Re is a de Es udios No eame icanos,
n.
•X
(2001
),
pp.
27
-32
ANA
CASTILLO'S
SO
FAR
FROM
GOD:
A
STORY
OF
SURVIVAL
AMAIA
!BARRAN BIGALONDO
Uni e sidad del País Vasco
The eali y
o
hc Chicanas p io o he decade
o
he 70s, when he i s s eps
owan.ls he disman ling
o
he pe sonal con ines ha limi ed and displaced h
em
om
hei communily and he mains eam socie y we e aken, can be depic ed as one
o
esis ancc o a h ee- old opp ession. Disc imina ed agains o being membc s o a
«mino i y»
g oup
wi hin
an
anglo- uled
mac osocie y.
endu ing
he
uni e sal
«coloniza ion»
o
women and u he mo e, dep i ed
o
many pe sonal igh s by hei
male coun e pa s, hey li ed in a si ua ion
o
cons an su i al. These ci cums ances
des uclu cd hei ques o a eed iden i y. hus p o oking a s a e
o
sel -denial and
pe sonal insecu i y
in
hem. Women w i e s. inso a as hey a e ep esen a i es
o
he
women
o
hei communi y, ha e
used
hei c ea ions
o
comba
and
e ision he
nega i e s e eo ypes associa ed wi h Chicanas, which had acili a ed and sus aincd he
cxis ence
o hc
a o emen ioned disc imina ion.
This is he case
o
Ana Cas illo, Chicana c i ic
and
w i e , who, in
he
no el So
Fa F om God (1993). ch onicles he li es
o
i e women, membe s
o
he same
amily.
I
na a es he s o y
o
So ia and
he
ou daugh e s, Espe anza, Fe, Ca idad
and
La
Loca, whosc ci cums ances l
ead
hem o su i e in li c, and esis hc ad e se
si ua ions hey expe ience as womcn, lo e s. wo ke s e c. P esen ing i e dis inc bu
exempla y cha ac e s. Cas illo a emp s o po ay di e se li e si ua ions
am
i di c cnl
p o
cedu es
o
p ese e
one's
own
id
en i y
in ac .
o e coming
he
delc e ious
in luences he p e ailing socioeconomical
o de
exe s upon each
o
hem. In his
e
g
a d
. she calls o he eade s o esis and su i e in a simila ashion.
The
s o y
is p esen ed in
he
o m
o
an epic
no e
l. di ided in o six een
cpisodes.
whos
e illes a e eminiscen
o
h
e na a i e
o
he medie al ales: hus,
·•
This s udy has heen Jina :ccd
b~
hc U.PV. 103.130-HA 068/98 Rcsea ch P ojec
l.
28
Amaia ]ba an
Bigalond
o
Chap e One is en i
le
d «An Accoun
o
he Fi s As onishing Occu ence in he
Li
es
o
a Woman Named So ia
and
He Fou Daugh e s;
and
he
Equally As o
nishin
g
Re u n
o
He Waywa d Husband
»,
Chape
l.Wo,
«
011
Ca idad's Holy Res o a ion
and
He
Subsequen
Clai oyance: Bo
h
Ph
e
no
mena
Qu
es ioned
by
he
Douh in
g
Tomases
o To
me» e c. The e ecl such i les ha e upon he
eade
may we l be
one
o
ex
pec ing a quixo ic-Jike he o/p o agonis , whose ad en u es and icissi udes wiJJ
be
na a ed in
h
e s o y. None heless, So ia, an independen woman, head
o
he
amily
,
who has commi ed he sel o he educa ion
o
he ou d
aug
h e
s,
may be cons
ide ed
a he oine
in
he e ms Ca men Salaza Pa and Gene ie e M . Ramí ez explain:
We
ha e ound ha in hese emale-au ho ed wo ks women exhibi he
same
he oic quali ies as men, (
....
). The
«d
agons» challenged by women a e
he
con en ions c ea ed
in
a male-domina ed wo ld. Pe haps he o emos
he oi
c
achie emen esides in he
as
su
mp ion o hose he oic quali ies, possible
only
in
he conscious de ia ion om he
adi ionally emin
ine
cha ac e is ics imposed
by men. Ou women he oes do no , howe e , seek s
up
e i
o i
y
and dominance
bu a h
e
pa i y and equali y
o
s a u
e,
espec , and oppo uni y. Clea l
y,
he
y
a e nei he he adi ional he oes in posi ions
o
powe
no he adicional
he oines whose oles suppo he he oic
ac
hie emen s
o
men (
19
85:59).
