Nativized exoticism in “el país de todas las sangres”

ABSTRACT

In this paper I develop a perspective of nativized exoticism to describe how discourses around Peruvian Chineseness as both assimilated and exotic promote a multicultural mestizo national narrative that nevertheless overlooks questions of representation and the subject gaze. Using a qualitative approach, my argument connects micro-level analysis of spoken and mediated discourse to the broader contemporary and sociohistorical context. Findings extend existing work on processes of racialization in diaspora and the image of Asians as “perpetual foreigners” as well as imagined societies (Anderson, B. 2006. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. London: Verso) and myths of equalizing mestizaje in Latin America. Findings further connect cotidian discourses to broader issues of appropriation and materiality within the national identity narrative.

KEYWORDS:

• Identity
• migration
• nation
• Asian
• Latin America
• discourse

Acknowledgments

I am indebted to the many Peruvians of Chinese descent who shared their thoughts and experiences with me and welcomed me into the tusán community. Any errors are, of course, my own.

Les agradezco profundamente a todos los peruanos de ascendencia china que amablemente compartieron sus pensamientos y experiencias conmigo y me extendieron la bienvenida a la comunidad tusán. Cualquier error es mío solamente.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Originally developed to explain Europe’s relationship with the Middle East, Said’s paradigm has been productively applied and developed in East Asian studies.

2 American University IRB 2020-8. Project goals, data use, and confidentiality were explained to participants to obtain informed consent.

3 Tusanaje aims to raise awareness of Chinese communities, histories, and issues throughout Latin America and Spain.

4 Keiko Fujimori, leader of the Fujimorista political party and daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori.

5 As a point of comparison, soccer player Edison Flores (“Orejitas”) had 363,273 Twitter followers and 1,382,145 followers on Instagram.

6 Working-class eateries.

7 Vives, C. (September 14, 2018). Mañana [video]. (YouTube). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGDc0qJgUbQ

8 Cholos are indigenous Peruvians or indigenous-appearing mestizos; -ito is the diminutive suffix.

9 Asian Peruvians are also excluded from the novel’s depiction of Peruvian diversity.