Spanish Language and Literature

S = Objectives

With the large number of Hispanics in the world and in the United States, a Spanish concentration or minor is now of greater value than ever. The study of Spanish language and literature not only broadens students' cultural horizons; it proves extremely useful in preparation for careers--whether in legal, medical, business, or other professions.

S = How to Become a Concentrator

Students considering a Spanish concentration should complete the language requirement as soon as possible, preferably by the end of their first year at Brandeis. (They may also complete the optional ECS 100a, the Proseminar, early in their Brandeis career.) They are then advised to take SPAN 41b or 42b, and must take SPAN 105a before beginning the sequence of Spanish language (SPAN 106b) and literature (SPAN 110a, 111b, and beyond) courses that will fulfill the Spanish concentration. Please note: Many Spanish concentrators and minors choose to study in Spain or Latin America for all or part of their junior year. Normally, any full-credit Spanish literature course taken abroad will count toward the Spanish concentration up to a maximum of four courses for concentrators and two courses for minors. Students interested in learning more about the Spanish concentration or minor are encouraged to speak with the undergraduate advising head in Spanish.

S = Faculty

See Romance and Comparative Literature.

S = Requirements for Concentration

The concentration consists of nine semester courses.

A. ECS 100a (European Cultural Studies: The Proseminar). A Spanish course numbered above 111 and taught in Spanish may be substituted for ECS 100a.

B. SPAN 106b (Spanish Composition, Grammar, and Stylistics).

C. SPAN 110a (Introduction to Peninsular Spanish Literature), and SPAN 111b (Introduction to Latin American Literature), to be completed as early as possible.

D. Four additional semester courses from the Spanish literature offerings numbered above 111, at least one of which must deal with Spanish literature before 1700. No more than two of these electives may be taken in English. Courses conducted in English include those abbreviated SECS (Spanish and European Cultural Studies).

E. At least one course beyond 106b must be designated "Library Intensive."

F. SPAN 198a (Seminar in Literary and Cultural Studies) in the fall semester of the senior year. Those seeking departmental honors will also take SPAN 99d in the spring to complete the Senior Thesis. Students who declared a concentration prior to the fall semester of 1997 have the option of substituting SPAN 97a, the Senior Essay (Fall semester only) for SPAN 198a, or for honors, of taking SPAN 99d for the full year instead of SPAN 198a in the fall and SPAN 99d in the spring. Honors students must have maintained a 3.50 G.P.A. in Spanish courses previous to the senior year. Honors are awarded on the basis of cumulative excellence in all courses taken in the concentration, including the Senior Thesis.

G. Junior and senior concentrators may apply for admission into graduate seminars of the Interdisciplinary Program in Literary Studies by permission of the instructor and the undergraduate advising head in Spanish.

Students may petition the area head for changes in the above program. Students wishing credit toward the Spanish concentration courses crosslisted under ECS (abbreviated SECS) will be required to do the reading and writing in Spanish.

S = Requirements for Minor

The minor consists of five semester courses.

A. SPAN 106b (Spanish Composition, Grammar, and Stylistics).

B. SPAN 110a (Introduction to Peninsular Spanish Literature), and SPAN 111b (Introduction to Latin American Literature).

C. Two additional Spanish literature courses from the offerings numbered above 110. No more than one of these electives may be taken in English. Courses conducted in English include those abbreviated SECS (Spanish and European Cultural Studies). All students pursuing a Spanish minor will be assigned an advisor in the department. Enrollment in the Spanish minor must be completed by the end of the first semester of the senior year. All courses are conducted in Spanish, unless otherwise noted.

S = Courses of Instruction

S = (1-99) Primarily for Undergraduate Students

SPAN 10a Beginning Spanish

Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

For students who have had no previous study of Spanish. A systematic presentation of the basic grammar and vocabulary of the language within the context of Hispanic culture, with focus on all five language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and sociocultural awareness. Several sections will be offered. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 20b Continuing Spanish

Prerequisite: SPAN 10a or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

For students with some previous study of Spanish. Continuing presentation of the basic grammar and vocabulary of the language within the context of Hispanic culture and practice of the four language skills. Special attention to reading and writing skills, as well as guided conversation. Several sections will be offered. Usually offered every semester.

