103. Conceptualizing Latin and Latino/a America (1/2)

An introduction to the basic concepts, theories, and methodologies necessary for the multidisciplinary study of Latin American and Latino communities. The focus of the course varies from year to year according to the topic selected by the instructor.

Not offered in 2013/14.

104. Conceptualizing Latin and Latino/a America (1/2)

An introduction to the basic concepts, theories, and methodologies necessary for the multidisciplinary study of Latin American and Latino communities. The focus of the course varies from year to year according to the topic selected by the instructor.

Not offered in 2013/14.

105b. Conceptualizing Latin and Latino/a America (1)

An introduction to the basic concepts, theories, and methodologies necessary for the multidisciplinary study of Latin American and Latino communities. The focus of the course varies from year to year according to the topic selected by the instructor.

Topic for 2013/14b: Resistance, Revolution and Art in Latin o/a America. This course examines key moments in Latin o/a American history such as the Mexican, Cuban and Nicaraguan Revolutions, the Argentine Dirty War (1976-83), the Zapatista rebellion and the Chicano movement as sites of struggle and resistance for national sovereignty and social equality. Throughout the semester we will explore both these crucial historical events and also forms of artistic and literary expressions such as, novels, poetry, murals, songs and films which were an intrinsic part of these movements and contributed to defining their philosophical and cultural parameters. Mr. Grünfeld.

Two 75-minute periods.

106. Dynamic Women: From Bachelet to Ugly Betty (1)

How do issues of inequality, social justice, representation, popular culture, migration, environmental justice and globalization look when women's voices and gender analysis are at the center? This multidisciplinary course examines writing by and about women in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Latino/a USA. We read and write about a range of genres — from testimonio, film and fiction to social science. The goal is to develop an appreciation and understanding of the varied lives and struggles of Latinas and Caribbean women, the transnational politics of gender, key moments in the history of the hemisphere, and contemporary issues across the Americas. Ms. Carruyo.

Satisfies college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.

Two 75-minute periods.

Not offered in 2013/14.

212b. Advanced Topics in World Music (1)

Topic for 2013/14b: Music of Latin America. (Same as Anthropology and Music 212) This course takes a broad view of music from across Latin America. Through case studies of various popular, folk, art, and roots music, the course examines the role that music plays in past and current social life, political movements, economic development, international representation and identity formation. It also considers the transnational nature of music through demographic shifts, technological adaptation and migration. Mr. Patch.

Prerequisite: Music 136 is highly recommended, or permission of the instructor.

Two 75-minute periods

229b. Postcolonial Latin America (1)

Studies in Latin American literary and cultural production from the emergence of the nation states to the present. Thematically structured, the course delves into the social, political, and institutional processes undergone by Latin America as a result of its uneven incorporation into world capitalist development.

Topic for 2013/14b: The Latin American Short Story. (Same as Hispanic Studies 229) The course explores some of the most salient and canonical short story fiction of Latin American literature in relation to their times, meanings and textual strategies. Works by Horacio Quiroga, Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar, Juan Rulfo, Gabriel García Márquez, Juan José Arreola, Luisa Valenzuela. (Course readings and class discussion in Spanish.) Mr. Cesareo.

Prerequisite: one course above Hispanic Studies 206.

Two 75-minute periods.

230a. Latina and Latino Literature (1)

(Same as English 230) This literature engages a history of conflict, resistance, and mestizaje. For some understanding of this embattled context, we examine transnational migration, exile, assimilation, bilingualism, and political and economic oppression as these variously affect the means and modes of the texts under consideration. At the same time, we emphasize the invented and hybrid nature of Latina and Latino literary and cultural traditions, and investigate the place of those inventions in the larger framework of American intellectual and literary traditions, on the one hand, and pan-Latinidad, on the other. Authors studied may include Americo Paredes, Piri Thomas, Cherrie Moraga, Richard Rodriguez, Michelle Serros, Cristina Garcia, Ana Castillo, and Junot Diaz. Mr. Perez.

