Thesis of My Essay
Doyles v Taboada in a Mexican Standoff: Colonization and Eugenics in Mexican Gothic
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In Mexican gothic, the Doyle’s deep obsession with inbreeding and purity results in their families downfall. The Doyle’s represent a critique on the white supremacist purists of historical instances, and they underestimate Noemi due to her race, which proves to be catastrophic for them.
No. 1
The Doyle family’s obsession with purity.
Howard, the patriarch of the Doyle family, is an enthusiast of eugenics. Throughout the novel, he makes racist and offensive claims about the ourity of the blood of other races and families. Because of this infatuation with purity, the Doyles were forced into years of inbreeding resulting in infertility. Had there been no stigma against other bloodlines in the first place, there would be no need for the Taboadas.
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No. 2
The family belief that Mexicans are less than them.
In the novel, during the Porfiriato, Howard Doyle took advantage of the native Mexicans in Mexico City by using them for land and wealth. The natives are the reason for hum discovering the key to living forever. Because of this, Howard passed on the belief that Mexicans are less than European, especially Doyles. This causes the family to underestimate the power Naomí has to escape.
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No. 3
Their refusal to acknowledge their flaws.
When Naomí first enters High Place, she can recognize something is off about the family. Because they desire to appear perfect, it is apparent from the outside that they are strange. They refuse to accept this however, because in Howard’s eyes they are the picture perfect t family. Even after losing all of their wealth and almost losing the bloodline, the Doyles are greedy and demand more, which results in Naomí taking them down.
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Symbolism
SNAKES AND THE OUROBOROS |
The symbol of a snake, often in the form of the ouroboros, appears regularly throughout the novel. Occasionally, the snake is present as a warning to the women of High Place. In Ruth’s diary entry that Catalina gives Naomí, Ruth explains that she has a dream where she is an egg being consumed by a snake. Similarly, when Naomí dreams of being assaulted by Virgil she also sees a snake and egg. Snakes can represent the patriarchal hold that the men have over the Doyle women. The ouroboros, however, has a more specific meaning. Historically, the ouroboros is depicted as a dragon or snake devouring itself and being reborn. Clearly this serves a connection to Howard Doyle, as his immortality is dependent on him eating human flesh to be reborn. In the novel, the Doyle Family crest is an ouroboros, so it is apparent that Howard represents the connection.
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Links to Learn More and Citations
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Links to learn more:
Silvia’s Website: https://silviamoreno-garcia.com
Read the Novel:
https://www.amazon.ca/Mexican-Gothic-Silvia-Moreno-Garcia/dp/0525620788
Citations:
Silvia’s Website: https://silviamoreno-garcia.com
Read the Novel:
https://www.amazon.ca/Mexican-Gothic-Silvia-Moreno-Garcia/dp/0525620788
Citations:
- Graeme GreenMore about Graeme Green XNew Internationalist is a lifeline for activists, et al. “Spotlight: Silvia Moreno-Garcia.” New Internationalist, 17 May 2022, https://newint.org/features/2022/02/07/silvia-moreno-garcia.
- “Ouroboros.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ouroboros.
- Moreno-Garcia, Silvia. MEXICAN GOTHIC. Thorndike Press, 2021.
- “Porfiriato.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/topic/Porfiriato.
- byjamishelves, Posted. “‘When the Past Isn't Dead: Post-Colonialism and Horror in Mexican Gothic ".” Jamishelves, 3 May 2021, https://jamishelves.wordpress.com/2021/02/13/when-the-past-isnt-dead-post-colonialism-and-horror-in-mexican-gothic/.