates humorous verbal exchanges between narrators and listeners. Thus, a man nick­named "El Turnio" ("Cross-eyed") repeatedly interrupts Jehú Malacara while the latter recounts the latest events and personalities in the community. Jehú counterattacks by ridiculing the heckler and in this way is able to maintain control of his narrative voice:

Punto por punto. Primero, don Epigmenio era de lo más huevón y tanto que por no trabajar no se echaba una querida; segundo, como me vuelvas a interrumpir, Turnio, te voy a dar tal patada en el culo que te voy a enderezar la vista. ¿Estamos? A propósito, Turnio, esto es entre paréntesis y no nada personal. ¡Pásame la sal! (CVB 139)

[Point by point. First, Don Epigmenio was so lazy that he would not get a mistress 'cause it was too much work; second, if you interrupt me again, Turnio ("Cross-eyed"), I'll give you such a kick in the ass that I'll straighten your eyesight. Alright? By the way, Turnio, this is beside the question and don't take it personally: pass the salt!]

This fierce mock threat advises Turnio of the annoyance his in­terruptions are causing. The seriousness of the threat, however, could alter the mood of the audience, and Jehú quickly dispels this

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possibility by interjecting a humorous incongruity (pass the salt!) that allows the narrative to continue without a change in mood. More lively interventions by the audience occur when Echevarria narrates his stories. Often the old man is aided by his listeners, who help quiet down the interruptions.

-Ustedes jovencitos no saben nada de nada.

-¡Echevarría está pedo!

-Pedo, sí, pero con mi dinero.

-No se deje, Echevarría...

-Hombre, no le hagan pedo, no lo choteen.

-Sí, hombre, déjenlo que siga. (KC 23)

["You youngsters, you don't know anything."

"Echevarria is drunk!"

"Yes, drunk, but with my own money."

"Let them have it Echevarria... "

"Come on, man, don't mess with him, don't kid him around."

"Yeah, man, let him talk."

These examples, and many others in the KCDTS, demonstrate the way in which, in oral discourse, the presence and participation of the audience is an integral part of the narrative; attempts to interpret the dialogue, removed from its context, violate fundamental aspects of its tone, significance, and meaning. Yet Hinojosa's novels remain literary creations, an irony considering that as readers we are required to forgo literary conventions in order to comprehend the reconstruction of an oral world (Broyles 127-130).

In spite of a seemingly fragmentary narrative, the KCDTS maintains an internal coherence, and the traditional world re-created suggests that its tales are part of a larger, inexhaustible repertoire of narrative interrelationships. That is, as in oral life, events and characters may be amplified or minimized by the narrator, and each episode is an expression of a set of shared meanings that determine the significance of the individual tales. This social coherence provides oral raconteurs with an endless source of material on which they can draw to suit their narrative purposes. Thus, theoretically, the totality of a community's events, told by all of its storytellers, forms an interdependent oral narrative web. The listener is required to focus on the characters in the narrative from the perspective of the community's standards rather than—as is customary in the modern novelistic tradition—centering on an individual's private experience that is to be measured according to normative values

Rolando Hinojosa 91

shared between author and reader. This collective sense helps explain the relative homogeneous nature of traditional cultures; since normative values are continuously encountered, internalized, and expressed, the individual is forced to measure all acts and motivations according to community standards.

Comic and Satiric Figures

Hinojosa employs a number of humorous strategies, such as parody, irony, sarcasm, caricature, and other rhetorical devices that involve play, incongruity, and exaggeration. As a general rule, the characters he creates share a common trait: they are unable to perceive their own shortcomings while their foibles seem outrageous to those who recount their stories and, it is assumed also, to the readers of the KCDTS. These figures help provide a context whereby the values of Belken County, the character of its individuals and their actions, are subjected to continuous and diverse interpretations by the various narrative voices.

Epigmenio Salazar is a man who has not worked since World War II due to a physical impediment that earns him the dubious title of "El Caballero de la Hernia" (The gentleman of the hernia), in an obvious and malicious reference to novels of chivalry and Cervantes' parodic use of similar titles in Don Quijote. His wife, Doña Candelaria Mungía de Salazar, also known as "La Turca" (the Turkish woman), because of her Lebanese descent, is a domineering figure who oversees the household and the income generated by her properties. In spite of the firm control that his wife exerts over him, Epigmenio manages to lead a busy though useless life, occasionally pilfering money from the household budget for his personal expenses. He spends his time gossiping about the inhabitants of Klail City and knows, for example, "lo que hay entre don Javier y la Gela; conoce de buena tinta lo que hay entre el cocinero de 'El Fénix' y la chica de la farmacia; sabe, por vias fidedignas, lo que le pasa a la esposa del menor de los Murillo" ([knows] of the relationship between Don Javier and Gela; is also knowledgeable of what is going on between the cook of "El Fénix" and the girl at the pharmacy; and a good source has informed him what is happening to the wife of the youngest of the Murillos). Yet, regarding his own affairs, Epigmenio is totally unashamed of being inactive or of the nickname that Doña Candelaria has given him: "mi huevón" (my lazy bones) (KC 77).

A number of cuckold figures appear in the KCDTS. Don Orfalindo Buitureyra, occasionally seen at the local bar singing and dancing by

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himself, nevertheless maintains a sense of dignity. He refuses to recite poetry or give speeches, claiming that that is only done by "queers" (KC 108). Other figures are treated less kindly: "La caballona" (The mare), in addition to being lazy, is considered the laughing stock of Relámpago after the response he gave when told that his bride-to-be had slept with every man in town: "¿Y qué? ¿Qué tan grande es Relámpago? " ("So what? How big is Relámpago?) (EV 177). In contrast, "Menor" Murillo is perceived with a mixture of pity and scorn by the townsfolk. It was "Menor" who asked his prospective father-in-law if he could test his girlfriend before marrying her, a request the father of the girl answered by saying that "he had not raised his daughters to be tried out like watermelons." "Menor" is a tragic fool who displays an insolent attitude while apparently being the only one in town who ignores the infidelities committed by his wife (EV 178).

