Course Offerings - Spring 2012

Professors Dinestein & Molina
This is a one-semester intensive course that covers the equivalent of one year of elementary Spanish (V95.0001 and V95.0002). After completing this course, students who wish to continue studying Spanish must take a qualifying examination. Students who pass the examination may go into V95.0003, which is preparation for V95.0004. Students with high scores on the qualifying exam may enroll in V95.0018 (an accelerated version of V95.0003, which similarly prepares them for V95.0004) or in V95.0020. Completion of either V95.0020 or V95.0004 fulfills the MAP requirement.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Benedek
Intensive Spanish for Advanced Beginners is a six-credit intensive language course designed to help students with limited knowledge of Spanish strengthen their language skills and develop their cultural competency. The course covers the material of Spanish 2 and Spanish 3 in one semester. Successful completion of this course prepares students for a fourth semester college Spanish language course.

Sample Syllabus

Prerequisite: V95.0010, V95.0002 or equivalents, or passing grade on qualifying examination.

Professors Autieri & Rosetti
Promotes proficiency in reading and writing as well as oral performance. V95.0020 is an intensive intermediate course that covers the equivalent of one year of intermediate Spanish (V95.0003 and V95.0004, or V95.0018 and V95.0004) in one semester.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Cerqueiras
Continuation of V95.0003 or V95.0003A. Readings and discussions of contemporary Hispanic texts and review of the main grammatical concepts of Spanish. Completion of this course fulfills the MAP foreign language requirement.

Sample Syllabus

Prerequisite: Intermediate Spanish II (NYU,V95.0004) or equivalent

Prof. Autieri
Advanced course designed to expand and consolidate lexical and grammatical understanding of the language and to introduce fundamental principles of expository writing as they apply to Spanish, through exercises, readings, and intensive practice of various expository prose techniques and styles. For nonnative speakers only. Prerequisite for NYU students: V95.0020, V95.0004, or permission of the director of undergraduate studies.

Sample Syllabus

Prerequisite: V95.0100 or equivalent, or with permission of program director.

Prof. Bouzas
Introduction to literary analysis through close reading of texts from the early to modern periods of peninsular Spanish and Spanish American literatures. Engages students in the practice of textual explication, provides basic critical skills, and encourages reflection on literature as a system. This course is the gateway course for students interested in pursuing advanced literature courses in Spanish. With very few exceptions, students must have completed Critical Approaches before taking advanced literature courses taught in Spanish.

Sample Syllabus

Corequisite: Intensive Intermediate Spanish or Intermediate Spanish II.

Prof.  Luppino
The course is designed for students who want to perfect their Spanish as they expand their knowledge regarding literature, cinema, and social and political problems that exist today within modern Argentine society. The reading of different dramatic texts and viewing of various films throughout the semester will serve to expand lexicon, strengthen grammar and improve the student's style. The objective of this course is that the students familiarize themselves with everyday language of current newspapers and magazines, at the same time as they enter into the world of Spanish literature.

The most important goal of the course is to offer a methodologically simple approximation that helps the student to develop a greater verbal and communicative dexterity. To this end, every week the students will analyze and debate the cultural and literary content texts that are to be studied and every two weeks the students will present a written composition of the topics covered in class. In the classroom linguistic correction will be emphasized along with auditory practice through the use of a wide range of materials and resources: theoretical explanations, comprehension and vocabulary exercises, film viewing, as well as exercises that highlight certain morphological aspects or grammatical usage of Spanish.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Penhos

The course will examine key aspects of Latin American art from the colonial period to the early decades of the twentieth century. Through the analysis of artistic images of Mexico, Peru, Brazil and Argentina, will discuss the role of visual representation in the process of conquest and colonization of the territory in Latin America, and later in the construction and consolidation of national states and regional identities. With the alternation of guided visits to museums in Buenos Aires and classes, students will have the opportunity to learn about artistic languages​​, techniques, iconography, production systems, and some aspects of Latin American history.

