One of the most prominent characteristics of the literature by United

One of the most prominent characteristics of the
literature by United States citizens of Mexican
descent is that it is frequently written in a
combination of English and Spanish. By not limiting
(5) itself to one language, such writing resonates with its
authors’ bicultural experiences. Their work is largely
Mexican in its sensibility, its traditions, and its myths,
but its immediate geographical setting is the United
States. And though Mexican American literature is
(10) solidly grounded in Mexican culture, it distinguishes
itself from Mexican literature in its content and
concerns.

Many Mexican Americans are only a generation
away from the mostly agrarian culture of their
(15) ancestors, and the work of most Mexican American
writers shows evidence of heavy influence from this
culture. Their novels are often simple in structure,
and some of the common themes in these novels
include the struggle to overcome the agricultural
(20) adversity that caused their families to emigrate, and a
feeling of being distanced from the traditions of rural
Mexico and yet striving to hold on to them. These
themes coexist with ever-present images of the land,
which symbolizes the values of the characters’
(25) culture, such as the spiritual and religious benefits of
working the land.

Much of Mexican writing, on the other hand, has
been criticized for being dominated by the prominent
literary establishment concentrated in Mexico City.
(30) Literary reputation and success in Mexico—including
the attainment of publicly sponsored positions in the
arts—are often bestowed or denied by this literary
establishment. Moreover, the work of Mexican writers
is often longer in form and marked by greater
(35) cosmopolitanism and interest in theoretical ideas and
arguments than is Mexican American writing. Not
surprisingly, the Mexican literary community views
Mexican American literature as a variety of
“regional” writing. But the apparent simplicity of
(40) what this community sees as parochial concerns
belies the thematic richness of Mexican American
writing.

The work of Mexican American writers can be
richly textured in its complex mixture of concerns;
(45) among other things, their work is distinguished by an
overarching concern with the complexities of cultural
transition. Many Mexican American writers assert that
rather than working to be absorbed into U.S. society,
they are engaged in the process of creating a new
(50) identity. Physically distanced from Mexico and yet
convinced of its importance, these writers depict a
new reality by creating “in-between” characters.
These characters inhabit a social and cultural milieu
which is neither that of Mexico nor that of the U.S.
(55) And while this new setting reflects the contemporary
social realities of both Mexico and the U.S., it also
derives a great deal of emotional power from an
evocation of a romanticized memory of Mexico.
What results is an intermediate cultural borderland in
(60) which nostalgia and reality are combined in the
service of forging a new identity.

1. Which one of the following most accurately states the main point of the passage?

(A) Mexican American literature is characterized by a strong sense of transition, which is due to its writers’ physical distance from Mexico and their clear vision of the future of Mexican culture.
(B) Unlike Mexican writing, which is largely tied to an urban literary establishment, Mexican American writing is a movement that attempts through its works to develop a literary voice for agrarian workers.
(C) The work of Mexican American writers reflects Mexican Americans’ bicultural experiences, both in its close links with the culture of rural Mexico and in its striving to develop a new identity out of elements of Mexican culture and U.S. culture.
(D) Mexican American literature, although unique in its content and concerns as well as in its stylistic innovations, has not yet achieved the prominence and reputation of Mexican literature.
(E) Many Mexican Americans are only a generation away from the culture of their ancestors and because of this, Mexican American literature is distinguished by the presence of powerful spiritual images, which are an organic part of the Mexican American agrarian culture.


2. It can most reasonably be inferred from the passage that the author would agree with which one of the following statements?

(A) While Mexican American writers are in the process of shaping their body of literature, one of their goals is to create a literary establishment in the U.S. essentially like the one concentrated in Mexico City.
(B) The use of a mixture of both Spanish and English in current Mexican American literature is evidence of a brief transitional period.
(C) The use of a romanticized Mexico in Mexican American literature is offensive to writers of the literary establishment of Mexico City, who find the images to be caricatures of their culture.
(D) Mexican American literature is noteworthy more for its thematic content than for its narrative structure.
(E) Mexican American writers are concerned that the importance of Mexico, currently central to their culture, will be diminished, and that Mexican American literature will be impoverished as a result.


3. It can most reasonably be inferred from the passage that many Mexican American writers tend to value which one of the following?

(A) stylistic innovations that distinguish their work from that of Mexican writers
(B) recognition from a U.S. literary establishment that is significantly different from that of Mexico
(C) an identity that resists absorption by U.S. culture
(D) critical acceptance of bilingual forms of literary expression
(E) the ability to express in their literature a more complex fabric of concerns than is found in most U.S. literature


4. To which one of the following questions does the passage most clearly provide an answer?

(A) What is an example of a specific literary work by a Mexican American writer?
(B) For what reason are many Mexican American writings concerned with agrarian themes or topics?
(C) What is the prevailing view of Mexican American literature among critics in the United States?
(D) How has the literature of the United States influenced Mexican American writers?
(E) Are the works of Mexican American writers written more in Spanish or in English?


5. It can most reasonably be inferred from the passage that the author holds which one of the following views?

(A) Mexican American literature advocates an agrarian way of life as a remedy for the alienation of modern culture.
(B) The Mexican American “in-between” character is an instance of a type found in the literature of immigrant groups in general.
(C) A predominant strength of Mexican American writers is that they are not tied to a major literary establishment and so are free to experiment in a way many Mexican writers are not.
(D) Writers of “regional” literature find it more difficult to attain reputation and success in Mexico than writers whose work is concerned with more urban themes.
(E) History has an importance in Mexican American culture that it does not have in Mexican culture because Mexican Americans have attached greater importance to their ancestry.