Cult of Defeat in Mexico's Historical Fiction: Failure, Trauma, and Loss examines recent Mexican historical novels that highlight the mistakes of the nineteenth century for the purpose of responding to present crises. It argues that historical reconstructions of the nation's foundational period acquire deeper meaning when understood as part of broad contemporary debates about globalization, neoliberalism, political legitimacy, and the crises afflicting Mexican communities today.
Introduction: The Stellar Moments of Mexican History and the Rhetoric of Failure -- 1. A Mexican Comedy of Errors in Jorge Ibargüengoitia's Self-Correcting Independence History -- Cross-Dressing the Second in Fernando del Paso's Noticias del Imperio -- The Voices of the Master in Enrique Serna's El seductor de la patria -- Paralysis and Redemption in Three Novels about the Mexican-American War -- Conclusion: Bicentennial Reflection on Failure.