HIST 143 - Soccer and History in Latin America: Making the Beautiful Game

Institution:

Williams College

Subject:

History

Description:

This course examines the rise of soccer (futbol/futebol) in modern Latin America, from a fringe game to the most popular sport in the region. Focusing especially on Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and Mexico, we will analyze the central role that soccer played as these countries faced profound questions about race, masculinity, and regional and national identities. Using autobiographies, videos, and scholarly works from several disciplines, we will consider topics including: the role of race and gender constructions in the initial adoption of soccer; the transformation of this foreign game into a key marker of national identity; the relationship between soccer and political and economic "modernization"; the production of strong, at times violent identities at club, national, and regional levels; and the changes that mass consumerism and globalization have effected on the game and its meanings for Latin Americans. As an Exploring Diversity Initiative course, the class uses primary sources as well as recent scholarship to explore these issues comparatively between regions and nations. Throughout the semester, we will look at how the world of soccer reflects, produces, and at times apparently resolves cultural difference.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

First-year or sophomore standing

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Seminar

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.williams.edu

Phone Number:

(413) 597-3131

Regional Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Calendar System:

Four-one-four plan

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