“Though it flourished independently of newspapers or other written material, it existed side by side with them” (Chapter VIII, p.245). This remark in the last chapter demonstrates the need to multiply the types of sources used to study the history and social structures of a region. Indeed, if newspapers (or court decisions) are crucial primary sources for reconstructing a historical event, as shown in Chapter III of the book, the population’s productions about this event, in this case a Corrido, reveal its significance for local communities. The fact that this corrido survived the event and the death of its main character shows that this form of oral folklore is a central element in the formation of Mexican American culture along the lower Rio Grande. The second part of the book, devoted to the structure of the Corrido, emphasizes that this form of border corrido represents a diffuse and silent culture of resistance to assimilation.

I would like to build on some of the elements highlighted by Paredes in Chapter VII concerning the structure of El Corrido de Gregorio Cortez.

1. The Narrative

The Corrido is primarily narrative, but it differs from Mexican Broadside, which focuses on sensational elements. Instead, the border corrido uses a rather simple vocabulary and a direct style with few images. The objective is therefore to tell a story that reflects the everyday life of the Mexican American. The changes brought about by the variants analyzed by the author is a way for the corrido maker to emphasize the crucial characteristics of this daily life. We can group the variants into two broad categories, namely the variant that focuses on the events that led to Morris’ death, or the variants that tell in detail about Cortez’ surrender. The first represents the clash of North American and Mexican cultures along the lower Rio Grande, a clash that led to the discrimination of the minority by the majority. The second is the symbol of an obvious and predetermined end, with Mexicans unable to resist because they are outnumbered by better equipped Americans.

This story, mainly symbolic, expresses the tension and resentment between the Anglos- and Mexico-Tejanos. The fact that the story underlines the permanent injustice suffered by the latter and their powerlessness to oppose this “state of affairs” indicates that the corrido is an anonymous means of asserting their right as a people. The corrido becomes a protective disguise in their public and private relations with North Americans. It is a form of active but silent resistance, namely a counterweight to the domination of English-speaking culture.

2. The syllable-supplying devices

The author emphasizes the functional use of syllable-supplying devices. Two basic elements catch my attention. First, the poets prefer to use the imperfect rather than the preterit in order to emphasize the intensity of the action. Second, singers have made extensive use of the “y” to put the vocal apparatus in the right position for singing and to help them get into the proper mood of tense absorption of the ballad. This demonstrates that the corrido is a way to tell a serious and dramatic story and to emphasize the tension of that drama.

Thus, the intensity of Corrido reflects the fact that this folk song is a form of revolt against the racial attitudes of the time. It then becomes the only weapon of the weak to confront the domination of the strong.

3. The language

The language used in the variants of Corrido Cortez is also a sign of the formation of this culture of resistance. First of all, it should be noted that the Anglo-American enemies are not named. There is therefore confusion between their ethnicity and their identity because of their symbolic role in the corrido. This confusion reveals the construction of the figure of the enemy in which his dignity as an individual is denied. Secondly, the use of the English equivalent of the Spanish noun, in order to give a more precise meaning to the Spanish world, represents an appropriation of the enemy’s culture in order to affirm the Mexican-Americans’ own identity. Consequently, the Mexican-American identity is not destroyed by this clash of cultures but, on the contrary, it is strengthened by an appropriation of the tools of assimilation.