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LIT 2331

Fall 2010
LIT 2331.002
Masterpieces of World Literature:
Latin American Literature—Independence through the “Boom”

Class meeting times: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2:30-3:45 pm


Class location: SOM 2.107

Instructor: Shelby Vincent


Email: sdv034000@utd.edu
Office hours: Thursdays 1:00-2:00 pm
Office: TBA

Course description:

In this course we will focus on some of the masterpieces of Latin American


Literature published between the Independence era of the early 1800s through the
Latin American literary “Boom” of the 1950s and 1960s. Throughout the semester
we will read a wide range of literature including political essays, short stories,
novels, and poetry. As we read these works in English translation, our discussions
will not be limited to the works themselves, but will also include an exploration of
the interconnectedness of world literatures and the ways in which currents of
political, philosophical, and creative thought traveled between Europe, Latin
America, and the United States. In addition, we will discuss the historical context in
which the texts were written. Some of the questions we will keep in mind as we read
and discuss these works include: What is World Literature and why should we be
interested in studying it? Where does Latin American Literature fit in the global
schema? How is literature related to cultural identity?

Student Learning Objectives—


Students will:
Develop critical reading, thinking, and writing skills.
Gain a global view of the important literary movements of the 19th and 20th
centuries and how they were adapted to the Latin American context.
Gain an understanding of the relationship between literature and cultural
identity.
Demonstrate and articulate the understanding of the above stated objectives
through written assignments and class discussions.

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Required Texts:

Arguedas, José María. Deep Rivers. Trans. Frances Horning Barraclough. Austin:

University of Texas Press, 1978. ISBN: 9781577662440

Bioy Casares, Adolfo. The Invention of Morel. Trans. Ruth L. C. Simms. New York:

New York Review of Books, 2003. ISBN: 9781590170571

Carpentier, Alejo. The Kingdom of This World. Trans. Harriet de Onís. New York:

Noonday Press, 1989. ISBN: 9780374521974

Gómez de Avellaneda y Arteaga, Gertrudis. Sab, and Autobiography. Trans. Nina M.

Scott. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1993. ISBN: 9780292704428

Paz, Octavio. The Labyrinth of Solitude and Other Writings. Trans. Lysander Kemp,

Yara Milos, and Rachel Phillips Belash. New York: Grove Press, 1985.

ISBN: 9780802150424

**Other readings listed in the schedule below will be provided by the


instructor.

Recommended texts:

Franco, Jean. An Introduction to Spanish-American Literature, 3rd ed. New York:

Cambridge University Press, 1994.

Graff, Gerald and Cathy Birkenstein. They Say, I Say: The Moves That Matter in

Academic Writing. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006.

Modern Language Association of America. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research

Papers, 7th ed. New York: The Modern Language Association of America,

2009.

Strunk, William and E.B. White. The Elements of Style. New York: Longman, 2000.

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Class meeting dates and schedule of readings and assignments:

Week 1 August 19 Intro. and Overview

Week 2 August 24 World Lit./LatAm Lit./Independence Era

Independence Aug. 26 Simón Bolívar—“The Jamaica Letter”


Andrés Bello—“Ode to Tropical Agriculture”

*Text will be provided

Week 3 August 31 Gómez de Avellaneda—Sab


Part I (pp 27-94)
Nationalism

Sept 2 Gómez de Avellaneda—Sab


Part II (pp 95-147)

Week 4 Sept. 7 Sarmiento—Facundo; or Civilization and


Barbarism
Selections: Chapter 1 (pp 9-27) and
Chapter 5 (pp 71-85)
*Text will be provided

Sarmiento—Facundo; or Civilization and


Barbarism
Selections: Chapter 8 (pp 123-137) and
Chapter 13 (pp 189-205)
*Text will be provided

Week 5 Sept 14 José Martí—Selected Writings


“Our America”
Modernismo
**Paper topics due

Sept 16 José Martí—Selected Writings


“My Race”
“Simple Verses”
*Text will be provided

Week 6 Sept 21 Conferences—proposals due for mid-term


paper

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Sept 23 Conferences—proposals due for mid-term


paper

Week 7 Sept 28 Rubén Darío—Prosas Profanas


“The Swan”
“I Seek a Form”
“Fatality”
*Text will be provided

20s and 30s Sept. 30 José Vasconcelos—The Cosmic Race

*Text will be provided

Week 8 Oct. 5 Vallejo—Poetry


“Today I Like Life Much Less”
“Anger”
“Poem to Be Read and Sung”
*Text will be provided