Melitón Burnias is the protagonist of comic episodes borrowed from the stock of folk tradition. He portrays a picaresque figure who suffers indignities because of his meager resources. Poor Burnias, for instance, has been driven from his own house by his daughter and son-in-law and is now forced to sleep in the cab of a truck. in another episode Burnias and Bruno Cano search for a buried treasure, an adventure in which both are portrayed as foolish and greedy. Burnias, partially deaf, misunderstands his accomplice and, frightened, runs away leaving Cano trapped inside the treasure hole. Their treasure hunt has a tragicomic result, since Cano, also frightened and then angry at being left behind, dies inside the hole he has dug. In another tale Burnias is cheated of a pig he has raised to make some money. The pig, given to Burnias by Old Man Chandler in payment for work done, is found to have worms when submitted to a federal inspector's test, thus requiring the owner to dispose of the infected animal. Burnias is saved by Martin Lalanda, his business partner, who ingeniously devises a stratagem to recover their investment. Lalanda suggests that they sell the pig back to Chandler and, should he refuse, give it to him as a gift:

Poooos, la verdad no entiendo. Es fácil: un regalo no se rechaza y éste menos, porque si lo rechaza tenemos que preguntarle por qué y ¿qué cara va a poner? Así es que tiene que comprarlo... En efecto, el viejo Chandler se vio acorralado y soltó los veintisiete del alma que le pidieron. (EV 135)

[Weeeell, I just don't understand. It's easy: he can't reject a present, especially this one, because if he rejects it we'll have to ask him why, and what is he going to say? So he'll have to buy it... it was true, Old Man

Rolando Hinojosa 93

Chandler saw himself surrounded and dished out the twenty-seven bucks they asked of him.]

In this scene Old Man Chandler portrays the figure of the trickster who is in turn tricked by his victims.

Tomás Imás is a Protestant preacher whose assimilation of Anglo­American customs and language serve as a source of humor. Brother Imás is the proverbial pocho. Jehú describes him as an outsider to the Belken community, observing "ese modo de estarse de pie sin cruzar los brazos o sin estar con las manos en la cintura" (his manner of standing up, without crossing his arms or putting his hands on his waist) (KC 35). Although he is later portrayed as an endearing character (CVB 77-83), initially the figure of Brother Imás is ridiculed by Jehú and Edelmiro Pompa. The boys notice this Chicano preacher who, incongruously, speaks Spanish with a heavy English accent:

-¿Es usté cura?

-No, yo ser hermano predicador.

-Es usté aleluya?

-Shst, h'mbre, no seas tan bruto, Edelmiro.

- ¿Pos qué tiene que ver?

-Yo ser predicador de la palabra providential perpetua.

-Es aleluya, Jehú. (KC 36)

"Are you a priest?"

"No, I be brother preacher."

"Are you an alleluia?"

"Psst, man, don't be so rude, Edelmiro."

"So what?"

"I be preacher of holy providential word."

"He's an alleluia alright, Jehú."]

Brother Imás, a Chicano from the Midwest, is a dominant English speaker who has learned Spanish from two Anglo ministers while training for evangelical work at a Protestant school. His stilted Spanish is mentioned ironically by Jehú:

El hermano Imás aprendió su encantador español allí y lo primero que hizo fue volver a Albion para hablar en español con sus padres. El hermano contó que los viejos quedaron encantados. No hay por qué dudarlo; yo también me quedé de una pieza la primera vez que le oí. (KC 44)

[Brother Imás learned his charming Spanish over there and the first thing he did was to go back to Albion and speak Spanish with his par-

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ents. Brother Imás said that his old parents were amazed. There is no reason to doubt it, that was also my reaction the first time I heard him.]

The portrayal of false religious attitudes is yet another frailty depicted comically in the KCDTS. For example, while the Chicanos from Klail City are respectful toward the Roman Catholic priest, Don Pedro Zamudio, he is considered an irascible old man whose pride and unyielding sense of propriety blind him to the human weakness of his parishioners. Thus, Father Zamudio, on his way to mass at dawn, finds Bruno Cano trapped inside the treasure hole and is enraged when the insolent Cano demands to be taken out:

-¿Qué pasa? ¿Qué hace usted allí?

-¿Es usted don Pedro? Soy yo, Cano. Sáqueme.

-¿Pues qué anda haciendo Ud. por esta vecindad?

-Sáqueme primero. Más al luego le cuento.

-¿Se golpeó cuando se cayó?

-No me caí... ayúdeme.

-Sí hijo, sí; ¿pero entonces como vino a dar allí? ¿Seguro que no está lastimado?

-Segurísimo, señor cura, pero sáqueme ya con una... perdón.

-¿Qué ibas a decir, hijo?

-Nada, padrecito, nada; sáqueme.

-No creo que pueda yo sólo; estás algo gordo.

-¿Gordo? ¡Gorda su madre!

-¿Mi quééééééé?

-Sáqueme ya con una chingada. ¡Andele!

-¡Pues que lo saque su madre!

-¡Chingue la suya! (EV 36)

["What happened? What are you doing there!"

"Is that you, Don Pedro? I am Cano. Get me out of here."

"But what are you doing in this neighborhood?"

"Get me out first. I'll tell you later."

"Did you hurt yourself when you fell?"

"I didn't fall... help me."

"Yes, son, yes; but then how did you end up there? Are you sure you are not hurt?"

"I'm certain, father, but get me the... out of here, sorry."

"What were you going to say, my son?"

"Nothing, father, nothing; get me out."

"I don't think I could do it alone; you are kind of fat."

"Fat? Your mamma is fat!"

"My whaaaaaat? "

"Get me the fuck out of here. Come on!"

"Let your mamma get you out!"

"Fuck yours!"

This dialogue is an excellent illustration of the rhetorical devices employed by traditional storytellers. The incongruity in the tone

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and the timing employed by the two speakers—one calm and inquisitive, the other quick and urgent—creates a tension that is finally resolved in a comic explosion. The portrayal of the priest as an unyielding moral figure is further demonstrated when he refuses to bury the deceased Cano, who dies, presumably of a heart attack, inside the treasure hole. The stubborn and offended Don Pedro is depicted as a failed religious leader whose anger toward the disre­spectful Bruno Cano is stronger than his sacramental obligation to pray for the dead.