240a. Cultural Localities (1)

Detailed study of the cultures of people living in a particular area of the world, including their politics, economy, worldview, religion, expressive practices, and historical transformations. Included is a critical assessment of different approaches to the study of culture. Areas covered vary from year to year and may include Europe, Africa, North America, and India.

May be repeated for credit if the topic has changed.

Topic for 2013/14a: Mesoamerican Worlds. (Same as Anthropology 240) An intensive survey of the culture, history, and politics of several neighboring indigenous societies that have deep historical and social ties to territory now located in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras. This course explores the emergence of powerful Mesoamerican states with a cosmology tied to warfare and human sacrifice, the reconfiguration of these societies under the twin burdens of Christianity and colonial rule, and the strategies that some of these communities adopted in order to preserve local notions of identity, and to cope with or resist incorporation into nation-states. The course also introduces students to a selection of historical and religious texts produced by indigenous authors. After a consideration of socio-religious hierarchies, and writing and calendrical systems in Precolumbian Mesoamerica, the course focuses on adaptations resulting from interaction with an evolving colonial order. The course also investigates the relations between native communities and the Mexican and Guatemalan states, and examines the representation of indigenous identities, the rapport among environmental policies, globalization, and local agricultural practices, and indigenous autonomy in the wake of the EZLN rebellion and transnational indigenous movements. Students proficient in Spanish will be encouraged to use original sources for course projects. Mr. Tavarez.

Prerequisite: previous coursework in Anthropology or Latin American and Latino/a Studies or permission of the instructor.

242b. Brazil: Society, Culture, and Environment in Portuguese America (1)

(Same as Africana Studies, Geography, International Studies 242) Brazil, long Latin America's largest and most populous country, has become an industrial and agricultural powerhouse with increasing political-economic clout in global affairs. This course examines Brazil's contemporary evolution in light of the country's historical geography, the distinctive cultural and environmental features of Portuguese America, and the political-economic linkages with the outside world. Specific topics for study include: the legacies of colonial Brazil; race relations, Afro-Brazilian culture, and ethnic identities; issues of gender, youth, violence, and poverty; processes of urban-industrial growth; regionalism and national integration; environmental conservation and sustainability; continuing controversies surrounding the occupation of Amazonia; and long-run prospects for democracy and equitable development in Brazil. Mr. Godfrey.

Two 75-minute periods.

249. Latino/a Formations (1)

(Same as Africana Studies and Sociology 249) This course focuses on the concepts, methodologies and theoretical approaches for understanding the lives of those people who (im)migrated from or who share real or imagined links with Latin America and the Spanish-Speaking Caribbean. As such this course considers the following questions: Who is a Latino/a? What is the impact of U.S. political and economic policy on immigration? What is assimilation? What does U.S. citizenship actually mean and entail? How are ideas about Blackness, or race more generally, organized and understood among Latino/as? What role do heterogeneous identities play in the construction of space and place among Latino/a and Chicano/a communities? This course introduces students to the multiple ways in which space, race, ethnicity, class and gendered identities are imagined/formed in Latin America and conversely affirmed and/or redefined in the United States. Conversely, this course examines the ways in which U.S. Latina/o populations provide both economic and cultural remittances to their countries of origin that also help to challenge and rearticulate Latin American social and economic relationships. Mr. Alamo.

Not offered in 2013/14.

251. Development and Social Change in Latin America (1)

(Same as Sociology 251) This course examines the ways in which Latin American and Caribbean nations have defined and pursued development and struggled for social change in the post World-War II era. We use country studies and development theories (including Modernization, Dependency, World-Systems, Feminist and Post-Structuralist) to analyze the extent to which development has been shaped by the tensions between local, national, and international political and economic interests. Within this structural context we focus on people and their relationships to each other and to a variety of issues including work, land, reproductive rights, basic needs, and revolution. Integrating structural analysis with an analysis of lived practice and meaning making allows us to understand development as a process that shapes, but is also shaped by, local actors. Ms. Carruyo.

