In her book Borderlands (1987), Gloria Anzaldúa reconstructs the mythology of the indigenous people of the U.S. to serve her feminist purpose of empowering women. More particularly, Anzaldúa means...Show moreIn her book Borderlands (1987), Gloria Anzaldúa reconstructs the mythology of the indigenous people of the U.S. to serve her feminist purpose of empowering women. More particularly, Anzaldúa means to inspire Chicana women to rebel against the double oppression they endure from Mexican-American (Chicano) culture as well as from the dominant American society. Anzaldúa finds a way to transform the borderlands, the marginal space in which Chicana women live, into a space that grants herself and other women the power to construct their own identities. She recreates legends and mythical figures from ancient Aztec culture that other Chicana women can relate to and draw strength from. Sandra Cisneros, one of the Chicana writers inspired by Anzaldúa, in her short story sequence Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories (1991) draws on Anzaldúa’s reconstructed feminist mythology. By connecting these legends with the female protagonists in her story, Cisneros enables empowerment for the latter.Show less
