"The past is never dead. It is not even past." -- William Faulkner

Hi 213 -- Colonial Latin America

This course will introduce students to the economic, cultural, social, and political events that shaped Latin America from the 1400s to the early 1800s.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, film, art, and literature, and it will emphasize the lived experience of individuals.  the role of religion will be central to the course, as it was to Colonial Latin America.  There will be a particular emphasis on the way race, ethnicity, sex, gender, and power affected the people of Latin America.  Students will be expected to think, read, and write critically and effectively and to develop their own arguments.  The ultimate goal is to examine competing historical analyses, learn to evaluate them, and construct critical and creative syntheses.

 

Hi 214 -- Modern Latin America

This course will introduce students to the cultural, social, political, and intellectual events that shaped Latin America from the early 1800s to the present.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, film, art, literature, and music, and it will emphasize the lived experience of individuals.  There will be a particular emphasis on the way race, ethnicity, sex, gender, and power affected the people of Latin America.  topics discussed include dictatorship, revolution, and social struggles.  Students will be expected to think, read, and write critically and effectively and to develop their own interpretations of the past.  The ultimate goal is to examine competing historical interpretations, learn to evaluate them, and construct critical and creative syntheses.

 

Hi 233 -- History of Latin America

This one-semester survey will introduce students to the major historical events and major issues that Latin Americans faced from 1450s, before sustained European contact, to the present.  The major themes covered include the clash of cultures during the Iberian conquest, mature colonial Latin America as a “religious society,” the ambivalence of the wars for independence, caudillismo versus Liberalism, dictatorships and the Revolutionary response, Cold war politics, and contemporary neo-Liberalism and criminal violence.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, visual images, film, literature, and music, and will emphasize the lived experience of individuals. 

 

Hi 333 -- Women in Latin America

This course examines the lives and experiences of women in Latin America from before the arrival of Europeans in the 15^th century to the present.  The lives of famous and powerful women like Malintzín, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Santa Rose de Lima, Evita Perón, and President Michele Bachelet will be discussed but the course will also explore lives of more ordinary women from laborers like slaves, market women, domestics, and factory workers to those who engaged in wars and revolution to those who simply tried to lead quiet lives.  The class will examine the words of individuals whenever possible and rely heavily on films and visual images.

 

HI 450/990 -- Latin America through Film

Latin American history has fascinated US, European and Latin American filmmakers for decades.  They have interpreted the many eras of Latin American history and have sought connections to contemporary events.  This course will explore how filmmakers have portrayed Latin American History in their films.  We will concentrate on the themes of 1)  inequalities of power and the exploitation of the less powerful  2) the impact of religion, race, ethnicity, sexuality and gender  3)  and the attempts by Latin Americans to struggle against the forces and agents of oppression.  Students will critically analyze and discuss the films, and read and write reviews of the films.  A possible list of films include Cabeza de Vaca, Aguirre Wrath of God, The Last Supper, I, the Worst of All, The Mission, Camila, Like Water for Chocolate, Evita, Strawberry and Chocolate, Frida, Men With Guns, City of God, Maria Full of Grace, and The Motorcycle Diaries.  Knowledge of Spanish and Portuguese is not required as all the foreign language films are subtitled.

 

Dictatorship and Revolution in Latin America

Central America and the Caribbean

 

Hi 111 -- United States History I

This course will introduce students to the cultural, social, political, and intellectual events that shaped the area now known as the United States from the 1450s, before sustained European contact, through the Civil War.  The class centers on the contacts, conflicts, and negotiations between and among the many Americans, Europeans, and Africans. 

The course compares the experiences of people in different regions of North America and examines the various ways in which they shaped and responded to their environment.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, visual images, film, literature, and music, and will emphasize the lived experience of individuals. 

 

HI 112 -- United States History II

This course will introduce students to the cultural, social, political, and intellectual events that shaped the United States from the Civil War to World War II.  The class centers on two main themes: 1) The rise of an urban and industrial society and the consequences of this transformation and 2) the struggle for rights by the many oppressed groups within the United States.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, visual images, film, literature, and music, and will emphasize the lived experience of individuals. 

 

HI 113 -- United States History III

This course will introduce students to the cultural, social, political, and intellectual events that shaped the United States from World War II to the present.  This course will focus on the domestic and international impact of the Cold War, the increased organization of various “rights” movements and their ambivalent effects, and the shift from the post-war Liberal consensus to the new Conservatism from the 1970s to the present.  The course will make substantial use of primary documents, visual images, film, literature, and music, and will emphasize the lived experience of individuals. 

 

HI 205 -- Native America: Past and Present

This course will survey the vast sweep of Native American history from the settlement  of the Americas to the present and from the Arctic to the Cape Horn.  We will examine pre-Columbian civilization, contact between American, Europeans and Africans through the end of the “colonial” period, the rise of nation-states in the Americas, the struggle for rights in the 20^th C, and contemporary issues.  The course will examine issues of race and ethnicity, class, sexuality and gender, and power and politics in Native American polities, communities and families.

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