Don Pedro tuvo que aguantarse y rezó no menos de trescientos Padrenuestros entre Aves y Salves. Cuando se puso a llorar (de coraje, de histeria, de hambre, vaya usted a saber) la gente, compadecida, rezó por don Pedro. (EV 37)

[Don Pedro had no recourse and prayed something like three hundred Pater Nosters between Holy and Hail Marys. When he started crying (due to anger, hysteria, hunger, who knows why) the people, compassionately, prayed for Don Pedro.]

Another comic religious figure is that of Brother Flores, a member of the Mexican Baptist church. one of his most notable shortcomings, in addition to his laziness and sexual passion, is to ignore the basic religious principles of his church. He believes that Martin Luther is the Antichrist and is confused when told that Baptists are also Protestants. Jehú, now an assistant in the Baptist church, attempts to correct Brother Flores' theological contradictions. It seems, however, that Brother Flores is more concerned with access to convenient facilities at the church than he is with theological issues.

El Hermano Joaquín Flores seguía con sus dudas. "Ni pa'qué mentirle,

Hermano Malacara: esto de la religión está algo confuso. Cuando yo era Pentecostés, la cosa era más fácil: allí todos—menos los servidores y demás creyentes—allí, como decía, allí todos los demás se iban derechitos al infierno, y de narices. ¿Usted me entiende? Bien. Lo que no tenían era un piano como éste que tenemos aquí. Así da gusto Hermano... (CVB 69)

[Brother Flores was still doubtful: "I won't lie to you, Brother Malacara: this religious thing is kind of confusing. When I was a Pentecostal, things were easier: there everybody—excepting the servants and other believers—went straight to hell. You know? Good. They just didn't have a fine piano like this one we have here. Now, that makes you feel good, Brother.]

In spite of the many characters represented in comic fashion, an undercurrent of compassion is always present toward most of the Chicano inhabitants of Belken County. While they may possess

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negative traits, there is deep respect for the unsung struggle of their daily existence. The preface to Klail City is clear about this: "Verdad es que hay distintos modos de ser heroicos. Jalar día tras día y aguantar a cuanto zonzo le caiga a uno enfrente no es cosa de risa" (lt's certainly true that there are various ways of being heroic. Working day in and day out and tolerating whatever fool happens to cross your path is no laughing matter) (KC 12). In a similar vein, the reader is warned against grandiose notions of the human condition: "El que busca héroes de la proporción del Cid, pongamos por caso, que se vaya a la Laguna de la Leche" (Whoever expects heroes of the stature of El Cid, for example, can go to the [legendary] Lake of Milk) (KC 11 - 12). Thus, because Epigmenio Salazar is perceived as a "chismoso, sinvergúenza y gorrón" (gossip, shameless, and parasitic), at his funeral his wife must disguise her deep affection for him (KC 79). While Don Orfalindo is known as a cabrón, following the etymological sense of the word (cornudo: cuckold), he is also consid­ered an inoffensive, though pathetic, figure by the bar patrons who leave him to his eccentricities (KC 108-112). Burnias, who is the laughing stock of the the town because of his destitution and simple­mindedness, receives an honest and appreciative welcome when, breaking all precedents, he buys a round of beer at the local bar (CVB 107). In spite of Brother Imás' linguistic inadequacies he earns the respect of those Chicanos he seeks to convert (CVB 83). Father Zamudio and Brother Flores are ridiculed for their spiritual short­comings, yet their characters, like other humorous figures in the KGDTS, are comic because they do not pose a danger or a threat to the survival of the community.

The Bakhtinian notion of the disintegrated personality, whose alienation produces an individual existing solely for himself, appears in Belken County as a satiric figure who is estranged from his community. An example of this is Adrián Peralta, a coyote or trickster figure who hunts the halls and offices of city buildings in search of innocent monolingual Spanish-speaking Chicanos, to whom he offers "help" in exchange for a few dollars. Peralta's callous and exploitive nature is evident in his demeanor:

Trigueño, sombrero de petate a la moda, camisa blanca y corbata con ganchito de donde salta un pez vela, sonrisa en la boca que no en los ojos, bigote fifí, con ese par de ojos mencionados que si no han visto todo poco les falta. Como tiene la piel curtida ya no le entran ni indirectas ni insultos. Tiene buena presentación y mejor voz ya que hasta la fecha nadie le ha rompido las narices. (E V 13 1)

[Light skinned, a fashionable straw hat, white shirt and a tie with a small hook from where a sailfish jumps out, a smile on the mouth but

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not in the eyes, a mustache fifí style, with that pair of the above-mentioned eyes which have seen everything or almost everything. Because he has a thick skin, no hint or insult gets to him. He has a good presentation and even a better voice, since no one has yet broken his nose.]

Another comico-satiric example is Packy Estudillo, the aging car thief whose alienation is the product of a low-level intelligence. After spending forty years, alternating the life of a convict with that of the delinquent, Packy has not learned much and leads a meaningless existence consisting of a series of recurring mistakes (PC 202-205). Rather than projecting the frightening and dangerous image of the criminal, or the sad but sympathetic and romantic figure of the convict, Packy is portrayed as mentally deficient. His role combines that of the delinquent in modern postindustrial society with that of the fool: a deviant with social and psychological problems. His institutionalized frame of mind is evident when, about to be apprehended, Packy's immediate reaction is to doubt his sanity:

Staring at the ceiling, he noticed that some of the paper was beginning to come off; but, he thought, it's been like that for four years.

He then said: "What I need is a lawyer."

And then, almost in the same breath and behind that thought, a new one: "No; what I need is one a-them psychiatrists. That's what I need."

I must be crazy," he went on. "But it's my fault." (PC 210)

As an agent of the corrupt Leguizamón family, Polin Tapia is portrayed as an unprincipled politician who seeks the favor of the banker Noddy Perkins and the Anglo establishment. Polin is characterized as a servile flatterer; his fundamental insincerity is evident in the stream-of-consciousness monologue he conducts as he approaches the bank:

Was that the Bewley girl I waved to? Why did she give me a funny look? Was I moving my lips? Got to watch that.... First thing you know, people'll think you're crazy; worse, they'll think you're silly... What's that? Me! My reflection; glass case in pocket; tie straight; belt... shoe... there she is again; opening the door. Must've been expecting me.

