Class Schedules

This course will introduce students to the study of folklore, belief, and religious folklife of the Maya people at different points in history. We will consider examples of folktales, myths, foodways, material arts, paranormal experience narratives, magic, healing, and other traditions as they relate to religion. We will pay particular attention to the complex and sometimes problematic relationships between missionaries and Maya people in the construction of official and unofficial religions. By examining folklore that emerges within, between, and in reaction to religious traditions, students will be challenged to move beyond simple notions of culture, religious authority, and doctrine.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course explores cross-cultural encounters in the Americas that characterized the meetings of Europeans, Africans, and Americans in the early modern world between 1492 and 1763.  During this period, the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent land masses became critical locations for economic, biological, and cultural exchanges.  This course focuses on the Americas as sites for discovery, mutual incomprehension, and exploitation.  The course explores the ways that conquest, resistance, and strategic cooperation shaped peoples' "new worlds" on both sides of the Atlantic. It also considers how colonialism framed and was framed by scientific inquiry, religious beliefs, economic thought, and artistic expression.  Students interrogate primary sources-written, visual and aural--that emerged from these encounters and the secondary literatures that have sought to make sense of them.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course offers geographical perspectives on one of the world's most vibrant regions, Latin America and the Caribbean. Extending from the Rio Grande to Tierra del Fuego, this world region stretches across diverse landscapes, from tropical rainforests to the snowcapped peaks of the Andes, from mega-cities to verdant plains and sparsely populated deserts. This course combines thematic and regional approaches to understanding the geography of Latin America. Major topics include the dynamics of climate, physical geography, and natural hazards; how indigenous peoples of the Americas transformed their environments, especially through agriculture; how European colonialism and the Columbian Exchange altered patterns of land use, labor, and trade; the development patterns of modern nation-states within a globalized economy; the environmental and social impacts of commodity production (e.g. coffee in Central America, rubber in the Amazon); challenges to and persistence of small-scale agriculture in the Andean region; the causes and consequences of tropical deforestation; conflicts over land and natural resources; the resilience and political resurgence of indigenous groups and people of African descent, and the evolution of pluriethnic or multinational states; the causes of mass urbanization and the environmental problems of cities; patterns of international migration, including flows between Latin American countries and towards the US and Europe; and the development of Latino culture and identity in the U.S. Along the way, we will examine the human-environment geography of various regions and countries such as The Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, Brazil, the Andean Countries, and Argentina.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

During the Cold War, Latin America was a decidedly "hot zone." This course considers this phenomenon as a result of internal and external pressures, including political and socioeconomic instability, a deep tradition of revolutionary and socialist activism, and the region's conflictive relationship with the United States. The class examines dramatic moments of the Latin American Cold War, such as the overthrow of Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala, the Cuban and Nicaraguan revolutions, and the Dirty Wars in Chile and Argentina. It also examines less heralded aspects of the Latin American Cold War, such as its important role in fostering transhemispheric solidarities, the creative possibilities of Cold War cultural production, the emergence of a youth counterculture, and the many attempts by Latin Americans across the political spectrum to reject the premise of the Cold War altogether.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WP
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course explores historical and contemporary perspectives on racial and ethnic groups in American society, including African Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, European Americans, and Americans of Middle Eastern descent. The goal is to develop an understanding of socio-historical forces that have shaped the lives of racial and ethnic groups in America.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
U.S. Identities and Differences

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

Varies by semester. Consult the department or class schedule for current listing.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

The transatlantic slave trade forcibly dispersed millions of Africans across the Americas, creating diverse Black communities whose experiences with state power and societal inclusion have varied widely. This course aims to understand these variations. Focusing on Latin America and the US, we will explore ongoing struggles for justice, identity, and belonging throughout the Americas to try to understand how blackness has become a politically salient category.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

Criminal violence claims more lives globally than any other form of violence, yet much about its causes and effects remains unclear. Why do people participate in crime? How do criminal organizations shape the social, economic, and political landscapes of the areas where they operate? How do communities cope with or resist this violence? Does policing effectively prevent crime? We will aim to answer these questions by diving deep into Latin America’s struggle with organized crime, using the US as a supporting case for many of our discussions.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

This course presents the student with essential tools for the critical analysis of a broad range of topics and forms of cultural production (literature, cinema, art, e-texts, etc.) in the Hispanic world. It also teaches the student advanced language skills in written composition and public oral presentation. This course satisfies the Area 2 requirement for the Spanish major. Prerequisite(s): SPAN 305 or SPAN 306.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course provides an interdisciplinary discussion of the Latinx experience in the United States with a focus on Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Cuban- Americans. Using fiction, poetry, films and critical essays, we will examine issues of race and ethnicity, language, identity, gender and sexuality, politics, and immigration. This course satisfies the Area 2 requirement for the Spanish major. Prerequisite(s): SPAN 305 or SPAN 306

General Education Requirements:
U.S. Identities and Differences

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

Feminism means both understanding the construction of gender and sexuality in society and challenging the oppressive structures that constrain people of all genders. This class will focus on feminisms (theory and praxis) in the Americas, their histories, politics of liberation and resistance, struggles, and transnational collaborations and solidarity from the 2000s onwards. We will pay particular attention to their fight against gender-based violence. We will engage with memoirs, academic scholarship, and activist production. We will read Brenny Mendoza, Sara Ahmed, Rita Segato, Ochi Curiel, María Lugones, Gloria Anzaldua, Audre Lorde, among others. The central questions we will address are: What constitutes transnational feminism(s)? How do members of communities in the Americas understand and articulate their relationships to feminism and feminist organizing? How do activists in specific cultural contexts resist multiple forms of gender-based violence?

