This course examines how politics and culture play out in that most refined of art forms: opera. The course will introduce students to the history of European opera, focusing on 19th century composers in France, Germany, and Italy. We will closely examine three operas: one French (Bizet's Carmen), one Italian (Verdi's Aida) and one German (Wagner's Die Meistersinger). Following Edward Said's work, we will examine how politics and culture play out in these works: European colonialism in Aida; the question of antisemitism in Wagner; stereotypes of Spain in Carmen. Includes excursions to the Metropolitan Opera.

This course proposes a counter-narrative of the myths and fantasies that have been created about the Caribbean and of the historical and cultural realities surrounding them. Through a close reading of literary, artistic, critical, and historical texts we will examine race, ethnic, and gender identity constructions; the rise of the plantation economy; and the emergence of modern nations. The relationship between coloniality and the emergence of diasporic Caribbean voices of dissidence will be a guiding tone for our conversations throughout the semester as we unpack the links between colonialism and diaspora in the Caribbean.

How can we grasp and conceptualize the experience of being displaced from home, stranded in a refugee camp, or living undocumented in a foreign country? This interdisciplinary course explores these questions by engaging with literature, cultural and political theory, international law, film, and art on forced displacement by twentieth-century and contemporary Latin American authors and artists. The goal is to provide students with a critical vocabulary and historical perspective to analyze the cultural, ethical, and political dimensions of today's global migratory and refugee crises.

The history of Latin American art is characterized by experimentation, politics, censorship, and controversy. Why do works of art have such power? Can art express itself with the same freedom in democratic contexts as under dictatorships? How are the memories of repression, colonization, and slavery expressed? This course explores the power of images and images of power. We will examine case studies focusing on works by Mónica Mayer, León Ferrari, Rosana Paulino, Lea Lublin, Paz Errázuriz, Alfredo Jaar, Clemencia Lucena, Artur Barrio, and Hélio Oiticica, between other.

SPA 101 presents the basic structures and vocabulary of the Spanish language at elementary/low intermediate levels of proficiency. It is designed to develop students' linguistic and communicative competence in all three modes of communication: interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational. Through multimedia material, the course fosters an appreciation of the rich culture of the Spanish-speaking world. The learners actively engage in activities that promote the exchange of real-world information. The custom-made digital textbook allows for immediate feedback and autonomous learning.

SPA 103 is an accelerated, intensive course designed for students with some prior knowledge of Spanish, and who have earned the requisite score on the Princeton Spanish placement test. In one term we cover the most relevant structures and vocabulary from SPA 101 and SPA 102. Language is embedded in the discussion of cultural and social issues of contemporary concern. The course is conducted entirely in Spanish. In this course, students develop communicative skills in Spanish and expand their knowledge of the Spanish-speaking world.

An intermediate language course that focuses on oral and written communication and the consolidation of listening and reading skills. In this course students will enhance their linguistic skills through the analysis and discussion of various types of texts (literature, film, visual culture, music, interviews, etc.) that focus on global and cross-cultural aspects of Spain and Latin America. In particular, the course will familiarize students with the concept of neocolonialism as a way to bridge language learning with the context in which cultural values and meanings are produced. SPA 105 prepares students for SPA 108.

SPA 107 is an intermediate/advanced language course that consolidates and expands the skills acquired in beginner's Spanish. Students will continue to develop their ability to comprehend and communicate in Spanish while using the four skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Materials include oral, written, and audiovisual texts that present language in authentic contexts of use and interpretation. By the end of the course, students will be able to express more complex ideas, orally and in writing, with greater grammatical accuracy and communicative fluency.

SPA 108 is an advanced language course that aims at strengthening and consolidating comprehension and production of oral and written Spanish while fostering cultural awareness and cross-cultural examination. Students will improve their linguistic proficiency while exploring the various mechanisms that affect how our identity is constructed, negotiated, and/or imposed. Particularly, the course will examine the ways in which gender and national identities develop and consolidate themselves by exploring cultural production (journalism, literature, cinema and the visual arts, etc.) in the Spanish speaking world and beyond.