Not offered in 2013/14.

253. Children of Immigration (1)

(Same as Sociology 253) Immigration to the U.S. since the 1970s has been characterized by a marked and unprecedented increase in the diversity of new immigrants. Unlike the great migrations from Europe in the late 1800s and early 1900s, most of the immigrants who have arrived in the U.S. in the last four decades have come from Latin America, Asia, and the Caribbean. New immigration patterns have had a significant impact on the racial and ethnic composition and stratification of the American population, as well as the meaning of American identity itself. Immigrants and their families are also being transformed in the process, as they come into contact with various institutional contexts that can facilitate, block, and challenge the process of incorporation into the U.S. This course examines the impact of these new immigration patterns by focusing on the 16.4 million children in the U.S. who have at least one immigrant parent. Since 1990, children of immigrants - those born in the U.S. as well as those who are immigrants themselves - have doubled and have come to represent 23% of the population of minors in the U.S. In this course we study how children of immigrants are reshaping America, and how America is reshaping them, by examining key topics such as the impact of immigration on family structures, gender roles, language maintenance, academic achievement, and identity, as well as the impact that immigration reforms have had on access to higher education, employment, and political participation. This course provides an overview of the experiences of a population that is now a significant proportion of the U.S. population, yet one that is filled with contradictions, tensions and fissures and defies simple generalizations. Ms. Rueda.

Not offered in 2013/14.

255b. Global Political Economy (1)

(Same as International Studies 255) This course explores competing visions of economic globalization, and uses these distinct frameworks to analyze the meaning, causes, extent, and consequences of globalization, with a particular focus on the relationships among global, national and local economic phenomena. What do we mean by globalization? What are the effects of globalization on growth, inequality, and the environment? How might international economic policy and the particular form(s) of globalization that it promotes help to explain the pace and form of urbanization? Who benefits from globalization, and who might be hurt? Why do economists and others disagree about the answers to these and related questions? This course explores some of the ways that interdisciplinary analysis might enrich our understanding of economic globalization. Mr. Koechlin.

Two 75-minute periods.

269a. Constructing School Kids and Street Kids (1)

(Same as Education and Sociology 269) Students from low-income families and racial/ethnic minority backgrounds do poorly in school by comparison with their white and well-to-do peers. These students drop out of high school at higher rates, score lower on standardized tests, have lower GPAs, and are less likely to attend and complete college. In this course we examine theories and research that seek to explain patterns of differential educational achievement in U.S. schools. We study theories that focus on the characteristics of settings in which teaching and learning take place (e.g. schools, classrooms, and home), theories that focus on the characteristics of groups (e.g., racial/ethnic groups and peer groups), and theories that examine how cultural processes mediate political-economic constraints and human action. Ms. Rueda.

283a. The Virtual Barrio: Latin American and Latino Media (1)

(Same as Hispanic Studies and Media Studies 283) This course aims to deepen our understanding of the complex media ecologies of Latin American and Latino contexts. Attending to how messages make meanings through a range of media—we study the role media play not only in the molding of ideas and opinions, but also in the constitution of subjectivities, social spheres, and non-human circuits of exchange (images, information, capital). Do theories of media and embodiment mean something different in this context, given the ways in which race, skin/hair color, cultural expectations, and history have inscribed themselves on the Hispanic body? Exploring mediation from the perspective of postcoloniality, transnationalism, and the glocal we thus examine the internet through the lens of recent developments in social movements (Chile, Mexico, Spain); film through the experiments of Third, Imperfect Cinema and Andean indigenous media practices; television through the genre and industry of the Telenovela; graphics through the traditions of murals, graphics and comics and the more recent transnational iconography of Ché Guevara; alternative youth culture through video and online gaming; and convergence through multi-media performances and installations. The course will be taught in English. Ms. Woods.

