Introductory description

This 30 CATS team-taught undergraduate first-year module draws on the expertise of a number of Latin American specialists to provide a wide-ranging overview of themes and problems in Latin America’s social, political and cultural history. The module begins with the first meetings of Iberians, American peoples and Africans at the end of the fifteenth century, and ends with a consideration of the vibrant new social movements that have helped shape democratic transitions and the new “Pink Tide” in recent decades. The first term focuses on colonial history and the eventual independence of the region; the second and third terms consider post-colonial nation-building. Along the way, a number of themes stand out: tension between elite projects and popular actions; the problems of political violence and democratic inclusion; Latin America’s revolutionary tradition; the quest for nation-building; tensions and positionings over race, religion, gender and indigeneity; land and labour; and the growing economic and military might of the United States.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Term 1:
Week 1: Introduction to Latin America Themes and Problems
Week 2: Before 1492: Iberia, Africa and the Americas
Week 3: Early contact in the Caribbean and Brazil
Week 4: The Conquest of the Mainland
Week 5: Structuring the colonies: Labour, Demography, Administration
Week 6: Reading week
Week 7: Colonial society
Week 8: The Eighteenth Century
Week 9: Independence in the Americas
Week 10: Nation-building in the Nineteenth Century

Term 2:
Week 1: Slavery and Emancipation
Week 2: Popular Democracy, Caste Wars, and State Formation
Week 3: The US and Latin America
Week 4: The Mexican Revolution and Latin America
Week 5: Modernity in Latin America
Week 6: Reading week
Week 7: Mid-twentieth-century Latin America: “Populism”, Labour Movements, and Nationalism
Week 8: Revolutionary Latin America
Week 9: The Cold War and the Right in Latin America
Week 10: Democratic Transitions and New Social Movements

Term 3:
Week 1: Latin America Today
Week 2: History and Literature
Week 3: Backward Looks and Forward Glances

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Gain a broad understanding of key themes related to Latin American History.
• Identify some of the theoretical / conceptual approaches and historiographical debates relating to the field.
• Identify and engage with a range of relevant primary sources.
• Gain interpersonal and communication skills through the delivery of a presentation.
• Devise well-defined essay topics, collect relevant data from a variety of sources and present results in an effective fashion.

Indicative reading list

• John Chasteen, Born in Blood and Fire: A Concise History of Latin America (any edition)
• Andrew Dawson, Latin America since Independence: A History with Primary Sources [Electronic Resource], 2011.
• Will Fowler, Latin America since 1780 (any edition)
• Jose Moya (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Latin American History, 2012.
• Edwin Williamson, Penguin History of Latin America (any edition)

View reading list on Talis Aspire

Subject specific skills

See learning outcomes.

Transferable skills

See learning outcomes.