An advanced Spanish-language course that focuses on medical and health topics in the Hispanic/Latino world. Students will learn and practice specific vocabulary and structures useful for conducting a medical interview in Spanish. Aspects of Latin American and Hispanic/Latino cultures in the health and medical fields are explored by means of examining authentic texts and through the contribution of guest speakers. There is a mandatory community service project.

SPA 207 seeks to develop advanced language skills and to raise cultural awareness by studying language in its contexts of use and at the level of the formality that will be needed in the higher-level courses. This course focuses on underrepresented communities in the Spanish speaking world, examining issues of class, race and migration. An exciting selection of literary and multimedia productions provide the basis for a critical discussion of cultural meanings and social relations, while offering the chance to explore different registers and styles.

A course designed to improve speaking abilities while learning about Hispanic cultures and cinema in context. The course aims to provide the students with lexical and grammatical tools to allow them to engage in formal and informal discussion on a variety of topics informed by the films provided. Additionally, there will be several writing exercises throughout the semester that will help students improve their writing abilities. By the end of the course, students should have a better command of all linguistic skills, especially listening comprehension, fluency and accuracy in their speech.

An exploration of the major features of contemporary Spain from 1939 to the present with particular attention to developing an understanding the concepts of cultural identity and difference within the changing global context. The course will address the recent processes that have left a mark on the history of Spain: the fall of Francoism, the particular and controversial transition to democracy, the financial crisis of 2008, the Indignados social movement, the nationalist trends in Basque Country and Catalonia, and the latest feminist wave, among others. Discussions and frequent writing assignments.

This course explores the vast linguistic diversity of the Americas: native languages, pidgins, creoles, mixed languages, and other languages in North, Central, and South America, including the Caribbean. We will examine historical and current issues of multilingualism to understand the relationship between language, identity, and social mobility. We will discuss how languages played a central role in colonization and nation-building processes, and how policies contribute to language loss and reclamation. Students will work with members of the Munsee Delaware Nation to develop community relationships and collaborate in a small project.

From animal and human interactions, to social hierarchies, fantasies, controversies over zoos, natural habitats, and slaughterhouses, this course will give us a platform to discuss some of the most timely topics of our day. We will consider some theoretical perspectives on animal-human relationships as we read and discuss works by such authors as Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Quiroga, Monterroso, Rulfo, Borges, Cervantes, Lorca, Delibes, Clarín, Hidalgo and Atxaga.

This seminar grapples with the question of authorship and meaning in the literature of Jorge Luis Borges, the legendary Argentine writer whose convoluted fictions continue puzzling readers. Borges is a foundational figure. Gabriel García Márquez and Paul Auster, and philosophers such as Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault, are all indebted to Borges. Using different perspectives, from philosophy and aesthetics to politics and cultural analysis, we will study Borges's thematic and formal obsessions: time and memory; labyrinths; reading as a form of writing; and the universality of Argentine local traditions such as tango and gaucho culture.

How are ideas of belonging to the body politic defined in Latin America, the Caribbean, and within Spanish-speaking communities in the US? What are créole identities? Who is "Latin American," "(Afro-)Latinx," "Boricua," "Chino," "Indian," etc.? Who constructs these terms and why? Who do they include/exclude? Why do we need these identity markers in the first place? Our course will engage these questions by analyzing literary, historical, visual and sound productions across centuries to present time.

Ever since Europeans arrived in the Americas in the late 15th century, Indigenous peoples have faced marginalization, domination, and exploitation. Europeans often believed that these communities lacked a history because they did not use a Western alphabetic writing system. In this course, we will explore key themes, such as: Pre-Hispanic knowledge; religious conversion through images; Indigenous knowledges, Indigenous resistance to colonial rule and the shifting transcultural and political dynamics of Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities; and contemporary Indigenous thought, focusing on decoloniality and oral history.

