This lecture course begins with the history of three major indigenous societies--the Maya, the Aztecs, the Incas--and continues through the formation of the Spanish and Portuguese empires. Topics include the initial contact in and conquest of the Caribbean, Meso-America, and the Andes; the imposition of imperial rule and the survival of precontact cultures; the transformation of production; the impact of and resistance to slavery; the structure of colonial communities; the role of gender, religion, ethnicity, and race in the creation of colonial identities; and the independence movements and the end of formal colonial rule. The required readings introduce students to major theoretical approaches to the history of the region; primary documents, maps, drawings, and other texts will be discussed in class. |