Self-Made Jíbara: Hybridity in Puerto Rican Female Coming of Age Novels

This study explores the cultural ambivalence of Puerto Rican and U.S. self-identification in two U.S. coming of age novels, revealing insights into identity formation. The selected texts are "When I Was Puerto Rican" (1993) by Esmeralda Santiago and "The Time It Snowed in Puerto Rico" (2009) by Sarah McCoy. Both novels find echoes in one another in themes of cultural ambivalence, identity formation process, female coming of age, and therefore embody ideal points of comparison with one another. By exploring the convergence of literature, language, and environmental influences, this study unveils the complexities of cultural ambivalence, revealing its influence on the dynamics of identity formation. This thesis is centered on the introduction of the literary model of the self-made jíbara, a new and hybrid representation of female Puerto Rican identity that remodels elements of the U.S. self-made man and the Puerto Rican jíbaro in the subjectivities of two non-White female protagonists. This model proves to be relevant because it rejects notions of cultural dominance and fosters the individual success of the protagonists, underscoring their dual and ambivalent nature.