Abstract
Mortal Doubt: Transnational Gangs and Social Order in Guatemala City, by Anthony W. Fontes. University of California Press, 2018.
Highlights
Fontes’s book sheds light on two key areas that enrich gang literature: (1) awareness on engaging ethnographically with the material and imagined role of a marero, constructed and reproduced by both marero and society at large
Fontes’ own academic ambitions and his feelings of excitement, curiosity, and fascinated horror generated by his “dream to delve into the life of a ‘real’ marero" are relevant to his analysis of accepted imaginary and material narratives
Similar to the sensitivity present in the work by Ellen Moodie on the biospectacularity of gangs in El Salvador,[1] Fontes manages to be sensitive towards the subject and towards his informants, and he constantly reflects on his own participation in the recounting of certain events
Summary
Fontes’s book sheds light on two key areas that enrich gang literature: (1) awareness on engaging ethnographically with the material and imagined role of a marero (gangster), constructed and reproduced by both marero and society at large. Fontes recognizes while observing and analyzing his data that the symbolic and material forms of knowledge produce a sort of truth accepted by those who repeat that particular narrative. Fontes’s ability to identify moments in which his informants are spewing fantasies to enrich their narratives, when they are
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: European Review of Latin American and Caribbean Studies | Revista Europea de Estudios Latinoamericanos y del Caribe
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
