Location: Bowdoin / Latin American Studies / Courses / Fall 2009

Latin American Studies

Fall 2009

Courses

205. Advanced Spanish: John Turner T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25 Druckenmiller-024; The study of a variety of journalistic and literary texts and visual media, together with an advanced grammar review, designed to increase written and oral proficiency, as well as appreciation of the cultural history of the Spanish-speaking world. Foundational course for the major. Three class hours per week and one weekly conversation session with assistant.
205. Advanced Spanish: Elena Cueto-Asin M 1:00 - 2:25, W 1:00 - 2:25 Sills-207; The study of a variety of journalistic and literary texts and visual media, together with an advanced grammar review, designed to increase written and oral proficiency, as well as appreciation of the cultural history of the Spanish-speaking world. Foundational course for the major. Three class hours per week and one weekly conversation session with assistant.
205. Advanced Spanish: Enrique Yepes T 11:30 - 12:55, TH 11:30 - 12:55 Sills-207; The study of a variety of journalistic and literary texts and visual media, together with an advanced grammar review, designed to increase written and oral proficiency, as well as appreciation of the cultural history of the Spanish-speaking world. Foundational course for the major. Three class hours per week and one weekly conversation session with assistant.
206. Francophone Cultures: Hanetha Vete-Congolo M 1:00 - 2:25, W 1:00 - 2:25 Sills-205; An introduction to the cultures of various French-speaking regions outside of France. Examines the history, politics, customs, cinema, literature, and the arts of the Francophone world, principally Africa and the Caribbean. Readings include newspaper and magazine articles, short stories, and a novel. Students see and discuss television news, documentaries, and feature films. Conducted in French.
206. Francophone Cultures: Karen Lindo M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55 Mass-McKeen Study; An introduction to the cultures of various French-speaking regions outside of France. Examines the history, politics, customs, cinema, literature, and the arts of the Francophone world, principally Africa and the Caribbean. Readings include newspaper and magazine articles, short stories, and a novel. Students see and discuss television news, documentaries, and feature films. Conducted in French.
209. Introduction to Hispanic Studies: Poetry and Theater: John Turner T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25 Sills-109; A chronological introduction to the cultural production of the Spanish-speaking world from Pre-Columbian times to the present, with particular emphasis on the analysis of poetry and theater. Examines major literary works and movements in their historical and cultural context. One weekly workshop with assistant in addition to class time. Conducted in Spanish.
210. Introduction to Hispanic Studies: Essay and Narrative: Carolyne Wolfenzon Niego M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55 Sills-205; A chronological introduction to the cultural production of the Spanish-speaking world from Pre-Columbian times to the present, with particular emphasis on the analysis of essay and narrative. Examines major literary works and movements in their historical and cultural context.
216. Food, Culture, and Society: Marie Gaytan M 2:30 - 3:55, W 2:30 - 3:55 Adams-114; Food has economical, cultural, and social significance beyond its importance as a source of sustenance. Examines individual and group relationships to food and employs them as rich lenses through which to study political arrangements, concepts of community, and expressions of identity. Readings examine the ways in which what, when, how and with whom people eat enforces structures of inequality, establishes the roots of social solidarity, and creates the potential for social change. Case studies will include Milk, Chicken, Coffee, and Tequila.
226. Political Economy of Pan-Americanism: Stephen Meardon M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55 Sills-117; Examines programs for economic and political integration of the Americas from the early nineteenth century to the present. Surveys the material and ideological motives for Pan-Americanism from the Congress of Panama (1826) to the Organization of American States (1948), the draft of a Free Trade Area of the Americas (2001), and beyond. Different forms of integration are evaluated in light of historical consequences and economic ideas.
230. Latinos and Latinas in the US: Critical Perspectives on Identity, Migration, Education, and Politics: Mariana Cruz M 1:00 - 2:25, W 1:00 - 2:25 Banister-106; Explores the experiences of Latino/as, the fastest growing minority group in the United States, from a critical lens that centers four important themes: identity, migration, education, and politics. Questions explored include: Who are the “Latino/as” in the United States? What are the differences between Hispanics, Latino/as, Latin Americans, and Chicano/as? What are the racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, gendered, political, historical, citizenship, and geographic differences among the populations that fall under these ethnic categories? What are the experiences of Latino/as in United States schools? How might educators, activists, and policymakers engage these questions in order to better understand and serve Latino/as a whole?
253. The United States and Latin America: Tempestuous Neighbors: Allen Wells T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25 Edward Pols House-Conf Room; Seminar. Examines scholarship on the evolution of United States-Latin American relations since Independence. Topics include the Monroe Doctrine, commercial relations, interventionism, Pan Americanism, immigration, and revolutionary movements during the Cold War.
255. Modern Latin America: Allen Wells T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25 Sills-109; Traces the principal economic, social, and political transformations from the wars of independence to the present. Topics include colonial legacies and the aftermath of independence; the consolidation of nation-states and their insertion in the world economy; the evolution of land and labor systems, and the politics of reform and revolution, and the emergence of social movements.
315. Engaging Neruda’s Canto General: Enrique Yepes T 2:30 - 3:55, TH 2:30 - 3:55 Sills-207; Delves into Latin America’s most renowned twentieth-century epic poem as it engages history, geography, aesthetics, subjectivity, gender, and a post-colonial gaze. Close reading of the book meshes with the study of its intellectual breeding ground and follow-up in diverse media. Examines precursors, enthusiasts, and challengers in poetry by Alonso de Ercilla, Andrés Bello, Ernesto Cardenal, Martín Adán, and Elicura Chihuailaf; in visual arts by the Mexican muralists and Martín Chambi; in music by Silvestre Revueltas, Peter Schat, and the Nueva Canción movement; and in narrative by Hernán Cortés and Eduardo Galeano, among others. Conducted in Spanish.
318. A Journey around Macondo: García Márquez and His Contemporaries: Nadia Celis M 2:30 - 3:55, W 2:30 - 3:55 Sills-207; Studies the main topics, techniques, and contributions of Colombian Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez as presented in "One Hundred Years of Solitude." Explores the actual locations, social, and cultural trends that inspired the creation of Macondo, the so-called “village of the world” where the novel takes place, and the universal themes to which this imaginary town relates. His work is read in connection with other contemporary writers who were part of the intellectual climate in which the novel was written, such as José Félix Fuenmayor, Álvaro Cepeda Samudio, and Héctor Rojas Herazo. Conducted in Spanish.
319. Letters from the Asylum: Madness and Representation in Latin American Fiction: Gustavo Faveron-Patriau M 6:30 - 9:25 Edward Pols House-Conf Room; Explores the concept of madness and the varying ways in which mental illness has been represented in twentieth-century Latin American fiction. Readings include short stories and novels dealing with the issues of schizophrenia, paranoia, and psychotic behavior by authors such as Horacio Quiroga, Jorge Luis Borges, Cristina Rivera Garza, and Carlos Fuentes. Also studies the ways in which certain authors draw from the language and symptoms of schizophrenia and paranoia in order to construct the narrative structure of their works and in order to enhance their representation of social, political, and historical conjunctures. Authors include Diamela Eltit, Ricardo Piglia, César Aira, and Roberto Bolaño.