From its humble beginnings in the Iberian Peninsula to its multiple contemporary manifestations and global reach, Spanish is a rowdy, vibrant, multiethnic, polyphonic language, constantly changed by evolution and innovation. When did Castilian become Spanish? How did the language contribute to nation building and imperial expansion? Who decides what correct Spanish is? Does Spanish need to be protected? Can it be improved? Through the study of texts that foreground Spanish across time and place, we explore the historical forces that have shaped Spanish and current debates about the state of one of the world's most widely spoken languages.

This course explores the issues and controversies surrounding the linguistic subordination and maintenance of Spanish within Latino communities, situating them within the broader social and historical context of the United States. Students will gain critical insights into bilingualism, the interplay between language and identity, language policy, and the racialization of linguistic minorities. Additionally, the course introduces fundamental concepts of second language teaching, preparing students for the community-engaged component in which they will volunteer as ESL instructors with El Centro.

In SPA 307, students improve their linguistic abilities to become expert readers and writers in Spanish. We study the stylistic and formal features of diverse types of texts, including essays, short stories, memoirs, interviews, news, ephemera, and poetry, and we use these texts as models for our own writing. We engage in multiliteracy exercises designed to draft, edit, rewrite, and critique texts, and to reflect upon norms and expectations within and across academic cultures, as evidenced through texts. By the end of the semester, students bring together form and function to read and write sophisticated pieces. Taught in Spanish.

This seminar has been designed to assist SPO concentrators in the production of their fall JP. With such end, the seminar will be conducted as a writing workshop. The emphasis of the first part of the seminar will be on introducing students to the approaches, critical concepts and tools utilized in cultural studies in the Luso-Hispanic and Latinx world. In the second part of the seminar, students will be expected to write and share their JP-in-progress, as well as comment on their peers' ongoing work. By the end of the semester, students should have completed about eighty percent of their independent work.

This course explores the voices of Indigenous people and women who challenged the intellectual inferiority imposed upon them due to their race and gender. Through their writings, these individuals defied societal expectations and left a lasting legacy that transcends their time. We will take a critical approach to examine how these intellectuals navigated their societies, confronting dominant power structures and questioning social hierarchies designed to marginalize them from knowledge production.

This course delves into the theory and practice of Spanish-to-English translation, combining readings, discussions, workshops, and guest lectures. Students will explore key theoretical frameworks and the linguistic and cultural challenges of translating diverse text types. A special focus will be given to the role of AI in translation, examining its limitations, biases, and ethical implications in contexts such as law, migration, healthcare, Indigenous languages, and literature.

The goals of this seminar are to integrate first and second year graduate students into the department and the university, to provide practical information about the department's main fields of expertise and potential career paths, and to provide a space for support and reflection about the milestones and challenges of graduate school. More broadly, this seminar will help students to begin the ongoing tasks of understanding how our discipline work, developing professional habits and practices, and cultivating an identity as a scholar and researcher.

This seminar explores the intersections between Modern architecture and literature in three Latin American cities: Havana, Mexico City, Bogota. How were built environments inhabited and written by novelists and poets? How did architects respond to literary and cultural debates? Nicolas Arroyo, Mario Pani, Rogelio Salmona contributed to constructing a specific Latin American modernity, in dialogue with authors Alejo Carpentier, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, Octavio Paz, Carlos Fuentes, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Theoretical discussions include critical regionalism, gender and architecture, and environmental context.

Curiosity is the pursuit of knowledge by empirical means. And, while curiosity killed the cat and got Adam and Eve thrown out of the Garden, curiosity becomes perceived in the entire early modern period as the currency of cultural progress. It led to scientific discoveries and life-changing insights derived from exploration, to massive encyclopedic ventures, to intense self-study, to the surveillance of the Inquisition, to the voyeurism of pornography, and to the tremendous popularity of tabloid journalism.