2023-2024 Course Catalog

Please note: The information displayed here is current as of Wednesday, May 8, 2024, but the official Course Catalog should be used for all official planning.

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Latin American Studies

ProfessorsG. Fares (Spanish, chair), J. Frederick (History, chair), R. Tapia (Spanish), T. Troy (Theatre Arts, J. Thomas and Julie E. Hurvis Professor of Theatre and Drama)
Associate professorsJ. Encarnacion (Conservatory of Music), D. Fitz (Economics) (on leave term(s) I)

Latin America is the product of one of the most dramatic intersections of human societies in world history. Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans began a process that has created a politically, socially, and economically complex region. Latin America and its peoples have played a vital role in the development of the modern world, and that role is only increasing at the start the 21st century. The minor in Latin American studies provides students an opportunity to study this field from a variety of disciplinary angles. By employing the tools of various disciplines, including anthropology, Spanish, economics, government, history, and others, students can begin the process of understanding this vast mosaic of peoples and nations.


Required for the minor in Latin American studies

Students must take six courses (at least 36 units), including:

  1. Core requirements: 2 courses (normally 12 units), from the following list:
    • ECON 203: Latin American Economic Development
    • HIST 178: Colonial Latin American History
    • HIST 179: Modern Latin American History 1821-Present
    • HIST 371: The Rise and Fall of American Empires
    • HIST 374/SPAN 570: Visions of the Conquest
    • HIST 378/ETST 325: Ethnicity in Latin America
    • HIST 422: Revolt and Revolution in Latin America
    • HIST 476: Top: Disasters That Made The Americas
    • SPAN 320: Introduction to Literary Texts
    • SPAN 425, 426/ARHI 270, 271: Latin American Visual Art
    • SPAN 430: Introduction to Film
    • SPAN 466: Latin@ Studies
    • SPAN 521: Latin American Literature
    • SPAN 577: Space as Text
    • SPAN 580: Dis(re)membering the Nation: Contemporary Film & Fiction of Spain and Latin America
    • SPAN 585: Buenos Aires
  2. Electives: 4 courses (normally 24 units). Elective courses from other disciplines must allow students to focus their individual work on Latin America, and such work must count for at least 25 percent of the final grade for the course. Course content can change from term to term; therefore, when choosing electives, it is the responsibility of the student to speak to the professor to confirm that 25 percent of the graded work can be based on Latin American themes. Courses not included on this list may be used as electives provided they meet the above requirements.
    • Conservatory courses with consent of the instructor and of one of the Program co-chairs.
    • Up to one internship.
  3. Limitations:
    • Only up to six units can be from an independent study or tutorial (550 level).
    • Only up to a maximum of 18 units can be from any single discipline (including cross-listed courses).
    • Only up to a maximum of 18 units can be from the student's major/minor.
    • Only up to two courses can be from under the 200 level.
    • At least 60 percent of the units must be taken on the Appleton campus.

Courses - Latin American Studies

SPAN 320: Introduction to Literary Texts

An introduction to the critical analysis of texts that represent various periods, genres and authors in Latin American and Spanish literature. Readings of texts and theory, class discussions and composition tasks prepare students for other advanced courses in the Spanish program. PREREQUISITES: SPAN 202, its equivalent, or consent of instructor.
Units: 6
Prerequisite: SPAN 202, its equivalent, or consent of instructor.

ETST 325: Ethnicity in Latin America

Explores the coming together of distinct Native, African, and European ethnicities in Latin America, and the resulting creation of new ethnicities. We examine how race has been understood in Latin American history and how attitudes toward race have fundamentally shaped the history of the region. PREREQUISITES: Sophomore standing; HIST 178 or HIST 179 recommended
Units: 6
Also listed as History 378
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing; HIST 178 or HIST 179 recommended

HIST 371: The Rise and Fall of American Empires: The Americas, from the Beginnings Through the Conquest

A study of the Aztec, Inca, and Maya civilizations, focusing on cultural and technological development. Additional focus is on pre-columbian cultural succession, imperial expansion of the Aztec and Incan empires, and native participation in the conquest. (G&C) PREREQUISITES: Sophomore standing
Units: 6
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing

HIST 374: Visions of Conquest

The creation of Colonial Latin America meant the political, cultural and spiritual reconfiguration of society on both sides of the Atlantic. In this course, we will elucidate the process of conquest through the study of historical accounts, cultural artifacts of the colonizers and colonized alike, and relevant theoretical texts. This course is held concurrently with SPAN 470. Lectures, discussion, and reading and writing assignments are in English. Students interested in work in the Spanish language who have met the prerequisites should register for SPAN 470.(G&C) PREREQUISITES: Sophomore standing
Units: 6
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing

HIST 378: Ethnicity in Latin America

Explores the coming together of distinct Native, African, and European ethnicities in Latin America, and the resulting creation of new ethnicities. We examine how race has been understood in Latin American history and how attitudes toward race have fundamentally shaped the history of the region. (G&C) PREREQUISITES: Sophomore standing; HIST 178 or HIST 179 recommended
Units: 6
Also listed as Ethnic Studies 325
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing; HIST 178 or HIST 179 recommended

SPAN 425: Latin American Visual Art

The course introduces the cultures of Latin America through a survey of its major movements and artists from the early 19th century to the present. Image-based lectures will be accompanied by discussion of visual and thematically related texts (i.e., biographies, letters, scholarly articles) and carefully selected fragments of videos.Taught in Spanish. PREREQUISITES: One 300-level course in Spanish or consent of instructor
Units: 6
Also listed as Art History 275
Prerequisite: One 300-level course in Spanish or consent of instructor

SPAN 466: Latinx Studies (in English)

This course covers the main cultural issues in Latin@ communities. It concentrates on the Latin@s of the United States, the definitions of these communities, and their cultural expressions. Through theoretical materials as well as literature, film, historical documents, testimony, etc., this course addresses a variety of subjects related to Latin@ culture. Taught in English. PREREQUISITES: One 300-level Spanish course, its equivalent, or consent of instructor
Units: 6
Also listed as Ethnic Studies 583
Prerequisite: One 300-level Spanish course, its equivalent, or consent of instructor

SPAN 577: Space as Text

A geocritical analysis of the role of space and borders in contemporary literature. We will examine the critical theory on the topic and apply those insights to texts mainly from or about Latin American and the Atlantic regions. We will include spatial representations from the visual arts and films. Seminar with exams, presentations, and papers. In Spanish. PREREQUISITES: One 400-level course in Spanish or consent of instructor
Units: 6
Prerequisite: One 400-level course in Spanish or consent of instructor

SPAN 580: Dis(re)membering the Nation: Contemporary Film & Fiction of Spain and Latin America

A thematic analysis of film and fiction produced in the late and post-dictatorial context of Spain and several Latin American countries. The course studies the cultural processes of historical memory, collective trauma, oblivion, and questioning of national narratives in selected works from the past four decades. Readings include Manuel Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman, Ariel Dorfman's Death and the Maiden, and Carmen Martin Gaite's The Back Room, as well as films by Lucrecia Martel, Victor Erice, Pablo Larrain, and Guillermo del Toro, among others.
Units: 6
Also listed as Film Studies 580
Prerequisite: One 400-level course in Spanish or consent of instructor