Simply María, or the American Dream: The Chicana's Yellow Brick Road.

Abstract

This paper examines Josefina López’s Simply María, or the American Dream as a feminist Chicana reconfiguration of the heroic journey through the lens of female subjectivity, autobiography, and cultural hybridity. Drawing on theories of the female hero proposed by Carol Pearson and Catherine Pope, the study argues that López transforms the traditionally male-centered model of heroism into a Chicana narrative of self-definition and agency. Rooted in López’s autobiographical experience as an undocumented Mexican immigrant, the play foregrounds personal storytelling as an act of reclaiming identity and resisting patriarchal and cultural marginalization. Situating López within the broader Chicana feminist movement alongside writers such as Sandra Cisneros, Cherríe Moraga, and Gloria Anzaldúa, the paper highlights how Simply María challenges dominant narratives of romance, assimilation, and the American Dream. Through a non-linear structure, dream sequences, and intertextual parody, María’s development is presented as both an external social journey and an internal psychological quest. The contrast between María and her mother Carmen illustrates the distinction between the female hero and the traditional heroine, revealing competing models of womanhood shaped by patriarchy and popular culture. Ultimately, the play rewrites familiar cultural scripts—fairy tales, romance myths, and immigrant success stories—to articulate a hybrid Chicana identity and affirm women’s capacity to become subjects of their own narratives rather than objects within them.