• Enable students to develop a working knowledge of the key social, political, and economic transformations occurred in Latin America during the 20th century.
• Acquire knowledge of the most relevant historical process and political formations developed in Latin America that affected the American continents and the global space.
• Develop students’ critical thinking and skills through: evaluating historians’ arguments; connecting analytic frameworks and historical processes.
• Improve written and oral expressive skills by presenting, discussing, and (substantial) writing.
• Acquire knowledge of the most relevant historical process and political formations developed in Latin America that affected the American continents and the global space.
• Develop students’ critical thinking and skills through: evaluating historians’ arguments; connecting analytic frameworks and historical processes.
• Improve written and oral expressive skills by presenting, discussing, and (substantial) writing.
teacher profile teaching materials
In the last part of the course, the class will pay particular attention to the enduring legacies and challenges of some specific historical issues, such as race, migration, and the particular entrance of Latin America into global capitalism throughout the 20th century. Special emphasis will be placed on the most recent historiographical stances, providing insights into the transnational and global history approach to the study of the region.
The course is taught in English.
• Thomas E. Skidmore, Peter H. Smith, James N. Green, Modern Latin America, Eighth Edition, Oxford University Press, New York-Oxford, 2014.
Part II and part III
• Teresa A. Mead, A History of Modern Latin America. 1800 to the Present, Second Edition, WILEY Blackwell, Oxford, 2016 [From chapter 4 “Fragmented nationalism”, till chapter 13].
Ch. 4-13, pp. 84-317.
• Williamson Edwin, The Penguin History of Latin America, Penguin, New York, 2009.
“Nationalism and development: an overview”, pp. 313-34.
• Blanca Sánchez-Alonso, “Labor and Immigration” (Chapter 10, pp. 377-426), in John H. Coatsworth, Roberto Cortés Conde, Victor Bulmer-Thomas (eds), The Cambridge Economic History of Latin America. Volume II - The Long Twentieth Century, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2006.
• Matthew Brown, “The Global History of Latin America”, in Journal of Global History, vol. 10, Issue 3, November 2015, pp. 377-386.
• Selected readings will be assigned in class and provided by the instructor.
Programme
This course surveys the main processes and events that have characterized the transformations of Latin America in the Twentieth century, focusing on topics in politics, economy, and social issues. Lectures will explore and analyze the many -ism that characterized the history of Latin America and their new and neo version that are still stimulating historiographical and political debate, such as nationalism, socialism, imperialism, populism, and liberalism.In the last part of the course, the class will pay particular attention to the enduring legacies and challenges of some specific historical issues, such as race, migration, and the particular entrance of Latin America into global capitalism throughout the 20th century. Special emphasis will be placed on the most recent historiographical stances, providing insights into the transnational and global history approach to the study of the region.
The course is taught in English.
Core Documentation
MANDATORY READINGS• Thomas E. Skidmore, Peter H. Smith, James N. Green, Modern Latin America, Eighth Edition, Oxford University Press, New York-Oxford, 2014.
Part II and part III
• Teresa A. Mead, A History of Modern Latin America. 1800 to the Present, Second Edition, WILEY Blackwell, Oxford, 2016 [From chapter 4 “Fragmented nationalism”, till chapter 13].
Ch. 4-13, pp. 84-317.
• Williamson Edwin, The Penguin History of Latin America, Penguin, New York, 2009.
“Nationalism and development: an overview”, pp. 313-34.
• Blanca Sánchez-Alonso, “Labor and Immigration” (Chapter 10, pp. 377-426), in John H. Coatsworth, Roberto Cortés Conde, Victor Bulmer-Thomas (eds), The Cambridge Economic History of Latin America. Volume II - The Long Twentieth Century, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2006.
• Matthew Brown, “The Global History of Latin America”, in Journal of Global History, vol. 10, Issue 3, November 2015, pp. 377-386.
• Selected readings will be assigned in class and provided by the instructor.
Reference Bibliography
No additional reading provided.Type of delivery of the course
METHOD OF PRESENTATION: Class will meet three times a week (64 hours course). Lectures will be given with the support of slides and power point presentations to facilitate the first approach to issues and historiographical knots. The course favors a multi-disciplinary method, and therefore the class will use a different array of materials that are relevant such as readings, films, photographs, pictures, documentaries, and primary sources. During lectures, students should feel free, in fact are encouraged, to raise their hands. Students are also expected to come prepared for discussion with questions, comments, and critiques to foster class debates and collective understanding. Detailed and continuous guidance will be given throughout the course, so to help students in navigating primary and secondary sources, in preparing oral presentation, and in discussing potential statements for short papers.Attendance
ATTENDANCE POLICY: Attendance is mandatory for all classes, including field studies. If a student misses more than three classes in this course, two percentage points will be deducted from the final grade for every additional absence. Any exams, tests,presentations, or other work missed due to student absences can only be rescheduled in cases of documented medical emergenciesor family emergencies. The Faculty Committee will only consider extreme emergency cases and will strictly adhere to this policy.Type of evaluation
REQUIRED WORK AND FORM OF ASSESSMENT: The final grade for this class will be calculated as follows: • Attendance and participation (25%): Students should attend every class and read all the material assigned. Discussions will be one of the driving forces of this course, as learning is a collective process that becomes richer when everyone is encouraged to contribute opinions based on evidence and arguments. Students are strongly invited to discuss the issues raised in readings, asking questions and making comments in lectures. • Mid-term exam (15%): There will be one in-class midterm that contains material from the first weeks of readings and lectures. This exam consists of three multiple choice questions and four open-ended questions. • In-class presentation (20%): Students will be asked to choose one selection out of the five proposed in the “Recommended readings” and to prepare 15 minutes of oral presentation to the class. The oral presentation is not a mere summary, but students are expected to analyze critically and develop opinions concerning the texts. • Short Paper (20%): Students will prepare and bring to class one 1000-1500 words written paper. This paper should be original and thesis-driven in which students address a prompt through the development of a clear argument based on evidence extracted from the lectures and assigned readings. This is not a summary of readings and lectures, but a critical piece of work in which students challenge authors’ thesis, raise doubts, analyze historiographical concept, and propose further investigation and hypothesis. • Final exam (20%): The final exam will only cover material from Part III and IV of the course, so it will not include notions already tested in mid-term exam. This exam consists of four multiple choice questions and six open-ended questions. Students are invited to read all material assigned, to take notes of lectures and discussions held in class. Written exams and papers should be clear in terms of spelling and syntax. Please do not hesitate to get in contact with the instructor if you have any questions about any of the assignments and/or requirements for the class. On the first day of class, you will be asked to give a valid email that you check regularly in order to receive notifications and information from the instructor.