THE DICHOTOMIC CONSTRUCTION OF THE DISCOURSE ON THE IDENTITY OF THE ATACAMENEAN WOMEN OF THE EXTREME NORTH OF CHILE

Abstract

The article discusses the ethnic identity of five atacamenean women of the Antofagasta region, Chile. The narratives give an account of the discursive tools employed by the subjects to carry out representations about the identity of indigenous women and urban indigenous women in the región social contexts characterized by historical tensions among different cultural collectivities. The purpose of this research is to explore the discursive construction of what is understood as being a Lickan Antai woman today. The methodology employed to complete this qualitative research is the Critical Discourse Analysis approach. The data comes from the semistructured interviews with five atacamenean women. The analytical instrument comes from the discursive construction of the social actors and the legitimation of the actors’ discourses. The results inform that the dichotomic representations in the rural and urban worlds in which the urban atacamenean woman narrates a story of discrimination, loneliness, and distance. In contrast, the indigenous atacamenean woman is connected to the land, the customs, and the family. This study contributes to expanding the limited information regarding this topic and bringing light and giving voice to the contemporary atacamenean woman. © 2022, Dialogo Andino. All Rights Reserved.