SPN 318 - Mis/Representations

Course Units: 1

The main goal of SPN318 is for students to study, discuss, and understand how some “minority” communities, such as indigenous people from the Amazon and the Andes, Afro-Latin American, Women, and the LGBTQ+ community, have been (mis)represented in Latin American culture from the end of the 19th century to the 21st century. Therefore, we will first engage with the history of the term “minority.” After that starting point, students will reflect on the cultures, their realities, and the challenges these communities have faced and continue facing by reading literary texts and viewing some fictional and non-fictional audiovisual materials. At the same time, through our discussion in class, students will draw connections between social problems in the past and current struggles in the U.S. today, such as those highlighted by the Me Too and Black Lives Matter movements, or the fight of native peoples against climate change Prerequisite(s): Any two 250-299 level courses, or written permission of instructor. CC: HUL, LCC, WAC-R, JLIT, JWOL, JCHF ISP: AFR, LAS, GSWS