Oct 7 Nicolas Guillén—Poetry


“Small Ode to a Black Cuban Boxer”
“My Last Name”
*Text will be provided

** Mid-term papers are due**

Week 9 Oct. 12 Bioy Casares—The Invention of Morel

The Boom Pages TBA

Oct 14 Bioy Casares—The Invention of Morel

Pages TBA

Oct. 15 Mid-term grades due

Week 10 Oct. 19 Borges Ficciones


“Pierre Menard, Author of Don Quixote”
(pp 29-38)
“Funes the Memorious” (pp 83-91)

*Text will be provided

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Oct 21 Pablo Neruda—poetry
“Macchu Picchu”
Elemental Odes—Artichoke, Dictionary,
Maize

*Text will be provided

Oct 25 Last day to withdraw WP/WF

Week 11 Oct. 26 Carpentier—The Kingdom of This World


Parts One and Two (pp 9-104)

Oct 28 Carpentier—The Kingdom of This World


Parts Three and Four (pp 107-186)

Week 12 Nov. 2 Paz—The Labyrinth of Solitude and Other


Writings
Chapters 2 & 3, pp 29-64

Nov 4 Paz—The Labyrinth of Solitude and Other


Writings
Chapters 5 & 6 (part), pp 89-135

Week 13 Nov. 9 Arguedas—Deep Rivers


Chapters 1-6, pp 3-87

Nov 11 Arguedas—Deep Rivers


Chapters 7-9, pp 88-154

Week 14 Nov. 16 Conferences

Nov 18 Conferences

Week 15 Nov. 23 Arguedas—Deep Rivers


Chapters 10-11, pp 155-233

Nov 25 Thanksgiving—No class

Week 16 Julio Cortázar—Short Stories—TBA

*Text will be provided

Alejo Carpentier—“Journey Back to the Source”


Carlos Fuentes—“Chac Mool”

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*Text will be provided

Week 17 Dec. 6 Last day of class


*Final paper due

Grading:
Attendance and participation: 15%
Informal Writing Assignments: 20%
Midterm paper: 30%
Final paper: 35%

(I will make use of the +/- system in grading as stipulated by the University of Texas
at Dallas Undergraduate Catalogue, 2008 – 2010.)

Writing Assignments and Descriptions:


All writing assignments are due via email to the instructor by 2 pm on the date due,
which is the date the author/text is discussed. If we spend more than one class
period on a single author, your written response is due on the final day we are
scheduled to spend on that author. The instructor will submit all writing
assignments to Turnitin.com.

Informal Writing Assignments (20%):

You will be required to write 6 blog or discussion posts and 6 “think pieces” on the
authors or texts of your choice. These writings should be “jumping off points” for
your contributions to class discussion.

Blog entries or discussion posts will be your short (100-250 words) and informal
responses to the readings and prompts or questions provided by the instructor.

Think pieces are a bit longer (300-500 words) and should be more focused and
formally structured arguments about the reading. You should write “Think Pieces”
as economically as possible, with no superfluous verbiage. You should establish
your point from the beginning (i.e., in the first sentence) and support your claims
with textual evidence.

Suggested strategies:
Frame your argument in the context of the class lectures.
Frame your argument in light of the larger questions related to this course or
specific prompts given by the instructor.

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Understand the text as being “in dialogue” with another piece we have read,
and write a mini-essay on how you think the essays “speak” to each other.
Structure your writing around a particular question you have about the
reading or subject matter or something that strikes you a particularly
interesting/significant.

Mid-term paper (30%):

Length: 1000-1250 words (about 3.5-4.5 pages, not including Works Cited) in MLA
format, 12-point font, double-spaced.

Source limit: Two to three scholarly sources, including your choice of text(s) read in
the course of this semester.

Your mid-term paper will be a formally structured, critical argument centered on


one of the texts read during this course and on the questions and issues we are
exploring in this course.

Final paper (35%)

For the final paper you will revise, expand, and elaborate your mid-term paper.

Length: 1500-2000 words (about 5-6.5 pages, not including Works Cited) in MLA
format, 12-point font, double-spaced.

