Winner of the 2006 Thomas J. Lyon Book Award in Western American
Literary Studies, presented by the Western Literature Association
In The Emergence of Mexican America, John-Michael Rivera examines
the cultural, political, and legal representations of Mexican Americans
and the development of US capitalism and nationhood. Beginning with the
Mexican-American War of 1846-1848 and continuing through the period of
mass repatriation of US Mexican laborers in 1939, Rivera examines both
Mexican-American and Anglo-American cultural production in order to
tease out the complexities of the so-called "Mexican question." Using
historical and archival materials, Rivera's wide-ranging objects of
inquiry include fiction, non-fiction, essays, treaties, legal materials,
political speeches, magazines, articles, cartoons, and advertisements
created by both Mexicans and Anglo Americans. Engaging and
methodologically venturesome, Rivera's study is a crucial contribution
to Chicano/Latino Studies and fields of cultural studies, history,
government, anthropology, and literary studies.