"Good afternoon, young lady." (RW 2.2)

Another target of satire is Big Foot Parkinson, an Anglo sheriff whose linguistic eccentricities and false claims of affection for the Mexican community denote him as an outsider and a hypocrite. Big Foot is the proverbial gringo. While campaigning for office in the Chicano community, he demonstrates his utter foolishness. Among the skeptical members of the community, there is little favor either toward his candidacy or the motives of his Chicano supporters:

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-Yo casar primera vez con mujer jacana pero ella voy por murio. (Aplausos)

-Yo volver casar y yo casar otra vez mujer jacana y ella voy por murio. (Más aplausos)

El Big Foot seguía a la carga:

-Yo casar tercer vez con mujer jacana y ella también voy por murio. Aquí, siempre, y sin fallar, venía el choteo:

-¡Las estarás matando de hambre, animal!

-¡Es que no te aguantan, colorao!

-¡Te apesta la boca!

La raza comprada y vendida aplaudía y hacía sh, sh, para mostrar que ellos, a lo menos, eran educados. (KC 5 2)

["I marry first time Chicana woman but she go died."

(Applause)

"I marry again Chicana woman but she go died again." (More applause) Big Foot continued his speech:

"I marry third time Chicana woman but she go died again."

At this point the jokes would always start:

"You are probably starving them to death, you beast!"

"They just can't live with you!"

"It's because you have bad breath!

Only the sell-outs would applaud and say " sh, sh, " to show that they, at least, were educated people.]

In the KCDTS a number of characters represent a threat to the hegemony of the Chicano community. Historically, the underlying conflict in Belken County has been over the land first acquired by the Mexican founders of the area and the legal subterfuges used by the English-speaking newcomers who deprived the rightful Spanish-speaking heirs of their property. Those Chicanos who joined the Anglos in this conflict are depicted as traitors. A principal target of satiric treatment are the Leguizamón, their descendants, and their clients. Whereas other satirized figures may be portrayed somewhat comically, indicating their relative inoffensiveness, the depiction of characters such as Javier Leguizamón, Becky Escobar, and her husband, Ira, is definitely of antagonists for whom there is little sympathy. It is evident that the satire on the Leguizamón family is grounded on the image they represent, as allies of the KBC ranch and as representatives of the loss of property, traditions, and values in the Chicano community:

La historia de esta familia o familión es bien conocida: llegaron tardíamente al Valle y viendo cómo corría el agua, se hicieron primero mexicanos viejos, luego pasaron como españoles y por fin patriotas: esto último no quiere decir que sirvieron en las armas del país. Hay otras

Rolando Hinojosa 99

maneras de ser patriotas: hacer dinero; joder al prójimo, acomodarse a lo vigente, en fin: irse por el camino trillado. (C VB 14 5)

[The story of this family or family conglomerate is well known: they were late arrivals to the Valley and seeing how things worked here, first became Old Mexicans, then passed as Spaniards and finally became patriots: this does not mean that they served in the armed forces. There are other ways to be patriotic: make money; screw your fellow man, fit into the status quo, in other words: take the well-traveled road.]

The corruption of the Leguizamón is deep, and its demoralizing effects are noticeable on the sibling relationship of the two surviving members of the family.

De los cinco que hablamos sólo quedan dos, Antonia y Javier. Como en todas familias, hay un poco de todo. Estos dos ni se ven ni se hablan.

Creo que la Antonia no quiere acordarse de su sangre chicana pero eso le ocurre a muchos y qué le vamos a hacer. Javier no es chicano tampoco, es Leguizamón y los Leguizamón, bien es sabido, no tuvieron madre; fueron hijos de tía.

[Of the five we have mentioned, only two are still alive, Antonia and Javier. As with all families, there is a little of everything. These two don't see or talk to each other. I think Antonia doesn't want to be reminded of her Chicano blood, but that happens to many people, and what are you going to do about it. Javier isn't a Chicano either, he is a Leguizamón and a Leguizamón, as is well known, is motherless; they all are children of aunts.]

Yet, the festering moral and social decay in Belken County is most evidently found among the members of the Klail-Cook-Blanchard family and their associates. Their catalog of vices includes dishonesty, alcoholism, murder, greed, and sexual promiscuity. These faults are hardly questioned socially or prosecuted legally because of the priviledged status they hold as the owners of most of Belken County.

Rafa Buenrostro and Jehú Malacara: Hero and Anti-Hero

The respective cognomens of the two central characters in the KCDTS, Jehú Malacara and Rafa Buenrostro (bad face and good countenance) are an indication of a polarity, reflected in their respective attitudes toward life. Jehú is an extrovert who is resource­ful, ironic, and controversial, while Rafa, an introvert, has a balanced, endearing, and gracious personality. Jehú's name suggests his biblical counterpart, the combative elected king of Israel. The many biblical allusions and quotations throughout the narrative indicate that Hinojosa borrowed more than names. The resonances of the

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name Jehú are indeed rich, since the biblical Jehú defeats the corrupt Ahab and destroys the sinful Jezebel, a moral act of great import in the Judeo-Christian tradition.⁸

In contrast, Rafa's name (a nickname for Rafael) suggests both the archangel who leads Tobias and the Italian painter considered an artistic pillar of the Renaissance due to his sense of harmony, movement, and delicacy. Rafa is indeed an exemplary figure possessing some of the qualities most esteemed in the traditional world of Belken: knowledge, loyalty, generosity, gentleness; and his actions convey modern attributes: decisiveness, competence, ambition, and accomplishment. Another pertinent parallel may be made with Rapha, a biblical figure whose name means "he (God) has healed," an allusion that could refer to Rafa's physical and moral wounds: the assassination of his father, the death of his young wife, and his ordeal in Korea.

