Latin American Studies

This course introduces students to the history, literature, and culture of the different Latin American regions. It examines the products of individual and collective experience and creativity in a variety of ways. Using historical and anthropological texts, the course provides a brief overview of historical periods and legacies, and considers how anthropologists have understood the cultures of urban and rural, racial and ethnic existence. In addition, using a series of literary works, students reflect on the cultural and national identity, moral and religious values, and individual experience of Latin Americans as well as the cultural, intellectual, and linguistic influence of these people in the United States. Classes are organized around discussion and occasional presentations by guest speakers. In addition to exams, students write several short evaluations of readings and are involved in several group presentation projects. The course serves as a required introduction to the Latin American Studies minor.

This course explores the concept of Modernity as it applies to the creation and development of the modern nation with particular attention to the Latin American region. The role of the local and autochthonous cultures versus global and external trends and forces, and the impact of modern inventions and technical developments in an ever-evolving society are examined using literary, historical, and political texts, combined with readings on post-colonialism and post-modernism, globalization and neo-liberalism. These texts inform the reading of the English translation of "One Hundred Years of Solitude," by Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a novel often read as an allegory of the forces at play in the shaping of modern Latin America.

The Latin America Travel Seminar combines an on-campus semester-long class with group travel to Latin America after the completion of the semester. The instructors, themes, and travel destinations vary each time the course is offered.

This course introduces students to the business environments and practices of Latin America. The countries of this region are viable trading partners and destinations for foreign direct investment, and the course considers pertinent historical, cultural, macro-economic and political factors that impact business activity in the region. The course focuses on business opportunity and risk assessment, and introduces students to appropriate managerial, organizational, and strategic planning skills and methods for successfully doing and growing business in the region. The course relies on various teaching methods, including lectures, readings, case studies, class discussions, videos, independent research, and guest presentations.

A broad survey of politics in a region often characterized by poverty, political instability, authoritarianism, populism, corruption, and violence. The course explores some of the major approaches to Latin American politics by focusing on political institutions, political culture, non-state actors, and civil society. The course is organized around key themes that are illustrated using a number of cases, which may include among others, Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela, Chile, and Brazil.

This course explores the human experience of migration, exile, and/or diaspora by offering an overview of some of the more significant migration processes within the Spanish-speaking world, and by exploring the social, political, historical, economic and intellectual implications of those processes. The class consists of close readings of literary works in several genres, including poetry, plays, short stories and essays, and the screening of several films. It also includes readings on cultural aspects of and theoretical approaches to this phenomenon. Readings and visual texts are in Spanish and/or English, and all discussion and testing is in Spanish.