S331:  The Hispanic World I   (3 credits)
Prerequisites:  S310 or S311 or equivalent

SUBTITLE:  What's love got to do with it?: Eros and Literature in
Latin America

Love (in its many forms and manifestations:  friendship, affection,
fondness, passion, desire, sex) is arguably the most recurring
literary topic of all time.  Although usually presented as a universal
emotion, love, like literature itself, is very much conditioned by
cultural and historical factors.  This course will focus on precisely
the intersection between the two within the Latin American context:
the cultural construction of eroticism and its representation and
reproduction in different types of texts (fiction, poetry, theater,
and film).  We will explore the concept of love in its most diverse
expressions, from an individual emotion to a feeling of solidarity
with humankind and the natural environment.  At the same time, we will
pay close attention to the creative mechanics of literary genres and
film.  We will study them as vehicles for expression and
representation (is poetry better suited for love than theater? how is
love represented in such different mediums as poetry and film?), and
as sites for both contesting and reproducing hegemonic ideas on
nation, religion, race, gender, sexuality, etc. (what role does
literature have in perpetuating the image of woman as sexual/love
object? is it possible to write about love outside of the heterosexual
literary tradition?).

Class attendance and participation are essential to the success of the
course.  Assignments will include one in class presentation, short
papers, a midterm exam, and a final exam.  The course will be
conducted entirely in Spanish.

Credit given for only two of the following:  S331, S332, S333.

S331  4344  1:00P-2:15P   TR   BH 015  Prof. Alejandro Mejías-López