Rafa has grown within the shelter of his extended family and has received the prestige the Buenrostro name has among the Chicanos of Klail City. In contrast, Jehú, lacking the support of his immediate relatives, has survived by his wits. As a child, Jehú was given shelter by the Buenrostros, but this was not an act of charity, since they considered him part of their extended family (RW 50). Both cousins spent their childhoods as orphans and, in spite of their respective differences, remained intimate friends throughout life. But whereas Jehú's disintegrated family structure and precarious subsistence has helped shape his satiric orientation, the protection of a family circle gives Rafa an outlook based on stability and generosity. Upon his return from Korea, Rafa reminisces nostalgically upon his formative years:

... al abrir un cajón del armario vi el retrato de mi tía Matilde Buenrostro. Como casi no conocí a mi madre, llamé "Mamá" a mi tía; hermana de mi padre, ella dirigía nuestra casa que era algo parecida a la de los Vielma en limpieza y orden y también en cierto ambiente. No había la rigidez de los Vielma pero sí la misma paz. Los problemas en casa se pensaban; no se oían gritos a ninguna hora. (CVB 189)

[... while opening a dresser drawer I saw the photograph of my aunt Matilde Buenrostro. Since I hardly knew my mother, I called my aunt "Mama"; she was my father's sister and ran our household, somewhat resembling the Vielmas' in cleanliness and order and also a bit in atmosphere, We weren't as rigid as the Vielmas, but we did have the same peacefulness. In our house problems were thought out; you never heard any yelling.]

There is a fundamental contrast in the lives of the protagonists: Jehú is the uprooted; and Rafa has solid family and community ties.

Rolando Hinojosa 101

This distinction is critical to understanding the context in which Rafa and Jehú grow up. Within the norms of a traditional society, such as that of Belken County, family and personal identity are closely intertwined, and the status of an individual is determined, to a large extent, by interpersonal loyalties whose source begins at the family nucleus. This affective and social paradigm, therefore, is structured along a series of concentric circles that begin with the nuclear family and move away in decreasing order of importance toward the extended family, friends, and associates, community, and other people with similar characteristics that may include culture, class, gender, age, and regional origin. The normative framework of the KCDTS thus replicates the various loyalties that have helped shape Chicano history.

Rafa Buenrostro, like Jehú, descends from a lineage that founded Belken County in the eighteenth century, and his family's experience symbolizes the resiliency demonstrated by a people during a difficult historical period. He is the inheritor of heroic tradition in a region where cultural conflicts have been expressed through a corpus of balladry. It is thus not a coincidence that the lands of Rafa's father are named "El Carmen," a place "donde se echaron a los rinches" (A. Paredes, With His Pistol 226), in a clear reference to the corrido of "Gregorio Cortez" and the Texas Rangers.⁹ The murder of Rafa's father, Don Jesús Buenrostro, "El Quieto," posits an ethical commitment on his family who, according to tradition, must avenge the crime. The response of his next of kin is a mixture of grievance and rage, a reaction that serves as motivation for the brother's revenge:

Habían matado a don Jesús Buenrostro mientras dormía y su hermano don Julián, casi se volvió loco de rabia... sin avisarle a nadie, don Ju­lián, sólo, cruzó el río en busca de los que habían matado a su hermano.

Volvió a poco más de mes y parecía un hombre que estaba en paz con todo el mundo. (KC 5 3)

[They had killed don Jesús Buenrostro while he slept, and his brother Don julián was so furious he almost went crazy... without telling anybody, don Julián, alone, went across the river in search of those who had murdered his brother.

He returned in a little over a month and seemed to be a man who was at peace with the world.]

The revenge Don Julián exacts for his brother's murder frees Rafa from the responsibility that he would have otherwise inherited. Nevertheless, Rafa appears to have an epic mantle that casts a shadow over his life. Although it is not explicitly stated, there is

102 Chicano Satire

every reason to believe that the Anglo establishment was aware of the events surrounding Don Jesús Buenrostro's death. After all, Alejandro Leguizamón's plot to kill Rafa's father was certainly known—and approved—by Big Foot Parkinson, an agent of the Klail-Cook-Blanchard family, a fact not likely to be withheld from the centers of power (KC 31). Yet Rafa, perfectly aware of the conflicts between his family and the ruling families of Belken, appears ready to let the past lie.

In spite of his misfortunes—the loss of his mother as a child, the assassination of his father, the drowning of his young wife, and the physical and mental afflictions he suffered as a soldier in Korea—Rafa's conduct demonstrates positive normative values: he is consistently judicious, compassionate, loyal, and courageous. Furthermore, he demonstrates cultural loyalty toward his community and is personally concerned for the well-being of other Chicanos. Thus, for example, he demonstrates his closeness to the Chicano community through the genealogical knowledge that allows him to engage in intricate conversations with his elders:

Doña Barbarita conoció a mi padre siendo ella unos pocos años menor que él: "Sí, lo conocí bien. Asuntos de familia, como te podrás imaginar; nosotros y los Campoy siempre nos vimos bien. De los Vilches ni hablar, yo casi me crié allí con ellos y por eso conozco estas tierras tan bien como cualquiera. ¿Te acuerdas de la noria de agua salada?"

"¿De la que está cerca del monumento, dice usted?"

"No, esa no, más acá. ¿Tú conociste a los Bohigas... ? en esa familia a todos les abultaban los ojos."

"Sé quienes son pero nunca los conocí... perdieron las tierras allá por Bascom a los Leguizamón, ¿verdad?"

"¡Diablo de muchacho! ¿Pero cómo te acuerdas tú de esas cosas?" (CVB 181)

[Doña Barbarita knew my father; she was a few years younger than he: "Yes, I knew him very well. Family business as you can imagine; the Campoy family and us were very close. I don't have to tell you about the Vilches; I almost grew up with them that's why I know those lands as well as anybody. Do you remember the saltwater well?"

"You mean the one near the monument?"

"No, not that one, closer over here. Did you know the Bohigas? Every­one in that family had bulging eyes."

I know who they were, but I never met them... they lost land near Bascom to the Leguizamón, didn't they?"

"Darn child! How can it be you remember those things?"]

Rafa's characteristic generosity leads him to give away his inherited land to old family allies. Upon his return from Korea, Rafa brings presents and comfort to the families of his buddies who had

Rolando Hinojosa 103

died on the battlefront. From one of them, he receives their highest accolade when he is compared to his father:

"Mil gracias, muchacho."