So ia is depic ed
as
an independen - om-men woman, and he e o e,
as
s a
ed
abo e, disclaims he s e eo ypes and oles men ha e imposed upon
wo
n
en. On
be
i
ng
abandoned by he husband, she becomes a s ong woman,
who
adop s
he
«male
ole»
o
p o ide
o
he econo nical s abili y
o
he amily
uni ,
and,
co
n
co
mi an ly,
con inues o be he ansmi
e
o
cul u al he i age and
a
lues o he daugh e s.
None heless, albei hese women ha e been
a
ugh how o su i e away
om
a
dominan! male igu e by hei mo he , and esis i s con ol, hey come in o con ac
wi h se e a! men, ali o whom
le
ad hem
o
nega i e si ua ions and consequences.
Espe anza, ep esen a i e o he con empo a y Chicana, who h
as
a ended college and
has ac i ely pa icipa ed in
h
e Chicano Mo emen ,
a e
he b eak up wi h
he
boy iend Rubén, who Cas illo desc ibes in an i onic way ( «Du ing ha ime, she
had
li ed wi h he boy iend Rubén, wh
o,
du ing he heig
h
o
his Chicano conciousness,
enamed himsel Cuauh emoc», (1993:25), chooses o Jea e he coun
y
o co e a
wa
as a epo e , whe e she is subsequen ly killed. Cas illo sl ongly c i icizes men, who,
like Rubé
n.
commi ed o he pligh
o
he Chicano people, a e incapable
o
alo ising
and espec ing he women's igh o hei pe sonal libe a ion, e
en
pushing hem o a
si ua ion o
se
l
-deni
al
and social anspa ency.
Ca idad, on he o h
e
hand, may well be seen as he pe soni ica ion
o
he
adi iona
l
Chicana
who
abandons
he
pe sonal
ques
o
id
en
i
y
and
sel -
de elopmen due o he lo e o a man, Memo, adop ing he eminine s e eo y
pe
desc ib
ed
by Mae Hende son: «Women a e supposed o li e s ably and p
o ide
s abili y o o he s» (1995:34).When he ejec s he ,
she
loses he pe sonal
and
emo ional s abili y, and chooses
o
ac
in
a way ha diame ically opposes he ole
o
i ginal, good woman, becoming a
«bad>>
wo nan who indulges in sexual in e cou
se
Ana
Cas illo 's
So
Fa F om God: a S o y
o
Su i al 29
wi h se e a! men. The consequences a e as well agic,
o
she
is iolen ly bea en up
by a g oup
o
men ou side one
o
he ba s she now equen s. No wi hs anding, his
de ia ion om he no m in o he ealm
o
he
«Ou
side,» masculine socie y, a icula es
he u u e c ea ion o he iden i y, and is e isioned
as
posi i e by Rosau a Sánchez,
who posi s ha
The «good,» socially accep ed woman, i ollows, embodies
Lhe
quali ies o he
V
i
gin;
pu i y,
sel
l
essness,
mys icism,
and
espec ulness.
The
«bad,»
unaccep able woman, who is iewed suspiciously, ac ually demons a es mo e
independence, asse i eness and is mo e socially mobile, mo ing owa ds sel -
de e mining beha iou (1977: 41).
Ca idad, a e being a «bad» woman. hus ejec ed
by
he own communi y as a
consequence
o
he ha ing challenged he s a ic and cons aining mo al code
o
he
g oup, adop s a mo e «posi i e» s ance and emba ks
on
ad en u e in o he wo ld
o
spi i uali y and inne - e lec ion. «Fe, he hi d
o
So i's daugh e s, was ine. Tha is,
wen y- ou , wi h a s eady
job
a he bank and a ha d-wo king boy iend whom she
had known o e e ; she had jus announced hei engagemen » (Cas illo 1993:26).
Tom, he boy iend, also lea es he , and
Fe
su e s
ase e e
ne ous b eakdown.
