Latin American Studies

This course provides a study of pre-Hispanic literature, examining the Nahuatl and Mayan cultures and their respective literatures. Topics include: characterization of pre-Hispanic culture (social and political organization, economy, religion, philosophy and art), literary genres, and author style. Texts covered include: Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, HISTORIA GENERAL DE LAS COSAS DE LA NUEVA ESPAÑA; HUEHUETLATOLLI: LIBRO SEXTO DEL CODICE FLORENTINO; Ángel María Garibay Kintana, POESÍA NÁHUATL; CANTARES MEXICANOS; Rubén Bonifaz Nuño, LOS OLMECAS: ESENCIA Y FUNDACIÓN; Miguel León-Portilla, QUINCE POETAS DEL MUNDO AZTECA.

This course studies the great Latin American figures from cultural and political history. The course is conducted in Spanish and French with an emphasis on translating and transcribing texts between both languages. The course focuses on how heroes stand between myth and reality, and how they relate to the individual and the collective. It analyzes the processes of heroization carried out since the Latin American independences to highlight the ruptures and continuities in their contemporary political uses.  Written sources, territorial marks, and iconography constitute the main materials used to approach heroic cults from a critical perspective.

This course provides an overview of Latin American society and culture. Specifically, it focuses on Hispanic culture and its underlying characteristics, and examines the social and historical contexts in which manifestations of popular culture have developed in various regions of Latin America during the 20th century.

This course discusses the configuration and reconfiguration of the contemporary world system and Latin America's place within it. It examines different perspectives of globalization mainly through the lens of sociology and anthropology.  Topics include: approaches, definitions, and emphasis on the meaning and impact of globalization; economic insertion of a world periphery, regional integration systems, and resources at stake in global exchanges; global flows-- migratory, religious, touristic; diffusion and use of digital technologies, new social movements, and the global city from the south.

This is a student-oriented course which focuses on participants' cultural reflections of their experiences in Mexico, D.F. to demonstrate intercultural development. Weekly seminars examine topics such as preconceptions of Mexico City, cultural shock, language and cultural barriers, and relationships, among others. Assessment is based on active participate, weekly journal entries, and an in-class presentation.