During the second part of the book, there was one phrase commonly repeated, it was: ” the man fighting for his right with his pistol in his hand “. This phrase contains the man idea behind the hero presented in the ballad of Gregorio Cortez. He is a man who fights for his right with his pistol in his hand. Gregorio Cortez is converted into a hero because he had the courage to stand up for his right. People of the Rio Grande felt identified with him in the sense that Cortez also suffers from the inequalities and discrimination of the rangers. However, he is distinct from the general population because he has rebelled against them, putting his right in the first place. The construction of the hero, Americo Paredes says, is one of the main components that forms the characteristic corrido or border ballad.
Another important component of the corrido is its thematic. The bigger theme is: the border conflict. The existence of Gregorio Cortez as a hero comes into being due to the complex circumstances around this geographical location. The ongoing confrontation between both of the communities at each side of the border creates this tension and subsequent quarrels. Mexicans suffer from the persecution of the rangers, and that`s how the man who rebels against this unjust persecution becomes a folk hero. Therefore, it is possible to assert that the creation of the ballad border has as their two main components: the thematic of the border conflict, and the figure of the hero (who is a man who fight for his right).
Aside of these components, the border ballad has remained in the Rio Grande region due to the fact that the communities at each side of the border, with their characteristic ways of life, and their oral traditions of transmitting the stories of their folk heroes, have helped to maintain the corrido as an important element of their culture. The Gregorio Cortez legend has prevailed in the form of a ballad. However, Cortez is not the only hero of this region. In the second part of the book, many names of different men appear. These men are other heroes who have had stories similar to Cortez. They have shoot sheriffs for defending their rights; they have been persecuted by hundreds of rangers without any success; they have gone to prison; they have been liberated by a beautiful women, etc.
The story of Gregorio Cortez is without doubt a good way to learn more about the corrido and the Chicano culture.
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Note:
I enjoyed this reading since beyond the story of Gregorio Cortez, one can identify the historical, social and cultural factors around the construction of the character; and also about the creation of this border ballad.
Yes, the issue of rights is interesting and important here. It’s worth considering what exactly this “right” is. At some point I think that Paredes suggests that the right for which Cortez is depicted as fighting is less a positive right (the right to vote or to housing or whatever; i.e. the right to be included) than the negative right to be left undisturbed. The idea is, I think, that here Mexican-Americans imagine themselves to have a more or less self-sufficient culture, and what they resent is Anglo intrusion.
Indeed the story of Gregorio Cortez and the analysis of his corrido is an efficient and interesting way to learn more about the background of an important style of music in Mexico and in learning about the culture and historical background of the border area. It is true that one of the reasons a corrido is created and sung and remembered by many is in order for the people to remind themselves and revere an important figure, a constructed hero that was able to fight against barriers and mistreatment.