Crosslisted with SPAN-UA 9751.  Advanced Spanish language skills required. (NYU,V95.0100 or equivalent)

Prof. Dieleke
This course explores Tango as an aesthetic, social and cultural formation that is articulated in interesting and complex ways with the traditions of culture and politics in Argentina and Latin America more generally. During the rapid modernization of the 1920s and 1930s, Tango (like Brazilian Samba), which had been seen as a primitive and exotic dance, began to emerge as a kind of “modern primitive” art form that quickly came to occupy a central space in national(ist) discourse. The course explores the way that perceptions of “primitive” and “modern” converge in this unique and exciting art. In addition, the course will consider tango as a global metaphor with deeply embedded connections to urban poverty, social marginalization, and masculine authority.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Hirsch

This course is for Global Liberal Studies students only.  Advanced Spanish skills (beyond Intermediate II) recommended.

This course combines a seminar based weekly section together with intensive internships in businesses, NGOs or other organizations. The experiential part will consist of 10 weekly hours of work within a pre-arranged organization. The academic part is meant to assist students in getting the most from this experience and provide theoretical and methodological elements to critically examine their experiences. It weaves together research design and methods with an empirical and theoretical examination of recent social phenomena in Argentina. We will use selected themes and topics to explore theoretical perspectives and selected aspects of contemporary Argentine society. In parallel we will explore how to construct a research project, collect data and analyze its contents.

Advanced Spanish language skills required. (NYU,V95.0100 or equivalent)

Prof. Ramacciotti

The objective of this course is to analyze the principle social, cultural, and political transformations that Argentina experienced during the 20th century. The course will focus on changes in population, modifications in the national discourse, social tensions in urban and rural spaces, and the fight to obtain civil, social, political, and sexual rights.  The aim is to examine the cruxes of these issues and to trace their course throughout the 20th century.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Campanario

This class provides an overview of the Argentine theater, both dramatic texts essential as the main staging in the present. In the case of Buenos Aires, theatrical activity constitutes a particular social phenomenon, and in this sense, the course takes this as an alternative ferment and vital to know the city. In fact, in Argentina's capital, there are about two hundred theaters and the variety of neighborhoods, types of entertainment and public is such that a tour of the theater circuits reveals the social, political and cultural history of the Latin American metropolis. Exploration of theater is a way to know in depth the local idiosyncrasies of the Argentine customs, the particular idioms, different artistic styles, humor Buenos Aires and different topics. The theater and human rights and the interaction between the theater and literature are just some of the issues to be addressed in the semester.

Prerequisite: Advanced Grammar & Composition and Critical Approaches, (NYU,V95.0100, V95.0200) or equivalent.

Prof. Amante
The course is designed to introduce students to the work of Jorge Luis Borges, one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. Through reading, analysis, and discussion of short fiction or poems and critical bibliography, the students will examine the dichotomy civilization-barbarism in Borges works (in connection to the Argentine cultural tradition since nineteenth century); some key topics in his texts such as tigers, labyrinths and libraries; the relationship between writing and translation (specifically in the English translations of his fictions); the political aspects of the literature produced by Borges and other contemporary Argentine writers on Eva Perón. The course will also develop the connections between Borges and other contemporary Argentine writers.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Lazzari
This course deals with themes of culture, cultural identity and the politics of culture and identity, with reference to five specific Latin American cases: a). Indigenous communities of the Amazon (Achuar) and the Pampas-Patagonia region (Mapuche, Rankülche); b) Andean peasants (Aymaras) and indigenous proletariat of the Chaco (Toba); c). working class and ethnic neighborhoods of the city. By means of this empirical survey we hope to illustrate and discuss the some of the different ideas that have come to the fore in recent debates about “culture,” including essentialism and constructivism; rethinking of the nature/culture dichotomy; and the idea of cultural identity as a right, as a strategy of domination or as a form of resistance, etc. The course proposes to include a study trip to the province of Salta (northeast Argentina) in order to interrogate in situ some of the course themes and discussions, using community visits and conversations with relevant people as well as visits to sites of cultural memory – of both domination and resistance, among other activities.

Sample Syllabus

Students wishing to take this course for Major or Minor Credit in Latin American Studies or Spanish must register under the V95.9762 number. Students from both sections will attend English lectures together, but those registered under V95.9762 will recieve enhanced reading and writing assignments in Spanish.