Staff

SPAN 31a Intermediate Spanish: Composition and Grammar

[ fl ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 20b or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

This course focuses on the development of writing and/or grammatical skills in the context of continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 32a Intermediate Spanish: Conversation

[ fl ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 20b or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

This course focuses on the development of oral expression and conversational skills in the context of continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 33a Intermediate Spanish: Reading

[ fl ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 20b or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

This course focuses on the development of reading skills in the context of the continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 34a Intermediate Spanish: Topics in Hispanic Culture

[ fl ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 20b or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

Topics or themes from Hispanic cultures are the context for continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 40b Intermediate Spanish II

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: Any 30-level Spanish course or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

Prepares students for practical applications while continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish.

Staff

SPAN 41b Spanish for Cultural and Literary Studies

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: Any 30-level Spanish course or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

This course prepares students for the more advanced Spanish courses leading to the concentration and minor. It focuses on cultural and literary topics in the Hispanic world while continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 42b Spanish for the Professions

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: Any 30-level Spanish course or the equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18 per section.

Prepares students for practical applications of Spanish in U.S. and foreign communities while continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Each section will focus on a single topic such as: business Spanish; medical Spanish; Spanish for the social sciences. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 97a Senior Essay

Students should first consult the area head of the concentration. Signatures of the instructor and the advising head required.

Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 97b Senior Essay

Students should first consult the area head of the concentration. Signatures of the instructor and the advising head required.

Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 98a Independent Study

May be taken only with the written permission of the advising head of the concentration and the chair of the department. Signatures of the instructor and the chair of the department required.

Reading and reports under faculty supervision. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 98b Independent Study

May be taken only with the written permission of the advising head of the concentration and the chair of the department. Signatures of the instructor and the chair of the department required.

Readings and reports under faculty supervision. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 99d Senior Thesis

Students should first consult the area head of the concentration. Signatures of the instructor and the advising head required.

Usually offered every year.

Staff

G = (100-199) For Both Undergraduate and Graduate Students

The SECS abbreviation denotes Spanish and European Cultural Studies courses.

SPAN 105a Spanish Conversation and Grammar

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: Any 30-level or 40-level Spanish course or the equivalent, or permission of the area head. Enrollment limited to 15.

Students learn to communicate effectively in Spanish through class discussions, oral and written exercises, presentations,

literary and cultural readings, film, and explorations of the mass media. Emphasis on improvement of oral and written fluency, and acquisition of vocabulary and grammar structures. Usually offered every semester.

Staff

SPAN 106b Spanish Composition, Grammar, and Stylistics

[ wi hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 105a or permission of the area head. Signature of the instructor required. Enrollment limited to 15.

Focuses on written communication and the improvement of writing skills, from developing ideas to outlining and editing. Literary selections will introduce the students to the principles of literary analysis and serve as topics for class discussion and writing. Usually offered every semester.

Ms. Older and Staff

SPAN 110a Introduction to Peninsular Spanish Literature

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 106b or permission of the instructor. Signature of the instructor required.

Was El Cid a political animal? How do women, Jews, and Moslems fare in classical Spanish literature? Study of major works, authors, and social issues from the Middle Ages to the end of the 17th century. Texts covered range from the epic Cantar del Cid to Cervantes and masterpieces of Spanish Golden Age theater. Usually offered every semester.

Ms. Fox or Mr. Mandrell

SPAN 111b Introduction to Latin American Literature

[ nw hum NW ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 106b or permission of the instructor. Signature of the instructor required.

Students will become familiar with the traditional ways of segmenting Spanish-American literature and also study the uses of history and historical material in the elaboration of literary texts. From colonial to early 20th-century literature. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 120b Don Quijote

[ cl³⁰ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or permission of the instructor.

A reading for fun and critical insight into what is often called "the first modern novel." We will discuss some reasons for its reputation as a major influence on subsequent fiction throughout the Western world and view several film interpretations. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Fox

SPAN 130a Modern Peninsular Spanish Literature

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or permission of the instructor.

A historical study of Spanish literature from the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, including considerations of neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism, the Generations of '98 and '27, as well as post-Civil War fiction. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Mandrell

SPAN 140a Masters of Spanish Poetry

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or permission of the instructor. Topics vary from year to year.

