Spring 2022

Major Debates in Latinx and Latin American Studies

Listed in: American Studies, as AMST-206  |  Latinx and Latin Amer Studies, as LLAS-200

Faculty

Paul A. Schroeder Rodriguez (Section 01)

Description

(Offered as LLAS 200 and AMST 206) In this course students will become familiar with the major debates that have animated Latinx and Latin American Studies, addressing a wide range of issues from the Conquest to the present. Each week students will focus on specific questions such as: Does Latin America have a common culture? Is Latin America part of the Western world? Is Latinx a race or an ethnicity? Is U.S. Latinx identity rooted in Latin America or the United States? Are Latin American nations post-colonial? Was the modern concept of race invented in the Caribbean at the time of the Conquest? The opposing viewpoints around such questions will provide the main focus of the reading assignments, which will average two or three articles per week. In the first four weeks, students will learn a methodology for analyzing, contextualizing, and making arguments that they will apply in developing their own positions in the specific controversies that will make up the rest of the course.

Limited to 15 students. Fall semester. Professor Schroeder Rodriguez. 

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Expectations include close reading, discussions, debates, and writing short papers. This class will require several short oral reading presentations, one longer formal oral presentation, and an analytical essay of approximately 7-10 pages. For the final projects, students will have latitude to prepare something more free-form, artistic, literary, or visual if it is desired and always in consultation with the professor. Students with documented disabilities who will require accommodations in this course should be in consultation with Accessibility Services and reach out to the faculty member as soon as possible to ensure that accommodations can be made in a timely manner.

Offerings

Other years: Offered in Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2024, Spring 2025