Prerequisite: Hispanic Studies 216 or 219.

Two 75-minute periods.

290a or b. Field Work (1/2 or 1)

By special permission.

297a or b. Reading Course (1/2)

297.02. Indigenous Mexico.

297.03. Chronicles of the Conquest.

297.04. Latino Writings.

297.05. Socio-Political Thought in Latin America.

297.06. Latin American Cinema.

297.08. Syncretic Religions of the Caribbean and Latin American.

297.09. The Legacy of the Plantation in Caribbean and Latin American.

297.10. Cultures of the Amazon.

297.11. Native Peoples of the Andes.

By special permission.

298a or b. Independent Research (1/2 or 1)

By special permission.

300a. Senior Thesis (1/2)

Yearlong course 300-301.

301b. Senior Thesis (1/2)

Yearlong course 300-301.

302. Senior Thesis (1)

303. Senior Project (1/2)

US Latino/a studies programs have their origins in the joining of university students with grassroots organizers to create multidisciplinary curricula and initiatives recognizing the contributions of Latino communities. A senior project reflects that spirit. In conjunction with two faculty members, one of whom must come from the LALS steering committee, students formulate a project topic based on continuing community-based work they have done during their Vassar years. The project might be rooted in the local Latino/a community, or from sustained work in Latin America. Students submit a proposal and bibliography, develop a work plan, and follow the same schedule as thesis writers. The senior project must go beyond a fieldwork experience, and requires a well-defined written analytical component.

Yearlong course 303-304.

304. Senior Project (1/2)

Yearlong course 303-304.

305. Senior Project (1)

US Latino/a studies programs have their origins in the joining of university students with grassroots organizers to create multidisciplinary curricula and initiatives recognizing the contributions of Latino communities. A senior project reflects that spirit. In conjunction with two faculty members, one of whom must come from the LALS steering committee, students formulate a project topic based on continuing community-based work they have done during their Vassar years. The project might be rooted in the local Latino/a community, or from sustained work in Latin America. Students submit a proposal and bibliography, develop a work plan, and follow the same schedule as thesis writers. The senior project must go beyond a fieldwork experience, and requires a well-defined written analytical component.

This will serve as a 1-unit/1-semester option for a Latin American Studies Project.

Special permission.

340. Advanced Urban/Regional Studies (1)

Previous topics include: Ethnic Geography and Transnationalism and World Cities: Globalization, Segregation, and Defensive Urbanism.

One 3-hour period.

Not offered in 2013/14.

351. Language and Expressive Culture (1)

Not offered in 2013/14.

360. Amerindian Religions and Resistance. (1)

Not offered in 2013/14.

363. Revolution and Conflict in Twentieth-Century Latin America (1)

(Same as History 363) Revolution has been a dominant theme in the history of Latin America since 1910. This course examines the revolutionary experiences of three nations—Mexico, Cuba, and Nicaragua. It examines theories of revolution, then assesses the revolutions themselves—the conditions out of which each revolution developed, the conflicting ideologies at play, the nature of the struggles, and the postrevolutionary societies that emerged from the struggles. Ms. Offutt.

Prerequisite: History 264 or permission of the instructor.

Not offered in 2013/14.

375. Seminar in Women's Studies (1)

Not offered in 2013/14.

382a. Race and Popular Culture (1)

(Same as Africana Studies and Sociology 382) This seminar explores the way in which the categories of race, ethnicity, and nation are mutually constitutive with an emphasis on understanding how different social institutions and practices produce meanings about race and racial identities. Through an examination of knowledge production as well as symbolic and expressive practices, we focus on the ways in which contemporary scholars connect cultural texts to social and historical institutions. Appreciating the relationship between cultural texts and institutional frameworks, we unravel the complex ways in which the cultural practices of different social groups reinforce or challenge social relationships and structures. Finally, this seminar considers how contemporary manifestations of globalization impact and transform the linkages between race and culture as institutional and intellectual constructs. Mr. Alamo.