Usually offered in even years. Last offered in the spring of 1993.

Mr. Yglesias

SECS 150a Golden Age Drama and Society

[ cl² hum ]

Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.

The major works, comic and tragic, of Spain's 17th-century dramatists. We will consider Cervantes's brief witty farces; Tirso's creation of the "Don Juan" myth; Lope's palace and "peasant honor" plays; and Calderón's Baroque masterpieces, which culminate Spain's Golden Age. Usually offered in odd years.

Ms. Fox

SPAN 161a Modern Latin American Poetry

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a, 111b, or permission of the instructor.

Development of 20th-century poetics through the works of Dario, Vallejo, Neruda, Paz, and others. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Yglesias

SPAN 163a Modern Latin American Fiction

[ cl²⁴ nw hum NW ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a, 111b, or permission of the instructor. Course may be repeated for credit.

Focuses on the new Latin American narrative. Texts will be selected from the works of Borges, Cortázar, Carpentier, Cabrera Infante, Rulfo, Poniatowska, Castellanos, Vargas Llosa, and García Márquez. Topics vary from year to year. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SPAN 164b Studies in Latin American Literature

[ cl²⁴ nw hum NW ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 111b or permission of the instructor. Course may be repeated for credit.

A comparative and critical reading of main trends, ideas, and cultural formations in Latin America. Usually offered every year.

Staff

SECS 169a Columbus: Encounters and Inventions

[ hum ]

Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.

The course's purpose is to familiarize the student with the vicissitudes of the figure of Christopher Columbus, in literature, selected historiographical works, and those texts that have come down to us as his. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

SPAN 170a Topics in Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Spanish Literature

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or permission of the instructor. Course may be repeated for credit.

Topics will vary from year to year, but might include: Spanish Enlightenment and Romanticism: costumbrismo; Romantic drama; Bécquer; Galdós (the novelas contemporáneas); or 18th- and 19th-century poetry of the sublime. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Mandrell

SPAN 180b Topics in Twentieth-Century Spanish Literature

[ hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or permission of the instructor. Course may be repeated for credit.

Topics will vary from year to year, but might include: the Generation of '98; the Generation of '27; García Lorca (poetry and drama); the post-Civil war novel; novels of the individual's quest; or modern women's writing. Usually offered in odd years.

Mr. Mandrell

SECS 182b The Spanish Civil War

[ hum ]

Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.

We will focus on works illustrating the background of the Civil War, its development and influence on fiction, art, film, theater, poetry, and journalism of later decades. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the fall of 1995.

Mr. Mandrell

SECS 183a Spanish Fictions and Films of Modern Life

[ cl¹³ hum ]

Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.

A consideration of literary, visual, and cinematic texts that address modern life, including the nature of the modern and of modernity, in late 19th- and 20th-century Spain. Topics include the individual in the modern world, technology, and fragmentation. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the fall of 1994.

Mr. Mandrell

SECS 185b Realism in Modern Spain

[ hum ]

Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.

A study of the trajectory of prose fiction in 19th-century Spain in relation to various historical trends and cultural traditions. Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the fall of 1993.

Mr. Mandrell

SPAN 190b Latin American Fiction in Translation

[ cl²⁴ nw hum NW ]

Considers a number of major Latin American novels and stories in an effort to identify significant trends of divergence and convergence with regard to the mainstream of Western narrative. Usually offered in even years.

Staff

SPAN 192a Contemporary Hispanic Women's Fiction in Translation

[ cl⁷ cl²⁴ cl³⁷ nw hum NW ]

A consideration of contemporary fiction by Spanish, Latin American, and Latina women writers. Usually offered in even years.

Mr. Mandrell

SPAN 198a Seminar in Literary and Cultural Studies

[ wi hum ]

Prerequisite: SPAN 110a or SPAN 111b, or permission of the instructor. Signatures of the instructor and the advising head required.

A research seminar organized around varying themes (ìthe other,î ìthe nation,î etc.). Instruction on literary/cultural theory, researching a topic, and analytical skills necessary for developing a scholarly argument. Students present research in progress and write a research paper of significant length. Usually offered every year.

Staff

S = Cross-Listed Courses

ECS 100a

European Cultural Studies: The Proseminar