Latinos in the United States Series (Garland Studies in Higher Education)

About this book

History, literature and popular belief normally introduce us to the story and image of Dona Marina, La Malinche, in either of three ways: (1) the woman is oftentimes presented very simply and insignificantly as just another part of the necessary back-drop to Cortes triumphant conquest or, as is more commonly done, (2) her portrayal assumes synonymity with destruction when she is singled out as the sole cause of the fall of the "patria" and becomes the scapegoat for all Mexican perdition thereafter while, on the other hand, (3) romanticists find themselves almost instinctively driven to depicting Dona Marina as the misguided and exploited victim of the tragic love affair which is said to have taken place between herself and Hernan Cortes.