As
po ayed in hese ou cha ac e s, hei eali y is con inually shaped
by
he
in e loping p esence o he absolu e absence
o
men a ound hem, and i is his
(non)p esence which places hese women in a si ua ion
o
su i al and esis ence.
Howe e , women who do no expe ience male con ol, pe soni ied in he igu e
o
So ia. ha e o igh agains he cons an! nega i e in e en ion
o
he communi y in
hei li es. The he o
o
Ana Cas illo
's
no el, ne e heless, manages o escape his
manipula ion and e en suceeds in pene a ing he «male-wo ld.» She uns as a mayo
o he elec ions
in
Tome, he home own, and
is
de e mined o o ge ahead in he
poli ical ca ee , he e o e, occupying posi ions ende ed as masculine:
Then why s op al mayo ? Why no elec he sel
la
juez
de paz o
Ja
comandan e
o
Tome as hey had had in he old days? Why no be Queen
o
Tome o ha
ma e ? (Cas illo 1993: 137)
When women ha e o esis he male in luence and dominance in hei li es,
howc e , he consequences,
as
seen be a e, a e nega i e, and e en agic. Men, in he
no el, d i e women o si ua ions
o
sel -denial and sel -des uc ion, and only when
hey ee hemsel es om hem, a e hey po ayed
as
eady o ac i ely choose hei
own pa h and econs uc hei indi idual
id
en i y. Acco dingl
y,
o esis he masculine
coloniza ion
o
he emale sel is, as p01 ayed by Cas illo, he only way o su i e
wi hin he male-o ien a ed and uled Chicano communi y.
The coloniza ion exe ed upon women
by
Chicano men, none heless, does no
only a ec hem in e ms
o
pe sonal iden i y and pe sonali y. The women in he no el
a e also ic ims
o
h
e ex e na) o ganiza ion
o
a socie y con olled
by
men, in which
30
Amaia !ba an BiKalondo
hey ha e ne e had he chance
o
pa icipa e. Wa , a ins ance, jus like poli ics in
gene al, is conside ed a masculine subjec ,
a
i in ol es men aking
decision
s
alongside o he men and men pa icipa ing ac i ely in mili a y ope a ions.
Th oughou
h
e yea s, he ole
o
women
in
imes
o
wa has been he
one
o
companion,
cook,
nu se e c., a
o
le eminiscen
o
he one a ibu
ed
o women
in
he o e all un
c ioning
o
socie y in gene al, and
o
he Chicano communi y in pa icula . Espe anza's
job
as a
epo1 e du ing he Saudi A abian wa con eys he idea
o
he need o obse e
and
epo hings h ough a eminine eye, in
a
de o ein e p e hem in a mo e uni e sal
and in eg a i c ashion. On he o he hand, Espe anza,
jus
like Salia, he
mo he ,
a emp s o pene a e he male wo ld, hus a nalgama ing
in
he
pe sona
he
male
and
he emale oles, s ongly connec ed o he ac
o
elling s o ies and ansmi ing
hem
o he es
o
he communi y. As opposed o So ia, who succeeds
in
he o e coming
« nale/ emalc ole» di ide, Espe anza
<loes
no achie e i ,
and
mee s wi h a agic
end,
a she dies in he wa .
On
he o he hand, Cas illo s ongly c i icises he nega i e e ec s
o
male
dominance
and
he
coloniza ion
o
each
wo nan
's
iden i
y,
which
implies
manipula ion
o
he woman's eali y wi hin he male wo ld, as a consequence
o
he
e ec s a capi alis , p oduc ion-o ien ed.
ma
le- uled socie y exe s upon
women
in
pa icula . Fe,
who
pe soni ies he
Ch
i
can~
who
wan s
o
assimila e he
Anglo,
capi alis cul u e and sys em, s a s o wo k
in
a ac o y, which pa adoxically
enough
wo ks wi h be Pen agon, and p oduces high- echnology weapons. Once again,
jus
as
in
he case
o
he sis e Ca idad, he ou come
o
his a emp is ex emely agic, o
she dies as a esul
o
he inadequa e wo king condi ions in h
e
place
o
wo k:
Being so
good
a u iliza ion and c iciency, he queen
o
i , you could say,
he e a Acme In c na ional, she was on o bigge
jobs
a
nd
be e pays in
no
ime. She wo ked ha d no ma e wha , e en hough, o ins ance, she
<lid
no
like he las cleaning
job
she was gi en. I 's no likc she had complained
abou
i
o
no hing, bu h ce mon hs
o
wo king in a
da k
cubicle
could
ge
o
anybody.