Estaba con el pañuelo en la mano cuando salieron las muchachas; las

chaquetas les encantaron pero el retrato del hermano mucho más."

"¡Qué bien salió Chalillo!"

"Eres un sol, Rafa. Un sol."

"El espejo de tu padre." (CVB 179)

["A million thanks, boy."

He was holding a handkerchief when the girls came out; they liked

the jackets but were even more pleased with the picture of their brother.

"Chalillo came out very well!"

"You are a ray of sun, Rafa. A ray of sun."

"The living-image of your father."]

Rafa's qualities serve him well as a member of a new generation of Chicanos who are professional, educated, and upwardly mobile. In Korea he earned a bronze star, and the GI Bill allows him to earn a bachelor of arts and, subsequently, a law degree. He goes on to become the first Chicano teacher at the Klail City High School and in the latest novel to date, Partners in Crime, is employed as a detective for the Belken County Homicide Squad. The delicate balance that he must maintain in order to tread between two conflicting worlds—one representing his past, the other his future—does not appear to be a dilemma for Rafa. This is due, to a large extent, to his personality which, like that of his father's, is characteristically reserved.

The portrayal of Rafa, as a soldier in Korea and later as a detective in Belken County, suggests the image of the modern popular American hero who appears reticent and unemotional when acting on a moral principle. This appearance, however, is only external, since, as heroic characters, these two American popular figures, the soldier and the detective, lack "round" personalities. In Rafa's case this external quality is expressed in the portrayal of events and characters that define his life rather than, as is customary in the modern novelistic tradition, as a self-awareness that helps explain his motives and actions. But such an internal psychology, a product of modern alienation, would be only partially valid for a Chicano from Belken whose traditional upbringing accentuates the collective over the in­dividual. Rafa thus is an idealized version of the Mexican American as an individual able to achieve a smooth cultural transition into the mainstream of Anglo-American life without losing the richness of the Mexican cultural heritage. As a normative figure, he repre-

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sents an alternative to the dual cultural world he confronts, a situ­ation that is echoed in the words of Matthew Arnold that serve as the epigraph to the English translation of Klail City (The Valley 9): "Born between two worlds, one dead and one as yet unborn."

Hinojosa does not aspire merely to transpose an oral into a writing mode but to attain an artistic reelaboration of traditional culture. This literary purpose is evident in Jehú's picaresque existence, which includes a number of conventional features such as the death of his parents at an early age and his subsequent initiation into a life of wandering while holding various occupations—in a circus, as an al­tar boy, as a preacher's assistant, a bartender, an officer in a bank—under a variety of masters who are often depicted in satirical terms. Jehú is able to overcome his destitution because of his natural intelligence and the help of a succession of protectors, a few of whom—such as Don Victor Peláez and Don Manuel Guzmán—become sub­stitute paternal figures.

Jehú's ironic frame of mind has been evident since early childhood. After his father's death, he visits some of his cousins and reflects on the ridiculous behavior of his aunt:

La cosa es que así que sepultamos a papá, a mí me dejaron solo esa tarde y no teniendo más qué hacer fui a casa de la tía Chedes para ver a mis primos. Cuando la inútil de mi tía me vio empezó a llorar y a hacer sus papeles.... Al rato se le quitó el llorido y se quedó con el hipo sempiterno; como la pobre era tan bruta, luego luego me preguntó que qué andaba haciendo por la vecindad. Por poco me echo a reír, pero me detuve y le dije que venía a jugar con mis primos. (EV 19-20)

[What happened was that once we buried Dad, they left me alone that afternoon, and since I didn't have anything to do, I went to Aunt Chedes' house to visit my cousins. When my worthless aunt saw me, she started to cry and act up.... Soon she stopped crying and kept the customary hiccups; since my poor aunt was so stupid, she asked me right away what I was doing in the neighborhood. I almost burst out laughing, but I held back and told her I had come to play with my cousins.]

Jehú subverts the role of his aunt as an authority figure by caricaturing her emotionalism and her superstitious tendencies and by pointing out her lack of tact toward him. He maintains a sober, distant judgment even as he describes his own humorous reaction to her absurd and foolish figure.

An important satirical axis of the KCDTS is commanded by Jehú whose role will be to depict many of the comic figures of Belken— thus helping reinforce the normative values of Mexican traditional

Rolando Hinojosa 105

society—and to devalue the satiric targets he censures. This is especially evident in the sarcastic undertone of Jehú's letters in Mi querido Rafa. In this volume Jehú works at the Klail City First National Bank, where the young clerk learns that power is maintained through manipulation and that the reins of social and political influence are in the hands of the corrupt. He shares his discovery with Rafa, one of the few individuals in Belken who shares his understanding of the false values that Jehú must confront. Jehú's description of the leading Chicano and Anglo citizens is of moral destitutes who feign respectability, a situation that becomes the subject of his systematic mockery. Although Jehú considers himself to be on a superior moral level, his personal situation is precarious because of his reluctance to participate actively in the devious games played by his employer. Jehú's depiction involves an inversion to the role of the picaro, who rises economically but descends morally and is a willing participant to dishonesty. The main target of his censure is the KCB family whose representative, Noddy Perkins (also Jehú's boss), ruthlessly safeguards their interests.¹⁰ The mental ordeal Jehú must withstand to fulfill his duties at the bank represents a series of tests to his subservience: "With Noddy you never know. Now, I do know some things I shouldn't, and I now wonder if Noddy knows I know... no, no, that way lies madness" (MQR 35).

