The Central American Civil Wars in Hemispheric Perspective
SPAN 244
Spring 2027
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01
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The violence and wreckage long imposed on the Global South is now plainly felt in the United States, from its streets and schools to its places of work and worship. The "imperial boomerang," first theorized by Aimé Césaire, has returned home. This seminar draws on archival material from Central America to critically reflect back on the civil wars in Nicaragua, Guatemala, and El Salvador from a contemporary hemispheric lens. We will examine, among other topics, the colonial legacies of 20th-century agricultural dispossession; theories of revolutionary Marxism and feminism; religion and liberation theology; discourses and ethics of survivor testimony; carceral aftermaths of counterinsurgency; and the politics of postwar reconciliation under neoliberalism. This course incorporates a wide range of cultural objects produced during and after the civil wars, including radio, poetry and literature, photography, children's drawings, artisan crafts, and fiction and documentary film. Alongside published works from Roque Dalton, Rigoberta Menchú, Susan Meiselas, Gioconda Belli, Otto René Castillo, Pamela Yates, and others, students will also study unpublished archival materials, such as broadcasts from Radio Venceremos, songs and embroidered testimonies from the Honduran refugee camps, and international solidarity art from Cuba, the US, Vietnam, and Spain. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA RLAN |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: SPAN221 |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (Hispanic Literatures and Cultures)(Latin American Studies)(Romance Studies) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Major readings: Alongside published works from Roque Dalton, Rigoberta Menchú, Susan Meiselas, Gioconda Belli, Otto René Castillo, Pamela Yates, and others, students will also study unpublished archival materials, such as broadcasts from Radio Venceremos, songs and embroidered testimonies from the Honduran refugee camps, and international solidarity art from Cuba, the US, Vietnam, and Spain.
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Examinations and Assignments:
: Active class participation, weekly discussion posts, interactive activity facilitation, midterm essay, final creative project (includes components of both traditional and non-traditional scholarship). |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
: SPAN 244 is intended for students who have completed SPAN 221 with a B- or better. Students who have not done so should consult with the professor before preregistering. Readings, written assignments, and class discussions will be in Spanish. Only COL students may take this course CR/U. Students are expected to be active/informed participants in class discussions, further developing their spoken Spanish skills |
| Instructor(s): Brownstone,Veronica Times: .M.W... 01:20PM-02:40PM; Location: TBA |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: 8 | JR major: 2 | | |
| Seats Available: 15 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 1 | JR non-major: 1 | SO: 2 | FR: 1 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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