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of contemporary filmmaking in Abya Yala, a term that reclaims the Indigenous identities and knowledges of the territories known as the Americas. Through an examination of 21st century feature films and documentaries, we will discuss how both Indigenous and non-Indigenous directors use cinema to portray the history of colonial violence, its lasting legacies, and the ongoing struggle for indigenous sovereignty in Abya Yala/Latin America. Recognizing the ethical complexities inherent in filmmaking, in this course we will critically analyze the representation of Indigenous identities, collaborations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous creators, and the rise of Indigenous-led film production. Along with film screenings and in-class discussions, students will elaborate a video essay to deepen their understanding of the politics of representation in Abya Yala/Latin American cinema, and explore the region’s ongoing struggle for Indigenous rights and self-determination. This course satisfies the Area 2 requirement for the Spanish major. Prerequisite(s): SPAN 307 or consent of the instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

According to the International Organization for Migration (OIM), in 2019, the United States had the largest foreign-born population in the world. During the same year, immigrants represented 15% of the United States population while 53% of the foreign-born migrants came from Latin America. At the same time, we are observing the securitization of the US-Mexico border that is resulting in the removal of undocumented individuals from the U.S. in large numbers, specifically Latino men. The course examines recent U.S. immigration as part of a global (historical) phenomenon to understand how we got to where we are. While we will become familiar with immigration policies, we will pay attention to the experiences of immigrants, particularly those coming from Latin America. We will explore questions such as: What motivates people to migrate? How does migration reconfigure social relations, such as parental and community relations? This is a discussion-based course and includes guest speakers and a civic engagement project with a local organization.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
U.S. Identities and Differences

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials

This course presents an historical overview of the interaction between artists, the state, and national identity in Latin America. After an introduction to the import of images to crafting collective identities during the colonial era and the 19th century, we will focus on the 20th century. Topics to be discussed include the depiction of race, allegorical landscapes and architectures, the art of revolution, and countercultures. Multiple genres will be explored with an emphasis on the visual arts, architecture, and popular music.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course presents the student with essential tools for the critical analysis of a broad range of topics and forms of cultural production (literature, cinema, art, e-texts, etc.) in the Hispanic world. It also teaches the student advanced language skills in written composition and public oral presentation. This course satisfies the Area 2 requirement for the Spanish major. Prerequisite(s): SPAN 305 or SPAN 306.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course provides an interdisciplinary discussion of the Latinx experience in the United States with a focus on Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Cuban- Americans. Using fiction, poetry, films and critical essays, we will examine issues of race and ethnicity, language, identity, gender and sexuality, politics, and immigration. This course satisfies the Area 2 requirement for the Spanish major. Prerequisite(s): SPAN 305 or SPAN 306

General Education Requirements:
U.S. Identities and Differences

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

Primarily designed to improve oral communication and to strengthen students' written proficiency and their awareness of grammar intricacies in Portuguese. In relation to writing, it serves as a bridge to upper-level courses. Conversations and compositions are based on the civilization and cultures of Brazil, which despite its continental size and being among the largest world economies remains a mystery to many. This course explores the socio-historical, political and cultural trajectory Brazil has undertaken while, at the same time, reflecting on how ideas such as nation, identity, race, ethnicity, and class have transformed the face of the country. A wide array of texts and materials -literature, music, painting, sculpture, architecture, dance, and cinema- is used to gain a broad and critical understanding of the Brazilian universe. It involves extensive reading appropriate to the level. Prerequisite(s): PORT 221, or PORT 231, or consent of the instructor.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

How did the Arab Spring and Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement deploy a similar tactical repertoire, yet provoke different outcomes? Comparing movements for Black lives in Colombia and South Africa, does participant diversity boost or undercut mobilization? And does mobilization of identity explain how indigenous Bolivians ejected U.S. corporations and scored lasting victories against the white power structure? This advanced research seminar engages theories that seek to explain the origins and development of movements, including LGBTQ+ movements struggling to avoid deradicalization in Germany, feminist organizations in Nicaragua navigating tensions between autonomy and agenda-setting, mobilization of Brazilian prisoners resisting pandemic lockdowns within lockdowns, and artists making visible the erased contributions of Kenyan women to the global climate justice movement. Students planning to conduct social movements research while studying away may write a research prospectus to launch that field research project. Prerequisite(s): Sophomore standing or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WP
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Social science

Course Materials