Emilio Bejel

SPANISH Course Descriptions

Graduate - SPRING QUARTER 2008

Spanish 252: Short, Cheap and Exciting: The First Best-Sellers
Cristina González, Professor (M 4:10-7:00) CRN 66202

The invention of the printing press brought about great social change. Reading for pleasure became possible for large numbers of people, who eagerly consumed romances involving love and adventure. Many of these romances were quite long, such as the numerous imitations of Amad's de Gaula written in the course of the 16th Century. But there were other romances that were chosen by publishers because they could be produced cheaply due to their short length. In consideration of the important role publishers had in selecting and revising them, these fast-paced romances of medieval origin have been called a "publishers' genre." These exciting narratives delighted the public of the Golden Age, and their readers encompassed a wide variety of people, including none other than Miguel de Cervantes. This course will study a number of works representative of this "publishers' genre," including Enrique Fi de Oliva and Tablante de Ricamonte, which are key sources of Don Quixote de la Mancha.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

Coursework: Paper, presentations.

Textbooks: Nieves Baranda Ed., Historias caballerescas del siglo XVI (Biblioteca Castro), Vol. 1; Nieves Baranda Ed., Historias Caballerescas Del Siglo XVI, VOL. 2.

Spanish 274: Testimony: Theory and Praxis
Michael Lazzara, Asst. Professor (R 4:10-7:00) CRN 63741

"Presented as the authentic testimony of the disenfranchised, the colonized and the oppressed, testimonio has [in recent decades]? emerged as one of the most significant genres of Latin America's post-boom literature. In the political battles that have taken place around the formation of the canon, the testimonio holds a special place: no other single genre of literature has taken up such a large part of current debate. Initially hailed in the 1970s as a genuine form of resistance literature, testimonio has since undergone a significant change in its critical reception... Although the literature of testimony arose on the margins of institutional power and its ends were in large part political change, the canonization of testimonio by the academic Left has moved it from margin to center, ironically bringing about the institutionalization of its transgressive and counterhegemonic qualities" (Guguelberger et al., The Real Thing). This graduate seminar will study the trajectory of current debates on testimony in both the US and Latin American contexts and will attempt to evaluate some of the major theoretical reflection on the genre that has emerged since the 1980s. We will also seek to understand "testimony" in a way that goes beyond the often limiting definitions proposed by critics. Because the critical literature on the topic is vast, a portion of each class will be dedicated to student presentations in précis style thatwill help us gain a broader sense of the issues at hand. Specific topics to be addressed may include the representation of violence and trauma, torture, testimony as "literature," testimony and truth, the aporias of the testimonial utterance, the political and institutional "phenomenon" of testimony, testimony and revolution, testimony and the subaltern, the limits of the genre, testimonies of victimizers. Special attention will be given to works from the Southern Cone that emerged in contexts of dictatorship and post-dictatorship. We will also pay attention to how, in recent years, studies of Holocaust testimony (Levi, Agamben, Felman and Laub, etc.) have informed Latin American debates. Also, in week 5 of this seminar, we will have the privilege of dialoguing with well-known Latin Americanist scholar John Beverley, one of the pioneering critics of the genre.

Evaluation will be based on active class participation, brief précis oral reports, an 8-10 page review of the critical literature and an 8-10 page conference-style paper examining a particular work or works. Class discussions will be conducted in Spanish, but many readings will be in English, simply because much of the critical reflection on this genre has emerged within the US academy.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

Textbooks: John Beverley, Testimonio: On the Politics of Truth; Elizabeth Burgos, Me llamo Rigoberta Menchú y así me nació la conciencia; Beatriz Sarlo, Tiempo pasado: cultura de la memoria y giro subjetivo, una discusión; Diamela Eltit, Puño y letra: juicio oral. A Course Reader will also be available at the Davis Copy Shop.

Optional Textbooks: Georg M. Gugelberger ed., The Real Thing: Testimonial Discourse and Latin America; Luz Arce, The Inferno: A Story of Terror and Survival in Chile.

Spanish 275: Latin American Epic
Leopoldo Bernucci, Professor (T 4:10-7:00) CRN 66099

Historical development of Spanish American and Brazilian epic as a genre since the 1500s, with emphasis on the role of the hero and literary emulation. Study of poetic rules that inform the genre and poetry analysis as well.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

Textbooks: Pablo Neruda, Canto General (Ed. Enrico Mario Santi); Alonso de Ercilla, La Araucana; Santa Rita Durao, Caramuru.

Spanish 285: Multicultural Approaches to Cuban Literature and Culture.
Emilio Bejel, Professor (W 4:10-7:00) CRN 66100

Este curso es básicamente sobre la relación entre política, literatura y, hasta cierto punto, cine. Se comenzará con el enorme esfuerzo intelectual de José Martí a finales del siglo 19 por encontrar una respuesta a la relación entre política y literatura, al puesto de la poesía en un mundo aceleradamente modernizante y tecnológico. Luego, saltaremos al siglo 20 con la posición de José Lezama Lima y los miembros de la revista Orígenes en cuanto a esta problemática, para finalmente llegar a la compleja lucha entre arte y política a partir de la Revolución Cubana del 1959. Además de algunas obras claves de Martí, estudiaremos, además de algunos poemas de Lezama Lima, narraciones como Biografía de un cimarrón (Miguel Barnet), Calibán (Roberto Fernández-Retamar), Las palabras perdidas (Jesús Díaz) y obras de autores como Nancy Morejón, Nicolás Guillén, y otros escritores contemporáneos.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

Textbooks: Rafael Rojas, Isla Sin Fin: Contribucion a La Critica Del Nacionalismo Cubano; Jesus Diaz, Las Palabras Perdidas; Miguel Barnet, Cimarron Historia De Un Esclavo. Colección Las tres edades; Roberto Fernandez-Retamar, Caliban and Other Essays.