Staging Politics in Mexico: The Road to Neoliberalism

Stuart A. Day

2004
179 pages
$78.00
ISBN 9780838755877
LC 2004006472
Bucknell Studies in Latin American Literature and Theory

Neoliberalism in Mexico is characterized by "free" markets, by the privatization of thousands of State enterprises, and by influence from Washington and Wall Street, which has forever changed the political climate, making it necessary to theorize new paths for the future. Indeed, liberal ideology champions not only economic freedom but individual liberty as well: in the canon of liberal texts, Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations coexists with John Stuart Mill's The Subjugation of Women, a biting commentary on gender inequality. The debate over neoliberalism in Mexico is not exclusively a left-right conflict. Many leftists see ties with the U.S. as a means to promote social change even though they oppose neoliberal economics; many on the right, while supporting neoliberalism, fear social influences from the North. This volume focuses on the neoliberal debate in plays by four Mexican authors: Sabina Berman, Vicente Leñero, Victor Hugo Rascón Banda, and Alejandra Trigueros. These playwrights stage the complexity of neoliberalism, providing insight into a global trend and its manifestation in Mexico.

About the author:

Stuart A. Day is Assistant Professor of Spanish at The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.