Prof. Sivak
This course is designed to introduce students to some of the most important problems and debates about Latin American history, society and culture. Latin America is a complex region full of contrasts. Its population is both racially and culturally heterogeneous. Its many countries share some common cultural roots and political origins, but also have distinct histories. The structure of this course is primarily chronological but also thematic. We will start with the Conquest and its legacies and we will end with the problems that we experience today in big cities in Latin America. The course favors a multi-disciplinary approach, and therefore we will use a different array of materials including films, letters, photographs and essays. We will emphasize first hand accounts of the topics we discuss.

Sample Syllabus

Open to students who have completed Advanced Grammar and Composition or enrolled concurrently in Advanced Grammar and Composition.

Prof. Lopez-Seoane

La lengua de BuenosAires is an advanced conversation course, which seeks to make studentsfamiliar with the most outstanding features of the Spanish of the Rio de la Plata area. It does also work as anintroductory map to the main problems and questions of the culture of the cityof Buenos Aires.Through a lively discussion of current cultural conflicts in politics,literature, music, drama and film, the course will enhance the listening andreading abilities of the students, while improving their speaking and writingproficiency in Spanish. These said conflicts and their transformations are keyto an understanding of the way porteños speakand think. From a first section devoted to political discourse, we will move onto a consideration of its rhetorical precedents in argentine literature. Thiswill give us the critical tools we need to further our inquiries in otherfields such as rock, drama, journalism and film.

Open to students who have completed Advanced Grammar and Composition (or equivalent), or to students enrolled concurrently in SPAN-UA 9100

Prof. Lopez-Seoane 
Mitos, íconos y tradiciones inventadas is an advanced conversation course, which seeks to make students familiar with the rich and complex history of Latin America through the study of some of its most known and iconic cultural expressions. It does also work as an introductory map to the most influential and widespread approaches in Latin American social sciences, cultural studies and literary criticism. Thus, students will not only have a first encounter with key historical processes that lie behind some well know cultural icons, but also will be introduced to arguments and ways of writing that help constitute modern Latin American educated Spanish. The course will be structured in seven topics; each topic will be covered in two weeks. During these four classes, students will be exposed to different kinds of cultural materials, including literary texts, film, papers from several disciplines, theater plays, art shows and live concerts.

Sample Syllabus 

Open to students who have completed Critical Approaches (or equivalent), or to students enrolled concurrently in V95.9200

Prof. Ansolabehere

This course explores writings on Latin America from the Conquest to the present and the representation of the region in literature in a broad sense. We will pay attention to images that emphasize the extraordinary and the ordinary, drawing comparisons between Latin America and Europe and North America, examining accounts of first contact with the new world, and reading descriptions of the social and natural world. Writers and travelers wondered about the identity and particular features of local cultures and produced works where this inquiry can be examined. Often associated with the supernatural and the sublime, Latin America was also depicted in its everyday life (the common) that unfolded along side Revolutions, political violence, and natural beauty. By contrasting the ordinary and the extraordinary the course sheds light on different images of the region. Readings include letters by Cristóbal Colón and Hernán Cortés, poems by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, as well as works by Alexander Von Humboldt, Simon Bolívar, Alejo Carpentier, Esteban Echeverría, Domingo F. Sarmiento, José Martí, Rubén Darío, Juan Carlos Onetti, Roberto Arlt, Clarice Lispector, Juan Rulfo, and Mario Levrero. Films and visual arts will also be part of the material examined in the course.

Sample Syllabus

Crosslisted with IDSEM-UG 9401.  Advanced Spanish language skills required. (SPAN-UA 0100 or equivalent)

Prof. Dieleke
This course explores Tango as an aesthetic, social and cultural formation that is articulated in interesting and complex ways with the traditions of culture and politics in Argentina and Latin America more generally. During the rapid modernization of the 1920s and 1930s, Tango (like Brazilian Samba), which had been seen as a primitive and exotic dance, began to emerge as a kind of “modern primitive” art form that quickly came to occupy a central space in national(ist) discourse. The course explores the way that perceptions of “primitive” and “modern” converge in this unique and exciting art. In addition, the course will consider tango as a global metaphor with deeply embedded connections to urban poverty, social marginalization, and masculine authority.

