Acknowledged Legislator
Critical Essays on the Poetry of Martín Espada
Contributions by Natasha Azank, Andy Croft, Michael Dowdy, Carmen Dolores Hernández, Jeremy Larochelle, Peter Nelson, Camilo Pérez-Bustillo, César A. Salgado, Eric B. Salo, Oscar Sarmiento, Maritza Stanchich, Pauline Uchmanowicz Edited by Edward J. Carvalho
Not available to order
Publication date:
17 April 2014Length of book:
354 pagesPublisher
Fairleigh Dickinson University PressISBN-13: 9781611476422
Acknowledged Legislator: Critical Essays on the Poetry of Martín Espada stands as the first-ever collection of essays on poet and activist Martín Espada. It is also, to date, the only published book-length, single-author study of Espada currently in existence. Relying on innovative, highly original contributions from thirteen Espada scholars, its principal aim is to argue for a long overdue critical awareness of and cultural appreciation for Espada and his body of writing. Acknowledged Legislator accomplishes this task in three fundamental ways: by providing readers with background information on the poet’s life and work; offering an examination into the subject matter and dominant themes that are frequently contained in his writing; and finally, by advocating, in a variety of ways, for why we should be reading, discussing, and teaching the Espada canon. Divided into four distinct sections that modulate through several theoretical frames—from Espada’s attention to resistance poetics and concerns for historical memory to his oppositional critique of neoliberalism and support for a class consciousness grounded in labor rights—Acknowledged Legislator offers a cohesive, forward-thinking interpretive statement of the poet’s vision and proposes a critical (re)assessment for how we read Espada, now and in the future.
Poet Martín Espada (b. 1957), who has become synonymous with political activism, is a strong advocate of social equality, often to the detriment of his exposure to a more mainstream audience. This collection offers a comprehensive biographical-critical study of a poet who could be considered the unofficial voice of marginal Latinos. He writes from the perspective of a first generation Nuyorican who experienced overt racial discrimination, and his knowledge of Latin American literature of protest is extensive. In the introductory material, Carvalho provides important biographical information about Espada’s humble origins. The child of a 'dark-skinned Puerto Rican' father and a Jewish mother, Espada was born in the projects of New York City. Against all odds, he eventually became a lawyer, and his academic training is often evident in his politically inspired poetry. As the essays in this volume reveal, Espada’s poetry reflects the poet’s activism as a lawyer who fought for the rights of undocumented Latinos. Another of the book's critical focuses is Espada’s pro-independence poetry in support of the construction of a Puerto Rican nation. This volume introduces readers to the complex colonialist history that promoted the imposition of American citizenship on Puerto Ricans. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above; general readers.