This cat-and-mouse game described by Jehú will be presented, in Rites and Witnesses, from the perspective of various observers of Jehú's actions at the bank, including the rich Anglos. Behind his humor, Jehú's letters reveal a deep concern for social and ethical values and roles; a central motif is the assessment of moral character according to degree of cultural loyalty demonstrated by Chicanos. In contrast to Ira Escobar—whose foolishness is only equaled by Big Foot Parkinson, the Anglo sheriff—the conduct of Jehú is guided by a sober assessment of the strict limitations under which he must work at the bank. Ira, an ambitious Leguizamón, becomes one of the central targets of Jehú's ridicule because of Escobar's naiveté and unfamiliarity with traditional Mexican culture. Thus, Jehú portrays Ira as incapable of engaging in the verbal dueling (choteo) that is frequent in male gatherings:

Allí estaba Ira con un RC Cola en una mano y taco de tripas y servilleta en la otra. Contó un chiste muy viejo y luego lo contó de nuevo, esta vez en inglés y salió mejor: esta vez se rieron unos bolillos.... Como el pobre de Ira carece de sense of humor, luego luego Santana y Segundo de la Cruz se le echaron encima, le tronaron tres o cuatro en un minuto y la risotada se oyó hasta el otro lado del Río. (MQR 24)

106 Chicano Satire

[There was Ira with an RC Cola in one hand and a tripe taco and a nap­kin in the other. He told an old joke, and then he told it again, in En­glish; this time it came out better: a few Anglos laughed.... Since poor Ira lacks a sense of humor, immediately Santana and Segundo Cruz got on his case; they pulled about three or four gags in one minute, and the laughter could be heard all the way to the other side of the Rio Grande.]

Escobar's transgressions of rural Chicano conventions reveal him as a comic figure of foolish proportions. He thus eats tripe tacos while drinking a soda pop (and holding a napkin!) rather than the accustomed beer, indicating his concern to be "moderate" and "clean," hardly necessary in an informal situation and with food not associated with genteel manners. Furthermore, his failed joke reveals linguistic incompetence and dullness. That he opts to repeat the (old) joke in English exposes his firm intent to participate in the ongoing discourse without realizing that he has breached the Chicano cultural homogeneity at an ethnically mixed gathering. His success in provoking the laughter of the Anglo guests informs Ira's position as a marginal figure whose faux pas is rebuked immediately by verbal assaults on the part of other Chicanos. But it is Jehu's interpretation that prevails in the comic portrayal of Ira's behavior. That is, Ira is depicted as a Chicano who ignores some fundamental conventions of his people, and his failure to participate as an equal in a Chicano ritual renders him as a clumsy peer. Implicit in this condemnation is the awareness of Ira's self-perception as urbane and sophisticated—in this context an offensive normative principle involving class, race, and ethnicity—a notion that renders his figure an appropriate target for satirical attack.

Jehú's disdain of Ira is centered on the latter's lack of political savvy that blinds him to the evident fact that his candidacy is ruthlessly manipulated by his financial supporters, the dispensers of power in Belken County. Ira enters the political race under the false impression that it is merit, rather than his usefulness to the KCB ranch, that renders him a viable candidate. Other equally gullible Chicanos are willing to support Ira, believing in a rigged electoral system. Yet the fraudulent quality of Ira's candidacy is obvious to Jehú: "Te diré esto: la raza está convencida que 'Ira's their man' and the bolillada. that 'Ira's their boy"' ("Let me tell you: Chicanos are convinced that 'Ira's their man' and the Anglos that 'Ira's their boy"') (MQR 27). From his position at the bank, Jehú is able to ob­serve how Ira falls prey to the astute Noddy Perkins: "Ira todavia no puede entender que la elección es un cinch; todavía cree que algo va a pasar. Noddy doesn't know what a good job he did on Ira... WHAT

Rolando Hinojosa 107

AM I SAYING? Of course he knows. He just enjoys seeing Ira hop, is all" (Ira still cannot understand that the election is a cinch; he still believes that something is going to happen) (MQR 42).

Because Ira lacks the most elementary understanding of the reality of Belken County, he is a pitiful victim who actually believes himself to be superior. His simplicity is such that he ignores, for example, that the KCB ranch exerts complete political and economic control over the lives and fortunes of the Belken people.¹¹ Thus, Noddy Perkins is obliged to warn Ira regarding the political role he is expected to play:

Noddy lo sentó y entonces le explicó, en esa voz, ce por be cómo corría el agua en Belken; que quién se encargaba de las compuertas; que quién era el señor aguador; que quién decidía a cuáles acequias se les daba agua y a cuáles no; y cuánta agua y también cuándo; y etceterit y etce­terot. Así. Noddy habla de agua pero hasta el más lerdo sabe perfecta­mente de qué se está hablando. (MQR 38)

[Noddy sat him down and then explained to him, just like that, A to Z how water was allocated in Belken; who was in charge of the flood gate; who was the waterman; who decided what irrigation ditches to fill and which not to fill; how much water and when; and etceterit and etcet­erot. That's it. Noddy speaks of water, but even the dullest person knows exactly what is being said.]

The scope of Jehús difficulties as a Chicano working for the Klail City First National is best illustrated by the guarded relationship he has with his boss, Noddy Perkins. The Anglo manager, believing in the talent of his young trainee, has advocated Jehú's promotion before the KCB family council. Jehú's relationship with the Buenrostros has been a matter of concern in his appointment, and the young banker feels he is watched. The old conflict regarding the murder of Rafa's father is discussed by Noddy, and Jehú's cautious answer to his boss reveals the distrust he has for the motives behind Noddy's inquiry:

"Did you ever know Quieto? I mean, do you remember him, Jehú?

"No, not really; not when I think about it, anyway. I was still a kid then... That was close to... what? Twenty years, by now?"

"Just about. You understand we had nothing to do with that, right?" "That's why I'm here... ",

"What do you mean, Jehú?"

"I mean I wouldn't come to work here if I thought...

"Yeah?

"If I thought that the KCB had anything to do with his death, Noddy." "I know you wouldn't.... Look, I don't even know what made me say

108 Chicano Satire

what I just said.... Okay? Reassurance of some sort, I guess... I mean, my own reassurance."

"Rafa hasn't forgotten." (RW 50-51)

The love affair with Sammie Jo Perkins, Noddy's daughter, represents a dangerous step that may cause Jehú the loss of his position at the bank. In Belken County such interethnic relationships, when they occur, are usually between Chicanas and Anglo men but are relatively rare between Chicanos and Anglo women.¹² Furthermore, Sammie Jo's status as a married woman involved with a Chicano looms as a possible scandal that is certain to embarrass the KCB ranch. In his characteristic fashion, Noddy invites Jehú to a dinner at his house and proceeds to dismiss him in a ceremony intended to publicly dishonor him.

