Researching Cultures: Making Latin America Popular

AMERICAN CULTURE STUDIES 3604

Despacito... Fútbol... Telenovelas. All are forms of Latin American popular culture that are increasingly part of our everyday reality here in the U.S. All are also inseparable from stories of inequality, ethnic tensions and celebrations, understandings of gender relations, and notions of hope that blend ideas of nation with cultural consumption. While popular culture in Latin America is often considered a contemporary phenomenon, linked to the twentieth century and the mass production of cultural goods-film, books, music-it has deeper roots. We can trace these back to the nineteenth century, where people, cultural processes, and phenomena literally began making Latin America popular. This course will survey the emergence and variety of modern popular culture in Latin America, from the 1800sto the present. Readings may include best sellers, gaucho poetry, stories of urban life and folk heroes, and materials engaging themes from dictatorship to contemporary Latinx experiences. We will learn about the intersections between race, nation, and music, explore the emotional and political power of fútbol, along with the intense gender divisions it reveals, and delve into the appeal of telenovelas across socioeconomic divides. Historical and anthropological essays will also guide us throughout the semester. This course will have a strong, mandatory and graded written communications component and is taught in Spanish. It also fulfills the Writing Intensive (WI) requirement for Arts and Sciences students. Prereq. Spanish 303 or 308D, and one (or preferably two) of the following: 341, 342, 343, 370, 380 or Debating Cultures. Students who have taken more than four Spanish culture or literature classes are not allowed in this course and must proceed to a Major Seminar.
Course Attributes: EN H; BU Eth; BU IS; AS HUM; AS LCD; AS WI I; FA HUM; AR HUM; AS SC

Section 01

Researching Cultures: Making Latin America Popular
INSTRUCTOR: Acree