Source limit: Minimum of 5 scholarly sources, including your chosen text(s)

Note:
**Assignments and timelines are subject to change at the discretion of the
instructor. You will be notified in advance of any changes.

Course Policies

Attendance
Because each class period consists of a mixture of lecture and discussion, your
thoughtful, attentive, and active participation is essential (and will form a portion of
your grade). If you sleep, engage in non-class-related activities, or interfere with
your classmates' ability to learn you will be counted absent for that day. Be on time -
class starts promptly. Leaving early will count as an absence.

Attendance is absolutely crucial to your success. I encourage you to come to every


class meeting; otherwise, you will miss a great deal of information and material you
need to succeed in this course. Each student is allowed three missed classes, no

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questions asked. Save them for when you really need them. Each additional absence
above the noted three will cause 4% to be deducted off your final letter grade for the
semester.

Punctuality
Persistent tardiness to class is disrespectful to both your instructor and your peers.
Continually arriving late to class will affect your participation grade in the course.
Three tardies will result in one unexcused absence for the course; I will consider
you absent if you arrive more than 15 minutes late to class.

Class Participation
Your success in this course is a function of your level of engagement. I am interested
in the quality of your remarks rather than the quantity. Please use your analysis of
the readings, your blog posts, and prior research and/or study when responding
orally in class, and please be prepared to back up any points you make.

Participation in this course does not include doing work unrelated to this course
during class, sleeping in class, or using the computers or other personal electronic
devices for personal messaging, research, or entertainment.

Late Work
All assignments must be submitted when and as required in order to successfully
complete this course. Late assignments will not be accepted.

Personal Communication Devices


Turn off all cell phones, pagers, and other personal communication devices before
the start of class. Do not use them during class.

Room and Equipment Use


Tampering with or destroying any of the computers, printers, modems, or wiring in
the classroom is strictly prohibited. Violations will result in disciplinary action by
the Dean of Students’ office.

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University Policies

Student Conduct and Discipline


The University of Texas System and The University of Texas at Dallas have rules and
regulations for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business. It is the
responsibility of each student and each student organization to be knowledgeable
about the rules and regulations which govern student conduct and activities.
General information on student conduct and discipline is contained in the UTD
publication, A to Z Guide, which is provided to all registered students each academic
year.

UTD administers student discipline within the procedures of recognized and


established due process. Procedures are defined and described in the Rules and
Regulations, Board of Regents, The University of Texas System, Part 1, Chapter VI,
Section 3, and in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities of the university's
Handbook of Operating Procedures. Copies of these rules and regulations are
available to students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff members are
available to assist students in interpreting the rules and regulations (SU 1.602,
972/883-6391).

A student at the university neither loses the rights nor escapes the responsibilities
of citizenship. He or she is expected to obey federal, state, and local laws as well as
the Regents' Rules, university regulations, and administrative rules. Students are
subject to discipline for violating the standards of conduct whether such conduct
takes place on or off campus, or whether civil or criminal penalties are also imposed
for such conduct.

Academic Integrity
The faculty expects from its students a high level of responsibility and academic
honesty. Because the value of an academic degree depends upon the absolute
integrity of the work done by the student for that degree, it is imperative that a
student demonstrate a high standard of individual honor in his or her scholastic
work.

Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, statements, acts or omissions
related to applications for enrollment or the award of a degree, and/or the
submission as one's own work or material that is not one's own. As a general rule,
scholastic dishonesty involves one of the following acts: cheating, plagiarism,
collusion and/or falsifying academic records. Students suspected of academic
dishonesty are subject to disciplinary proceedings.

Plagiarism, especially from the web, from portions of papers for other classes, and
from any other source is unacceptable and will be dealt with under the university's
policy on plagiarism (see general catalog for details). This course will use the

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resources of turnitin.com, which searches the web for possible plagiarism and is
over 90% effective.

Email Use
UTD recognizes the value and efficiency of communication between faculty/staff
and students through electronic mail. At the same time, email raises some issues
concerning security and the identity of each individual in an email exchange. The
university encourages all official student email correspondence be sent only to a
student's UTD email address and that faculty and staff consider email from students
official only if it originates from a UTD student account. This allows the university to
maintain a high degree of confidence in the identity of all individual corresponding
and the security of the transmitted information. UTD furnishes each student with a
free email account that is to be used in all communication with university personnel.
The Department of Information Resources at UTD provides a method for students to
have their UTD mail forwarded to other accounts.

