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Review
| The Medicine of Memory: A Mexica Clan in California, by Alejandro Murguía. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002. xiv + 256 pp, 14 b&w illustrations. $22.95, paper.
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| Alejandro Murguía blurs the line that separates memoir and history in creating an account of Latino history that is often moving and, at the same time, provoking. Operating from the framework of autobiography and family history, Murguía extends the story of his "clan" to serve as a framework for examination of the broader Chicano past in California. He was driven to write this book through what he cites as the unbalanced treatment given to Latino contributions to the history and development of California. He writes in the book's preface, "My California is different from the histories I had to endure as a young man, the ones that left me out of the picture while rugged white pioneers conquered the West." (p. ix) He begins his account even before the time of those pioneers, starting the first chapter with the arrival of the first Spanish missionaries in California. Step-by-step, Murguía explores the history of his family, the Chicano inhabitants of California, and Hispanic culture in general. Frequently he offers comparisons between past and present in places like the San Fernando Valley and San Francisco. Interspersed with the progression of events from the era of the Mexica—the original indigenous inhabitants of California—to the contemporary period, Murguía offers insights into the forces that affect Hispanics in the United States. The double-edged sword of bilingualism, the struggle for workers' rights and fair wages for migrant farm workers, the economic hardships of young Latinos, and the stresses of biculturalism are vividly described in clear, forceful prose. Political and social conflicts are made more meaningful by personal examples from Murguía's own experiences growing up and living in California and leading a life of activism. A section of illustrations enhances the book by offering examples of Chicano culture and by highlighting incidents from the text. Murguía neatly fulfills the purpose of the book, showing in example after example the significance of the Latino contribution to Califor-nia history, to the history of the United States. |
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This book deserves to be included on syllabi for a variety of classes, both in and out of the history department. Students in Latino studies and Latino history courses will benefit from the unique combination of detailed family history and more generalized cultural analysis. While other authors have explored similar subjects in other regions of the Spanish-speaking United States, Murguía's integration of personal and group histories is appealing. The Medicine of Memory also has applications in courses on social and cultural history, especially those that focus on the U.S. Southwest. A central component of such courses should be an examination of how cross-cultural exchanges helped shape what is seen as the "American" culture of the 1900s. Many of these classes may be offered at the introductory level and geared to non-major students. Those students would particularly benefit from this accessible, jargon-free overview of Chicano culture. Students in advanced undergraduate and graduate level historiography courses would also benefit from reading Murguía's book. In particular, attention to his preface reaffirms many of the lessons regarding the role of historians that we seek to teach our students—recognizing personal biases, integrating diverse sources, and arranging the presentation of material. Finally, this is a book that should be considered for reading lists in Sociolinguistics courses. Not only is the story presented in the book intriguing from the perspective of Latino culture, but the method and approach adopted by Murguía are useful teaching tools for linguists and cultural anthropologists. The Medicine of Memory by Alejandro Murguía is a book that will be useful in a variety of courses and will appeal to the specialist as well as the casual reader. It provides a challenging and thought-provoking profile of Chicano history through the framework of an extended family history. Murguía's synthesis of scholarly writing and autobiographical accounts will enlighten the reader, stimulate discussion, and encourage further study. |
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| Indiana Area School District, Indiana, Pennsylvania |
William E. Doody |
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