ABSTRACT
During the last twenty years, Nuyorican and Chicano prose fiction writers have tended to focus on the travails of Latinos, both urban and rural, in their struggle for justice and equality in an often hostile social environment. One of the dominant themes found in many works concerns the disastrous consequences of uprootedness suffered by these two groups when they emigrate from one land to another or when they undergo geographic changes within the United States itself. In this paper I will explore the recurring theme of spiritual desolation resulting from geographic displacement of individuals and groups. As an experience common to both Puerto Ricans and Chicanos, it naturally forms an important link between their literatures. I have limited myself to prose fiction, but the theme can also be found in other genres, especially poetry. My study is not exhaustive, but rather is meant to serve as an introduction and hopefully a stimulus for further research on the subject.