Withdrawal from Class


The administration of this institution has set deadlines for withdrawal of any
college-level courses. These dates and times are published in that semester's course
catalog. Administration procedures must be followed. It is the student's
responsibility to handle withdrawal requirements from any class. In other words, I
cannot drop or withdraw any student. You must do the proper paperwork to ensure
that you will not receive a final grade of F in a course if you choose not to attend the
class once you are enrolled.

Student Grievance Procedures


Procedures for student grievances are found in Title V, Rules on Student Services
and Activities, of the university's Handbook of Operating Procedures.

In attempting to resolve any student grievance regarding grades, evaluations, or


other fulfillments of academic responsibility, it is the obligation of the student first
to make a serious effort to resolve the matter with the instructor, supervisor,
administrator, or committee with whom the grievance originates (hereafter called
“the respondent”). Individual faculty members retain primary responsibility for
assigning grades and evaluations. If the matter cannot be resolved at that level, the
grievance must be submitted in writing to the respondent with a copy of the
respondent's School Dean. If the matter is not resolved by the written response
provided by the respondent, the student may submit a written appeal to the School
Dean. If the grievance is not resolved by the School Dean's decision, the student may
make a written appeal to the Dean of Graduate or Undergraduate Education, and the
deal will appoint and convene an Academic Appeals Panel. The decision of the
Academic Appeals Panel is final. The results of the academic appeals process will be
distributed to all involved parties.

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Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the
Dean of Students, where staff members are available to assist students in
interpreting the rules and regulations.

Incomplete Grades
Incomplete grades will be granted only for work unavoidably missed at the
semester's end and only if 70% of the course work has been completed. An
incomplete grade must be resolved within eight (8) weeks from the first day of the
subsequent long semester. If the required work to complete the course and to
remove the incomplete grade is not submitted by the specified deadline, the
incomplete grade is changed automatically to a grade of F.

Disability Services
The goal of Disability Services is to provide students with disabilities educational
opportunities equal to those of their non-disabled peers. Disability Services is
located in room 1.610 in the Student Union. Office hours are Monday and Thursday,
8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Tuesday and Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; and Friday,
8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The contact information for the Office of Disability Services is:


The University of Texas at Dallas, SU 22
PO Box 830688
Richardson, Texas 75083-0688
(972) 883-2098 (voice or TTY)

Essentially, the law requires that colleges and universities make those reasonable
adjustments necessary to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability. For
example, it may be necessary to remove classroom prohibitions against tape
recorders or animals (in the case of dog guides) for students who are blind.
Occasionally an assignment requirement may be substituted (for example, a
research paper versus an oral presentation for a student who is hearing impaired).
Classes enrolled students with mobility impairments may have to be rescheduled in
accessible facilities. The college or university may need to provide special services
such as registration, note-taking, or mobility assistance.

It is the student's responsibility to notify his or her professors of the need for such
an accommodation. Disability Services provides students with letters to present to
faculty members to verify that the student has a disability and needs
accommodations. Individuals requiring special accommodation should contact the
professor after class or during office hours.

Religious Holy Days


UTD will excuse a student from class or other required activities for the travel to
and observance of a religious holy day for a religion whose places of worship are
exempt from property tax under Section 11.20, Tax Code, Texas Code Annotated.

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The student is encouraged to notify the instructor or activity sponsor as soon as
possible regarding the absence, preferably in advance of the assignment. The
student, so excused, will be allowed to take the exam or complete the assignment
within a reasonable time after the absence: a period equal to the length of the
absence, up to a maximum of one week. A student who notifies the instructor and
completes any missed exam or assignment may not be penalized for the absence. A
student who fails to complete the exam or assignment within the prescribed period
may receive a failing grade for that exam or assignment.

If a student or an instructor disagrees about the nature of the absence [i.e., for the
purpose of observing a religious holy day] or if there is similar disagreement about
whether the student has been given a reasonable time to complete any missed
assignments or examinations, either the student or the instructor may request a
ruling from the chief executive officer of the institution, or his or her designee. The
chief executive officer or designee must take into account the legislative intent of
TEC 51.911(b), and the student and instructor will abide by the decision of the chief
executive officer or designee.

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