SPAN3221: Interpreting Colonial Latin America: Empire and Early Modernity

The conquest and colonization of Latin America is a complex issue, which demands an interdisciplinary approach to achieve a better understanding of this multidimensional social conflict. The course examines the role of colonial discourse as producer of the epistemic colonial difference and explores the legacies of colonialism. Students will be expected to focus on and to think about the organizational mechanisms through which aural and visual practices mediate reality in Colonial Latin America. Furthermore, students will learn to be critical readers by considering how cultural texts may be historically determined and by exploring how individuals may shape a particular cultural theme in a variety of manners. The course will focus on critical readings and discussion of cultural artifacts, literary texts, and documents of Colonial Latin America. Studies will include material pertaining to the aural and visual production of the period, including European and indigenous accounts of the conquest, as well as indigenous, African, criollo, mestizo and women writings during the colony from an interdisciplinary perspective. Concentration will center on the textual strategies, topics, world views, motivations, projects, and expectations explicit or implicit in the texts, their significance at the time, and their importance for understanding the formation of what we know as Latin America today. The course also is devoted to the conquest of Latin America by analyzing the role of colonial discourse and the legacies of colonialism in the region. With cultural artifacts, texts and documents, students will deal with different theoretical approaches deriving from the humanities and the social sciences. Such interdisciplinary method will provide the tools, concepts, and strategic visions to carry on analytical tasks in class. All the work for the course, except for certain supplementary readings, will be in Spanish. Requirements will include preparation of assigned readings, presentation of analytical and comprehensive tasks, class discussions, and a research project. The course provides training in analytical thinking and cultural critique of colonial society in Latin America, bringing a global perspective to our curriculum. Pre-req: A grade of C- or better in SPAN 3104W or SPAN 3104V or TLDO 3104W or ARGN 3104W or SPAN 3105W or SPAN 3105V or TLDO 3105W or SPAN 3107W or SPAN 3107V or TLDO 3107W

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