Navigating Exterior Networks to Caramelo

Abstract

This chapter examines several epitexts that Cisneros herself creates centered on dramatic and performative presentations of the self that deploy spectacles of ethnicity. Cognitive thresholds of the reading experience, these displays of latinidad, prepare readers for similar strategies of performance in Caramelo. Epitexts such as public birthday celebrations, interviews, and the material on her website join non-authorial epitexts such as the publisher’s Facebook page for Cisneros with multiple links to other paratexts about the writer and her work. The epitextual network of Caramelo also includes what can be termed “crowd-sourced advertising” for the novel including reviews, commentary, and ratings on sites such as Amazon and Goodreads. The novel’s extensive and expanding network of epitexts combines elements of hegemonic and populist multiculturalism.