SPANISH 240 - Testimonies of Latin America:Perspectives from the Margins

Institution:

Bard College

Subject:

Description:

GSS, Human Rights This course provides the opportunity for students to engage critically with texts that serve as a public forum for voices often silenced in the past. Students also learn about the broader context of the hemisphere's history, through the particular experiences of women from Bolivia, Guatemala, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and the U.S.-Latino community, including Rigoberta Menchú, Domitila Barrios de Chungara, and Cherríe Moraga. Students read testimonial accounts that document the priorities and concerns of women who have been marginalized for reasons of poverty, ethnic difference, political ideologies, or sexual preference. The semester is devoted to analyzing the form in which these women's memories are represented textually and to the discussion of the historical circumstances that have led to their marginalization. Some of the central questions that organize discussions are: How best to represent memories of violence and pain? What are the ultimate effects of mediations of the written word, translations to hegemonic languages, and the interventions of well-intentioned intellectuals? Course material integrates films that portray the issues and time periods documented in the diaries and testimonial narratives. Those films include Men With Guns, El Norte, Historia oficial, Cidade de Deus, and Rojo amanecer. The course is conducted in English.

Credits:

4.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.bard.edu

Phone Number:

(845) 758-6822

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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