Latin American History

(History 127)

Note: This is a static document. Any changes to the readings or assignments will be posted to the Class Schedule page.

Description

Why is Latin America poor? Is it because the region lacks natural resources, the people are lazy or somehow inferior, or due to overpopulation? Using a dependency theory approach, we will examine how these stereotypes are wrong and how poverty is a human creation that did not have to happen. We will examine the process of colonization, neo-colonialism, and other economic political forces which impoverished the region and continue to keep it so. We will examine attempts to alter these fundamentally unequal social and economic relations. In doing so, we will examine a variety of themes including the role of Indigenous peoples, the land tenure system, religion, education, imperialism, and revolutions.

The basic structure of this course is primarily chronological as well as geographic and thematic. The first week we will focus on pre-Hispanic Indigenous civilizations in the Americas and the European conquest. The second week we will look at European colonial structures and the creation of economic dependencies. The third week we will examine revolutionary responses to foreign domination in the twentieth century in four Latin American countries. The fourth week we will examine thematically a series of social movements including Indian, student, and women's movements.

Summer courses are unique, and therefore the form and content of this course will vary considerably from what you might experience in a semester-long course. We will make extensive use of films and videos in this course. The reading assignments are relatively light, but you may find them intense given the compacted time frame of this course. Class lectures and discussions will assume knowledge of the reading materials, and so it is critically important that you read the assignments before class. There will be almost daily quizzes over the readings, and it is critical that you do not miss any class periods. You are responsible for the material covered in the lectures, readings and films, and for any announcements made in class.

If you have a disability or any conflicts which may affect your class performance, please bring this to my attention immediately so that we can make arrangements for this to be a positive learning experience for you. I reserve the right to modify the syllabus and assignments for this class as necessary in order to improve the quality and value of the class. If you have suggestions for improving the class, please bring these to my attention.

Readings

There are two required books for this class in addition to other readings at the reserve desk in Milner library and on the Internet. You may either purchase the books at campus bookstores or read them at the reserve desk in Milner Library.

Galeano, Eduardo. Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1998.

Keen, Benjamin. A History of Latin America. 5^th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1996.

Internet

This course makes use of a web site (http://www.ilstu.edu/class/hist127) and Netforum discussion group on the Internet to extend the scope of the class beyond that of the immediate classroom setting. Class schedule updates, important terms from the textbook, lecture outlines, additional information on assignments, and other resources and information related to the class will be posted to the web site. The Netforum discussion group is designed for the posting of announcements, a forum to ask questions, continue class discussions, complain about the weather, etc. You are expected and encouraged to make active use of these resources. ISU provides students with free email accounts and access to computer terminals in labs around campus. Let me know at the beginning of the semester if access to these resources will be a problem for you.

Assignments and grades

Course grades will be based on the following assignments. I will post study guides for each of the exams and more detailed information on the written assignments to the web page. Absolutely no late assignments will be accepted. Use the Netforum discussion group to discuss these assignments with your classmates in a relaxed and informal virtual discussion session.

Exams (60%): There will be an exam worth 20% of the course grade at the end of each of the first three weeks. The exam will cover the material we studied during that week. I will give you ten terms, and you will identify and give the significance of five of these terms. The terms will be taken from the study guides posted on the Internet for the readings as well as the lecture outlines.

Essay (30%): On the last day of class a three to five page (750-1250 word) essay is due in which you examine why you think Latin America is poor and what can be done about it. You are expected and required to make use of Galeano in the writing of the essay, as well as Keen, other readings, lectures, class discussions, films, etc. You may also use outside material, although you are not required or expected to do so. The essay must be typed, double spaced, include citations and a bibliography, and otherwise follow the essay instructions which are posted on the Internet.

Quizzes (10%): There will be a minimum of 10 quizzes based on the terms listed on the study guide for the readings for that day. Normally the quiz will be in the form of 10 multiple-choice questions. The first quiz is on the second day of class and will be a map quiz. The terms and places you should know for this quiz are posted on the class web page.

Extra Credit (up to 8%): For extra credit you may write critiques of articles which relate to some aspect of Latin America published in one of the following leading mainstream newspapers: Miami Herald, New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times, Dallas Morning News. These newspapers are available either in Milner Library or through links from the class web page. If you want to use another newspaper (particularly one from Latin America or an alternative news source), please check with me first. The critique must be typed, double-spaced, and one-page (250 words) long. Include one paragraph describing the content of the article and a second analyzing its historical and social significance. Please include a copy of the article along with your written critique. You may submit a maximum of two such critiques each week, for a maximum total of eight for the course. The article must be from that week, and is due the following Monday (except for the last week, in which case all articles are due on the last day of class). I will add one percentage point to your course grade for each acceptable critique.

Class Schedule

Week 1: Indians and Conquest

Monday, July 13 Introduction and Geography

Tuesday, July 14 Amerindian Societies

Read:

• Keen, "Introduction" (xiii-xvi), ch. 1 ("Ancient America")
• Galeano, "Introduction"
• Jan Knippers Black, "Introduction: The Evolution of Latin American Studies," Latin America, Its Problems and Its Promise: A Multidisciplinary Introduction, 3rd ed (Boulder, Colo: Westview Press, 1998), 1-17 (Milner Reserve)
• "The Writing of a Historical Essay or Research Paper" (Internet)

Wednesday, July 15 European Explorations

Read:

• Keen, ch. 2 ("Hispanic Background")
• Galeano, ch. 1 ("Lust for Gold, Lust for Silver")

Thursday, July 16 The Conquest

Read:

• Keen, ch. 3 ("Conquest of America")
• "Letter from Lope de Aguirre, to King Philip of Spain, 1561" (Internet)

Week 2: Colonial Structures

Monday, July 20 Class Structures and Slavery

First exam

Read:

• Keen, ch. 4 ("Economic Foundations of Colonial Life")
• Galeano, ch. 2 ("King Sugar")

Tuesday, July 21 The Mission

Read:

• Keen, ch. 5 ("State, Church and Society")
• James Schofield Saeger, "The Mission and Historical Missions: Film and the Writing of History," The Americas 51 (January 1995): 393-415 (Milner Reserve)

Wednesday, July 22 Independence

Read: Keen, ch. 7 & 8 ("Bourbon Reforms" & "Independence of Latin America")

Thursday, July 23 Nineteenth Century

Read: Keen, ch. 9-11 ("Latin America in the Nineteenth Century")

Week 3: Revolutions

Monday, July 27 Mexico

Second exam

Read:

• Keen, ch. 12 ("Mexican Revolution")
• Galeano, ch. 3 ("The Invisible Sources of Power")

Tuesday, July 28 Chile

Read: Keen, ch. 14 ("The Chilean Way")

Wednesday, July 29 Cuba

Read: Keen, ch. 17 ("The Cuban Revolution")

Thursday, July 30 Nicaragua

Read: Keen, ch. 18 ("Revolution and Counterrevolution in Central America")

Week 4: Social Movements

Monday, August 3 Student Movements

Third exam

Read: Galeano, pt. II & III ("Development is a Voyage" and "Seven Years After")

Tuesday, August 4 Indian Movements

Read:

• Keen, ch. 16 ("Storm over the Andes")
• José Carlos Mariátegui, "The Problem of the Indian," Seven Interpretive Essays on Peruvian Reality (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1971), 22-30 (Milner Reserve or Internet)

Wednesday, August 5 Women's movements

Read: Keen, ch. 21 ("Latin American Society in Transition")

Thursday, August 6 International Relations

Essay due

Read: Keen, ch. 20 ("The Two Americas")