Toward a Poetics of Chile…in Another Mexico

Abstract

Research Article| February 01 2023 Toward a Poetics of Chile…in Another Mexico Victor Valle Victor Valle Victor Valle, an emeritus Cal Poly San Luis Obispo professor and former Los Angeles Times Pulitzer Prize winner, writes from those places where food, urbanism, and literature overlap, even when it’s a story about white-collar crime (City of Industry: Genealogies of Power in Southern California, Rutgers University Press, 2009). Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Gastronomica (2023) 23 (1): 65–76. https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2023.23.1.65 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review PDF Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Guest Access Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Victor Valle; Toward a Poetics of Chile…in Another Mexico. Gastronomica 1 February 2023; 23 (1): 65–76. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2023.23.1.65 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentGastronomica Search It snuck up from behind me—that whiff of smoldering weeds, and then the tickle that comes just before coughing. A breeze had again wafted that charred aroma to the middle of the street, all the way from the kitchen window my mom had opened to vent the smoke of chile de árbol pods twisting like burgundy claws on her cast iron griddle. Standing arms-length from her griddle she used as a comal for baking tortillas and toasting spices, she held a dishcloth over mouth and nose to protect herself from fumes strong enough to drive pets away. I did not need to see that scene to see it, or hear my grandfather’s voice to imagine men staggering, choking on the chile bushes Francisco Villa’s troops burned just inside the cave’s mouth to smoke out his enemies. In the distance, I saw a firing squad, a puff of smoke, and men... Send Email Recipient(s) will receive an email with a link to 'Toward a Poetics of Chile…in Another Mexico' and will not need an account to access the content. *Your Name: *Your Email Address: CC: *Recipient 1: Recipient 2: Recipient 3: Recipient 4: Recipient 5: Subject: Toward a Poetics of Chile…in Another Mexico Optional Message: (Optional message may have a maximum of 1000 characters.) Submit ×