The
esul s
o
wo king wi h a chemical ha ac ually glowed in he
da k and he e o
e
you co
ul
d wo k i
in
he da k, wi h special glo es and
cap
(and
why
you
did
, as a
supe
iso
explained,
was
able
o
de ec
i
any
inge p in s
o
hai go on he pa s) was his ed ing a ound he nose
and
b ea h ha s nelled suspiciously
o
glue.
Well, he
odo
o
ali hose
chemi
ca
ls in
ha
open
a ea
as well
as
h oughou he whole plan was enough
o
make anyone nausea ed a i s , bu
a e abou an hou
o
being he e e e y mo ning, you would swea he e
was
no s nell a ali. So Fe had no idea ba he body had ac ually abso bed he
sme
ll
un il one e ening Casey asked he , ac ully
o
cou se,
i
sbe was no doing
some hing on he lunch hou ha she shouldn
' .
(Cas illo 1993: 181)
He ole in he ac o y is a emale one, ha
o
cleaning.
In
keeping wi h he
gene al one
o
he no el, Cas illo depic s i
in
a e y i onic way, bu , once again,
he
ou come
o
i
is se ious and des uc i e. C i icizing wa in a e ocious way o a
Ana
Cas illo 's So Fa
Fmm
God: a S o y
o
Swl'il'lll
31
second ime, as well as he igu e
o
he male-wa io -he o, he w i e
ca
lls o he
indica ion
o
he h
e o
sy
mbolized by So ia. A pe son who is able o in eg a c he sel
in o he socie y, she main ains he iden i y
in
apu e
s a e and is able o coexis wi hin
he emale/male pola i y ha builds s ong on ie s o
he
women, who, a emp ing
o espass hem. su e a comple e disin cg a ion
o
hei
sel
es, o hey ha e c ossed
wha Co delia Candela ia desc ibes as he «Wild Zone»:
The
«wild
zo
ne» h
es
is
hus
iden i ies a
undamen al
pa adox
o
emale
iden i y: on he one hand, a dis inc emale expe ien ial, cul u al space dc i ed
om an un es ic ed (
«Wild») exis ence
unmedia ed
by inimical, imposed
de ini ions
o
iden i y, and on he o he he es ic ed women-space de ined by
and loca ed wi hin he englobing his o ical pa ia chy wi hou ecogni ion
o
women's human po en ial
o
achie emen . (1993: 23)
Jus
as
has b
ee
n obse ed in he examples
o
h ee
o
So ia's daugh e s. he
a emp s o pene a e and su i e wi hin he malc wo ld
a e
only posi i e in he case
o
So ia. who unqucs ionably, becomes he he oine
o
he no el. La Loca, ano he
o
he
daugh e s, esis s and
su
i es he nega i e malc coloniza ion, bu she chooses o
disassocia e he sel o m he «mains eam» communi y, in o de o ind h
e
own space
wi hin
he
«W
ild zone»
which
libe a es and a he
same
ime en
closes
women.
Madness,
o
a o al de ia ion om he mo al alues
and
ules, becomes he way o
escape ealil
y,
and allows h
e
o ein e p e ali he communi y alues, in a bid o make
hem alid wi hin he sel -chosen cons uc ed eali
y.
Becoming he «Ü he », La Lo
ca
is allowed o d
c ia
e om
he
ma
le s c eo ype
o
how a woman should be, and
he e o e, su i e wi hin hei socie
y.
Cas i
ll
o he sel explains his ac in he «B ujas
and Cu ande as. A Li ed Spi i uali y»
in
he ollowing e ms,
The b uja and cu ande a migh associa e
h
e undamen al be ayal
o he
chu ch
wi h he womanhood, wi h he de ou
Ca
holic mo he .