Sample Syllabus

Both an English and Spanish section of this course will be offered.
For Spanish section: Advanced Spanish language skills required. (NYU,V95.0100 or equivalent)

Prof. Raffo
This course is a journey through the different styles of Latin American Folk and Popular Music (LAFM), particularly those coming from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. Their roots, influences and characteristics. Their social and historical context. Their uniqueness and similarities. Emphasis in the rhythmic aspect of folk music as a foundation for dance and as a resource of cultural identity. The irruption of Latin American rhythms in the music market through the “World Music” phenomenon. Even though there is no musical prerequisite, the course is recommended for students with any kind and/or level of musical experience.

Sample Syllabus (English)

Sample Syllabus (Spanish)

Prof. Oubiña
A survey of anticolonialist cinema with special emphasis on Latin America. Despite conditions of economic and political oppression, Latin America has managed in recent years to forge a dynamically original cinema. After studying some European films that highlight the colonial background of current struggles in the world, we take a brief look at African cinema and then look closely at Latin American cinema, with films from Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Cuba. The emphasis throughout is on a common theme – the struggle against foreign domination and on the search for an authentic, innovative national cinematic style.

Sample Syllabus

Crosslisted with WRTNG-UG 9401 (Gallatin)

Prof. Stahl
A practical course in the writing of creative literary texts: prose (short stories as well as literary non-fiction) and poetry. Selected published works will be analyzed in class both to provide inspiration for student writing as well as to represent literary structures and strategies. Writing assignments ranging from spontaneous to long-term projects will promote creative exploration and self-expression. Critical skills are emphasized and enhanced as students respond to each others’ work. Awareness of correct conventional use of the English language will be upheld. Students build up a body of work over the semester. For full credit and in demonstration of a writing “process,” the final portfolios should include both first drafts and subsequent revisions. At least one longer text (or set of poems) will be selected for submission as would be appropriate to publishers or literary contests.

Sample Syllabus

NOTE: This course does not count for NYU Economics major credit.

Prof. G. Sánchez
The course offers an introduction to Argentina’s economic performance through time and its current economic issues. There are four parts, each with a separate aim. Part I (5 weeks) introduces from scratch some notions in the field of “open economy macroeconomics”, useful to understand Argentina but also other relatively small economies open to trade and capital flows. The effects of internal or external shocks are quite different in these countries compared to larger economies such as the US or Europe, and require a special understanding. Part II (5 weeks) presents an outline of Argentina’s modern economic history, with three subperiods: export led growth (1850-1930), inward looking industrialization (1930-1975) and re-globalization (1976-2007). Part III (2 weeks) searches for explanations of Argentina’s economic performance, including the effects of external shocks, institutions, trade policy, macroeconomic crises and Argentina’s political economy. Argentina’s he comparative performance of other countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the US. Finally, Part IV (2 weeks) deals with some current economic issues, including income distribution, inflation, fiscal policy and economic volatility

Sample Syllabus

Crosslisted with CRWRI-UA 9815 (Creative Writing)

 Prof. Stahl
A practical course in the writing of creative literary texts: prose (short stories as well as literary non-fiction) and poetry. Selected published works will be analyzed in class both to provide inspiration for student writing as well as to represent literary structures and strategies. Writing assignments ranging from spontaneous to long-term projects will promote creative exploration and self-expression. Critical skills are emphasized and enhanced as students respond to each others’ work. Awareness of correct conventional use of the English language will be upheld. Students build up a body of work over the semester. For full credit and in demonstration of a writing “process,” the final portfolios should include both first drafts and subsequent revisions. At least one longer text (or set of poems) will be selected for submission as would be appropriate to publishers or literary contests.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Hirsch

Continuation from EXLII-UF 9301 - Experiential Learning I.  The spring Experiential Learning II includes a 2-credit on-site component that emphasizes internships (or the equivalent) and a 2-credit Junior Independent Research Seminar, in which students work online with a GLS faculty member and students with similar interests at different sites to craft an independent research project, an important preparation for the senior thesis.