Ya habían cenado todos para cuando yo llegué. Llegué a las ocho (the time set for dinner by Noddy) y el asunto tomó menos de tres minutos, tops.

Becky no levantó la vista (the whole time), los Terry ni chistearon (no surprise there) & Ira was studying the Utrillo on the wall. An art lover, yet.

Noddy made it short: "Jehú, I recommend that you resign as loan offi­cer." (MQR 45)

[They had already dined when I arrived. I got there at eight (the time set for dinner by Noddy) and the matter took less than three minutes, tops.

Becky didn't raise her sight (the whole time), the Terrys didn't blink an eye (no surprise there) and Ira was studying the Utrillo on the wall. An art lover, yet.

Noddy made it short: "Jehú, I recommend that you resign as loan officer."]

Next Monday morning Jehú arrives at Noddy's office to discuss his situation:

Entonces, yo, que me agarraba de chorros de agua para detenerme, lo atajé:

"Does my firing have to do with sex, Noddy?"

Se me quedó viendo por un rato larguisimo (his favorite ploy) y luego explotó:

"You Mexican son-of-a-bitch." (MQR 46)

[Then, I, trying desperately to hold on to a water stream, stopped him:

"Does my firing have to do with sex, Noddy?"

He looked at me for a long time (his favorite ploy) and then exploded:

"You Mexican son-of-a-bitch."I

Jehú, desperate to avoid an unseemly dismissal, must outwit the Machiavellian Perkins. His strategy consists of (1) admitting to a

Rolando Hinojosa 109

lesser transgression—his affair with Becky Escobar, Ira's wife; and (2) claiming with feigned outrage that his relations with Ollie San Esteban, his girlfriend, are of no concern to Noddy. In so doing Jehú gains credibility to support his denial of the true cause for Noddy's anger: the affair with his daughter Sammie Jo. This tactic then renders convincing his apparent surprise when Sammie Jo's name is mentioned:

"Ollie? San Esteban? I'm talking about Sammie Jo, goddamit!"

"Sammie Jo? You've got ahold of some bad shit there, Noddy."

"Bullshit."

"Bullshit. Lets call her—better still—let's you and I go on out there.

Goddamit."

"You..."

"Hold on, Noddy. You know I'm telling the truth... It's something

else, isn't it?"

Of course, the man was absolutely right. But he was bluffing. (MQR 46)

Noddy's defeat is a symbolic debasement of the KCB. The sexual conquest of one of the clan's women represents a mockery to their legitimacy as forgers of Belken's social respectability and questions their political preeminence. The fact that Noddy, the representative of the ranch and its political engineer, is incapable of manipulating Jehú, demonstrates the vulnerability of the forces that control the lives and fates of the Chicano inhabitants of the region. While this violation does not constitute a major threat to the ranch's power, within the evaluating framework provided by Jehú, their symbolic defeat is unquestionable. Satiric discourse attempts such victories by undermining the assumed invulnerability of normative values held by an opposing group. It will treat figures identified with positive values as "the Other," thus subverting them into negative or marginal figures. In his function as satirist, Jehú targets (1) those figures, such as the Leguizamón, who are alienated from their cultural heritage and community roots and act as the agents of community outsiders; and (2) the dominant group, the KCB ranch, and all those who infringe upon the success of Chicanos or the realization of their cultural objectives.

Jehú's extended monologue in his letters to Rafa parallels what Claudio Guillén labeled as a "spoken epistle" to describe the narrative voice in Lazarillo de Tormes ("La disposición" 266).¹³ Mi querido Rafa, however, may be considered picaresque sensu lato as are other novels in European literature that alter the strict adherence to a picaro protagonist.¹⁴ Jehú's figure is that of a sarcastic narrator who

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exposes the deceit of others. That is, as a picaresque character in Belken County, Jehú is unable to engage in a wide range of questionable acts. He will not proceed as did Lazarillo, who "first surrenders himself to a corrupt world and afterwards ironically redefines it as Utopia" (Gilman 161). Such behavior would bring Jehú uncomfortably close to the figures he satirizes and who are indeed unaware of their own degradation. Instead, his character is legitimized by the positive figure of Rafa, whose presence in the background validates the norms under which Jehú's satiric voice launches a pointed attack throughout the KCDTS narrative. In turn, the intimate friendship between the two cousins softens the normative character of Rafa, suggesting a sense of his human dimension. These positive qualities are absent among the satirized who abide by values that are rigid, dishonest, and removed from those customarily found among the Chicanos of Belken.¹⁵

In nontraditional communities (best exemplified by postindustrial Western societies), an individual's economic, social, and psychological role is relatively autonomous from the family, the peer group, and the community. The assimilation of the two protagonists in the KCDTS, Rafa Buenrostro and Jehú Malacara, into an alien world where their activities are not regulated by the conventions of the Chicano community—that is, Anglo education, English language, the armed forces, and their respective jobs at the bank, the high school, and the police force—illustrates the shift from a tradi­tional to a nontraditional evaluative framework. Yet the separation of the two protagonists from other Chicanos is not portrayed as an alienation, since both maintain their loyalty toward Chicano culture and, consequently, are able to maintain their dignity, a quality highly prized among the Chicanos of Belken County. This positive aspect of their roles reinforces the normative paradigm of the Chicano community.

In order to trace this shift from a social to a private psychology, Hinojosa's novels employ oral and literary conventions. As descendants of the original settlers of the region, both Rafa Buenrostro and Jehú Malacara are intimately tied to its history. They grew up within a traditional world where a predominantly collective sense informs all events in the lives of its people. This cultural cohesiveness, once characteristic among Chicanos, leads the two protagonists to structure their lives according to two fundamental principles: (1) the normative values they have inherited as members of the Chicano community and (2) the demands that a modern, alien world places on them. The implications of this transformation touch on

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virtually every aspect of human existence, but it is fiction—and especially the novel—that is ideally suited to convey such complex historical conditions. In the monumental Klail City Death Trip Series, two protagonists and hundreds of characters, through satiric discourse, re-create literarily the cultural existence of an entire people.