Sh
e, he e o e, may be
inclined owa d he g a
ndm
o
h
e 's
belic s,
o
he eachings
o
a
co
mmuni y
elde . C
ca
ing
so
ne dis ance om he las
ge
ne
a ion,
om
who she is
unlea ning many lessons ha ha e el ha m ul o he well-being, allows he o
ecap u e
so
ne
o
he spi i ual
o
ien a ion, and o adap i o h
e
own needs
while s ill ope a ing wi hin he own cul u e. (Cas illo 1995:
15
2)
La Loca, as s a ed in he
qu
o a ion abo e, is he only one
o
So
ia
's
daugh c s
who does no ha e an a
ll
ego
ical, e
li
gious name. Rejec
ed
by he communi y a
e
she was bo n o
ha
ing su e
ed
an epileplic a ack, which was in e p e ed as
an
anomalous, supema u al gi
o
he baby, she shu s be
se
l
o om hosc a ound he ,
cul i a ing he spi i ualily, and lea ning om
he
own cu a
nd
e
a
,
Doña
Felicia.
Isola ion and a ich
inne
wo
ld a e p esen ed by he w i e as he
onl
y ways
o
su i ing wi hin he
ma
le
com
muni
y.
Ca
idad, oo, a e being assaul
ed
by a g oup
o
men, al
so
commi s
he sel
o
sel - c 1ec ion and
ana
lysis, and lees om
he

32
Amaia !ba an
Bigalondo
communi y o li e in a ca e. Espe anza, on he
o
he hand, a e disappea ing
in
he
wa , is seen
in
he o n
o
a spi i by many
o
he inhabi an s
o
Tome.
In
a e y
comical, i onic way, he au ho e i es and ein e p e s he image o La Llo ona
in
he
pe sona
o
Espe anza, when she says: «Bu ali
o
his,
as
I said, was
pos poned
,
indeed, nea ly o go en a e Espe anza's amily go
h
e message she had sen
o
hem
ia
La
Llo ona,
Chi
can
a in e na ional as al- a ele »
(Cas illo
1993:
162).
La
Llo ona's and Espe anza's a e is, in an a emp
o
su i e, o wande h ough he
di ches
o
he own in he o m
o
a spi i . Women, jus like Espe anza, ha e
o
be
in isible and anspa en , commi ed o hei spi i ual cul i a ion so as o be accep ed
by he male, ma e ialis ic socie y. As Tey Diana Rebolledo explains,
Many s o ies w i en by Chicanas ch onicle he
wo ld
in
which he
emale
he o 's expec a ions con lic wi h he dic a es
o
he su ounding
socie y.
Chicana he oes desi e eedom o be hemsel es. in all
o
hei abili ies and
aspec s, a eedom o en denied by a cul u e ha would ha e hem oe s ic
no ms o beha io o young women (1995:111).
Cas illo's objec i e, in conclusion, by means
o
using an i onic one,
is
o
denounce he di icul ies women encoun e in hei s uggle o su i al wi hin
he
male-domina ed communi y. and a he same ime. o esis he coloniza ion
o
hei
eal iden i y. Wo nen,
as
po ayed in he dea hs
o
So ia's daugh e s, can no
bea
he
nega i e p essu e
o
male con ol, and ind
in
madness and de ia ion o n he
no m
he only way o ind hei own, libe a ing «wild zone.»
REFERENCES
Candela ia, Co delia. «The "Wild Zone" Thesis As Gloss
in
Chicana Li e a y S udy,»
Chicana C i ica/ Is.mes. Be keley, CA: Thi d Woman P ess, 1993. 21-31.
Cas illo, Ana. Massac e
o
he D eame s. Essays on Xicanisma. New
Yo k:
Penguin
Plume Books, 1995.
-.
So
Fa
Fmm God. New Yo k:
W.
W. No on & Company, 1993.
Hende son, Mae, ed. Bo de s, Bounda ies
and
F ames. Cul u al C i icism
and
Cul u al S udies. New
Yo k
: Rou edge, 1995.
Rebolledo, Tey Diana. Women Singing
in
he
Snow.
A Cul u al Analysis
o
Chicana
Li e a u e
».
Tucson: Uni e si y
o
A izona P ess, 1995.
Salaza Pa , Ca men and Ramí ez, Gene ie e M. «The Female He o in Chicano
Li e a u e,»
Ma ía
He e a-Sobek, ed
.,
Beyond
S e
eo ypes. The
C i ica/
Analysis
o
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