Prof. Fiorucci

This course focuses on the study of some of the most important problems and debates about Latin American history, especially those concerning the region’s political and social development. Latin America is a complex region, full of contrasts. National histories and individual societies did not always follow parallel paths, although there are a group of problems and dilemmas that were experienced regionally. The course will examine three topics that are of particular importance for understanding the historical development of Latin America: populism and the rise of new form of citizenship; democracy and dictatorship; and revolutions and revolutionary ideas. In the analysis of each of these issues we will consider themes like the influence of the US; the role of women; and the impact of racial issues. For each topic, we will study particular cases; we will assess continuities and changes in time.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Artusa
In this course students will develop, pitch, research, report, write, edit and present original articles of various kinds on several subjects throughout the semester. Using the city and people of Buenos Aires as their focus, students will work in teams for some projects and individually for others to hone their skills as observers, interviewers, reporters and writers.

Sample Syllabus

 Pending Approval.  This course is currently under development.  More information coming soon.

Prof. Schettini

This course explores Latin American fiction from a comparative perspective. By analyzing works from Peru, Argentina, Mexico, Chile and Brazil from the 1970s to the present, students approach the manifold versions of Latin America fiction and the way literature has imagined communities beyond national boundaries.

Sample Syllabus

Students wishing to take this course for Major or Minor Credit in Latin American Studies or Spanish must register under the V95.9762 number. Students from both sections will attend English lectures together, but those registered under V95.9762 will recieve enhanced reading and writing assignments in Spanish.

Prof. Sivak

This course is designed to introduce students to some of the most important problems and debates about Latin American history, society and culture. Latin America is a complex region full of contrasts. Its population is both racially and culturally heterogeneous. Its many countries share some common cultural roots and political origins, but also have distinct histories. The structure of this course is primarily chronological but also thematic. We will start with the Conquest and its legacies and we will end with the problems that we experience today in big cities in Latin America. The course favors a multi-disciplinary approach, and therefore we will use a different array of materials including films, letters, photographs and essays. We will emphasize first hand accounts of the topics we discuss.

Sample Syllabus

Prof. Duek
This course proposes a historical and cultural approach to the development of the popular press, cinema, radio, television and the contemporary processes of the new media. There is a central question for the course: Is there any singularity in Latin American media? The answer assumes that there is a specific relation between tradition and modernity in Latin American societies with many consequences for mass culture and media. The constitution of mass audiences in societies where literacy was not a universal value, made significant the development of audiovisual media. The course will focus on melodrama as a configuration that made possible the emergence of specific genres in Latin American cinema, radio and television. Particularly, the “telenovela” is simultaneously an aesthetic, industrial and audience phenomenon with local and global circulation. Finally, the course will discuss the role of media in dictatorship and democratic processes. Censorship and alternative media enabled many different practices for radio journalists, filmmakers or contemporary bloggers.

Sample Syllabus

Both an English and Spanish section of this course will be offered.

Professor Raffo
This course is a journey through the different styles of Latin American Folk and Popular Music (LAFM), particularly those coming from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. Their roots, influences and characteristics. Their social and historical context. Their uniqueness and similarities. Emphasis in the rhythmic aspect of folk music as a foundation for dance and as a resource of cultural identity. The irruption of Latin American rhythms in the music market through the “World Music” phenomenon. Even though there is no musical prerequisite, the course is recommended for students with any kind and/or level of musical experience.

Sample Syllabus (English)

Sample Syllabus (Spanish)

Prof. R. Barros

This class introduces students to aspects of Latin America’s tormented late twentieth century political history.  Thirty years ago, with one or two exceptions, the states of South America were ruled by brutal military dictatorships. Now dictatorship has become a memory and elected regimes prevail across the continent. How can we explain this inversion? Why was democracy once so difficult and now apparently unproblematic? What impact did authoritarianism have on this change? What kinds of problems and opportunities face post-authoritarian civilian regimes? How democratic are these regimes?

Prof. Turzi

The aim is for the student to have a full understanding of Latin America’s insertion in the global structure of international relations. Covering in parallel the evolution of the international system and the changing position of the region in that same system, the course attempts to reinterpret the frameworks of analysis as perceived from the Western Hemisphere. The student will be provided with a Latin American view of the main economic developments and political processes that have given shape –at each stage in time- to the structure and dynamics of the international system. The ultimate goal is to make students aware that “where you stand depends on where you sit” by exposing them to alternate views on concepts they are already familiar with.

Sample Syllabus