One 2-hour period.

383a. Nation, Race and Gender in Latin America and the Caribbean - Senior Seminar (1)

(Same as Sociology 383) With a focus on Latin America and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean this course traces and analyzes the ways in which the project of nation building creates and draws upon narratives about race and gender. While our focus is on Latin America, our study considers racial and gender formations within the context of the world-system. We are interested in how a complicated history of colonization, independence, post-coloniality, and "globalization" has intersected with national economies, politics, communities, and identities. In order to get at these intersections we examine a range of texts dealing with policy, national literatures, common sense, and political struggle. Specific issues addressed include the relationship between socio-biological theories of race and Latin American notions of mestizage, discursive and material "whitening," the myth of racial democracy, sexuality and morality, and border politics. Ms. Carruyo.

384b. Indigenous Religions of the Americas (1)

(Same as Anthropology 384) The conquest of the Americas was accompanied by various intellectual and sociopolitical projects devised to translate, implant, or impose Christian beliefs in Amerindian societies. This course examines modes of resistance and accommodation, among other indigenous responses, to the introduction of Christianity as part of larger colonial projects. Through a succession of case studies from North America, Mesoamerica, the Caribbean, the Andes, and Paraguay, we analyze the impact of Christian colonial and postcolonial evangelization projects on indigenous languages, religious practices, literary genres, social organization and gender roles, and examine contemporary indigenous religious practices. Mr. Tavarez.

Prerequisite: prior coursework in Anthropology or Latin American Latino/a Studies or permission of the instructor.

One 2-hour period.

385. Women, Culture and Development (1)

(Same as International Studies, Sociology, and Women's Studies 385) This course examines the ongoing debates within development studies about how integration into the global economy is experienced by women around the world. Drawing on gender studies, cultural studies, and global political economy, we explore the multiple ways in which women struggle to secure well-being, challenge injustice, and live meaningful lives. Ms. Carruyo.

Not offered in 2013/14.

387b. Amerindian Literatures (1)

(Same as Anthropology 387) This course is a survey of creation narratives, historical accounts, songs, poems, and other genres produced by indigenous authors from Pre-Columbian times to the present, using historical, linguistic and ethnographic approaches. The class departs from one central question: what poetic and rhetorical forms have been and are used by the first peoples of the Americas to create meaning and reflect on their social worlds? We also examine non-alphabetic and alphabetic writing systems, and discuss indigenous historical consciousness and sociopolitical and gender dynamics through the vantage point of these works. Other topics include language revitalization, translation issues, and the rapport between linguistic structure and literary form. The languages and works to be examined are selected in consultation with course participants; they may include English translations of works in Nahuatl, Maya languages, Zapotec, Quechua, Inuit, and/or other Amerindian languages. Mr. Tavárez.

Prerequisites: previous coursework in Latin American and Latino/a Studies or the social sciences, or permission of the instructor.

One 2-hour period.

388a. Latin American Economic Development (1)

(Same as Economics 388) This course examines why many Latin American countries started with levels of development similar to those of the U.S. and Canada but were not able to keep up. The course begins with discussions of various ways of thinking about and measuring economic development and examines the record of Latin American countries on various measures, including volatile growth rates, high income and wealth inequality, and high crime rates. We then turn to an analysis of the colonial and post-Independence period to examine the roots of the weak institutional development than could explain a low growth trajectory. Next, we examine the post WWII period, exploring the import substitution of 1970s, the debt crises of the 1980s, and the structural adjustment of the 1990s. Finally, we look at events in the past decade, comparing and contrasting the experience of different countries with respect to growth, poverty and inequality. Ms. Pearlman.

Prerequisites: Economics 100 and 209.

399a or b. Senior Independent Research (1/2 or 1)

By special permission.