Objectives

Latin American Studies provides a field of concentration and a program (open to students in any concentration) for those who wish to structure their studies of Latin America. It offers an interdisciplinary approach to understanding Mexico, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, and the Latin American diaspora in the United States. Students with widely ranging interests are welcome.

How to Become a Concentrator or Program Member

Students in the concentration and the program work closely with an advisor to develop an individualized plan of study that combines breadth with a focus in one discipline (usually history, politics, or Spanish). Students whose interests do not easily fit the courses available at Brandeis may arrange independent study with members of the staff. Students may also take advantage of the resources of neighboring institutions through the Boston Area Consortium on Latin America. Courses may be taken at Boston College, Boston University, Tufts University, and Wellesley College. Study in Latin America for a term or a year is encouraged. In the past, concentrators have studied at universities in Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Peru, and Brazil, and other possibilities are available. Credit may also be obtained for internships in Boston-area organizations related to Latin America. Transfer students and those studying abroad may obtain credit for up to half the required courses from courses taken elsewhere, with the approval of the program chair.

Committee

(History)

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

(Politics)

(Anthropology)

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

(Psychology)

(African and Afro-American Studies)

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

(Heller School)

(African and Afro-American Studies/English and American Literature)

(Politics)

(Anthropology)

(Economics)

(Sociology)

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Requirements for Concentration

A. Passing grade in any 30-level Spanish course or the equivalent, or reading competency examination in Spanish or Portuguese (administered by LAS). Another foreign language spoken in Latin America or the Caribbean may be substituted with the permission of the Latin American Studies Committee.

B. LAS 100a (Seminar: Topics in Latin American Studies).

C. HIST 71a or b; POL 144a or b; and one semester course on Latin American or Caribbean Literature.

D. At least six additional semester courses from the listing provided below.

E. No more than five of the 10 required courses may be from the same department.

F. Candidates for the degree with honors in Latin American studies must be approved by the committee and complete LAS 99d, a two-semester senior thesis.

Requirements for the Program

A. LAS 100a (Seminar: Topics in Latin American Studies).

B. At least two courses from HIST 71a or b, POL 144a or b, or the offerings on Latin American or Caribbean literature.

C. Two additional semester courses from the list provided below.

D. No more than two of the five required courses may be from the same department.

Courses of Instruction

Combines off-campus experience in a Latin America-related internship with written analysis under the supervision of a faculty sponsor. Students arrange their own internships. Counts only once toward fulfillment of the concentration or program requirements.

Staff

Usually offered every year.

Staff

Usually offered every year.

Staff

Independent research and writing, under faculty director, of a senior thesis. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Examines major themes and problems in Latin American studies from an interdisciplinary perspective. Topics vary from year to year. For 2001-02 only, HIST 174a (The Legacy of 1898: U.S.-Caribbean Relations since the Spanish-American War) counts for LAS 100a. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Elective Courses

The following courses may be counted toward the concentration or program if approved by the student's advisor as fitting into the individualized plan of study. Courses marked with an asterisk (*), which include Latin America or the Caribbean as one of the several areas studied, normally count toward the concentration or program only if students write a paper on Latin America or the Caribbean. Courses marked with a double asterisk (**) count toward LAS only in those years when they analyze films or texts from Latin America, the Caribbean, or the Latin American diaspora. Students may apply no more than two single-starred courses to their Latin American Studies concentration or program.

The following courses are approved for the program. Not all are given in any one year. Please consult the Course Schedule each semester.

Comparative Race and Ethnic Relations

Third World Ideologies

Political Economy of the Third World

The Literature of the Caribbean

Novel and Film of the African Diaspora

Theories of Development and Underdevelopment

African and Caribbean Comparative Political Systems

Models of Development: Third World

The Rise of Mesoamerican Civilization

Writing Systems and Scribal Traditions

Topics in New World Studies: The Empire Writes Back

Latin America's Economy

Migrating Bodies, Migrating Texts

Twentieth-Century and Contemporary Latin American Art

Topics in Francophone Literatures

Latin American History, Pre-Conquest to 1870

Latin American History, 1870 to the Present

Latin American Women: Historical Perspectives

The Legacy of 1898: U.S.-Caribbean Relations since the Spanish-American War

The Making and Unmaking of the Mexican Revolution

The Politics of Revolution: State Violence and Popular Insurgency in the Third World

Latin American Politics I

Latin American Politics II

Research Seminar: Topics in Latin American Politics

Revolutions in the Third World

Seminar: Politics and Hunger

Sustaining Development

Travel Writing and the Americas: Columbus's Legacy

Topics on Women and Development

U.S.-Caribbean Relations

Women Leaders and Transformation in Developing Countries

Spanish for Heritage Speakers

Introduction to Latin American Literature

Modern Latin American Literature

The Latin American "Boom" and Beyond

Studies in Latin American Literature

Writing the Latin American City

Latin America through the Eyes of Women

Latin American Fiction in Translation

Hispanic Topics in Translation

Contemporary Hispanic Women's Fiction in Translation

Topics in Hispanic Cinema