Intellectuals and Mexican satirical literature of the twentieth century

This dissertation studies the representation of Mexican intellectuals in three twentieth-century satirical texts: Satira (1970) by Salvador Novo, Memorias de Espana 1937 (1992) by Elena Garro, and El miedo a los animates (1995) by Enrique Sema. By analyzing these texts, I explore the formation and functioning of intellectual elites in Mexico, particularly during transitional periods when conflicts between the artistic, the political, and the socioeconomic orders were taking place. These works exhibit a wide range of internal positions, interests, and influences among intellectuals vis-a-vis Mexico's cultural and political establishment.; This dissertation makes use of two major approaches to intellectuality and intellectuals, those of Karl Mannheim and Alan Knight. For Knight, intellectuals are purveyors of ideology, leaders of all-encompassing cultural projects which were central to the consolidation of post-revolutionary regimes in Mexico. Furthermore, the dissertation relies on the definition of satire by Northrop Frye. According to Frye, Satire is not a literary genre but an "attitude". Writers deploy this attitude by developing literary strategies in order to excite laughter in their audience against their opponents.; Through my analysis, I show that these writers use satire in order to carry out a frontal attack on specific intellectuals within the Mexican cultural establishment of their times; however, they tackle broader questions on the role of intellectuals in society as well. Novo satirizes the compromised position of art vis-a-vis state patronage and consumerism after the Mexican Revolution. Garro addresses her satire towards the ethical quest of Marxist-oriented Mexican intellectuals in Spain, during the Spanish Civil War, as in Mexico, during the 1968 political upheaval. Her satire is an attempt to unmask the political opportunism of these empowered mid-century intellectuals.; Finally, Serna explores the questionable role of intellectuals during the late PRI rule in Mexico. According to Serna, a way to achieve cultural autonomy from the State is through market. Finally, this dissertation tests the limits of satire as a subversive weapon against hegemonic culture and power. Satire is certainly a means to measure the degrees of tolerance and opposition that intellectuals in Mexico held against and within the dominant cultural and political order.