HP303-15 Postmodernism in Latin American Literature
Introductory description
as in module aims
Module aims
This module explores the relationship between postmodernism, the creation of new forms of fiction contesting traditional history and truth and the emergence of popular culture in Latin American literature and cultures. We will study how major Latin American authors explored the potential of self-reflection, fragmentation, and irony to create new techniques for writing the self and to question the meaning of their national identity in a postmodern age.
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.
Week 1.Introduction: Popular Culture in Latin America. Modernity, Postmodernity and Literature
in Cuba, Chile and Mexico.
Week 2-5: Writing Postmodern History
Carmen Boullosa, Duerme
Diamela Eltit, El Cuarto Mundo
Week 6. Reading week
Week 7-8: Politics, Violence and Memory
Roberto Bolaño: Estrella Distante
Week 9-10: Postmodernism a lo cubano:
Ena Lucia Portela, Cien botellas en una pared
Revisions
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- Use knowledge acquired in lectures, seminars, and from prescribed reading to conduct individual research and construct arguments
- Demonstrate relevant factual knowledge of Latin American and Spanish Caribbean cultural history and its context
- Develop their understanding of written Spanish; read, and analyse Latin American literatures and critical theory in the context of the most current debates on modernity/postmodernity, modernism/postmodernism
- Engage with relevant critical theory to provide in-depth analysis of literary texts
Indicative reading list
Primary Readings:
Carmen Boullosa, Duerme (Vintage Books, 1995)
Diamela Eltit, El Cuarto Mundo (Ayacucho, 2001)
Roberto Bolaño, Estrella Distante, (Anagrama, 2003)
Ena Lucia Portela, Cien Botellas en una pared (Stockcero, 2010_
View reading list on Talis Aspire
International
All modules delivered in SMLC are necessarily international. Students engage with themes and ideas from a culture other than that of the UK and employ their linguistic skills in the analysis of primary materials from a non-Anglophone context. Students will also be encouraged to draw on the experiences of visiting exchange students in the classroom and will frequently engage with theoretical and critical frameworks from across the world.
Subject specific skills
This module will develop students’ linguistic skills through engaging with primary materials in the target language. It will build students’ capacity to engage with aspects of Hispanic culture through analysis of this primary material and through seminar discussion aimed at deeper critical thinking. In particular, students’ awareness of Latin American postmodernism and popular culture will be enhanced through lectures and seminars which engage in scholarship in the field.
Transferable skills
All SMLC culture modules demand critical and analytical engagement with artefacts from target-language cultures. In the course of independent study, class work and assessment students will develop the following skills: written and oral communication, creative and critical thinking, problem solving and analysis, time management and organisation, independent research in both English and their target language(s), intercultural understanding and the ability to mediate between languages and cultures, ICT literacy in both English and the target language(s), personal responsibility and the exercise of initiative.
Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 10 sessions of 1 hour (7%) |
| Seminars | 10 sessions of 1 hour (7%) |
| Tutorials | (0%) |
| Private study | 130 hours (87%) |
| Total | 150 hours |
Private study description
No private study requirements defined for this module.
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Assessment group A3
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
Assessment component |
|||
| Topics to be discussed in class | 20% | Yes (extension) | |
|
Theme/topic/critical analysis meaningful for each seminar session |
|||
Reassessment component is the same |
|||
Assessment component |
|||
| Assessed essay | 80% | Yes (extension) | |
|
2750 words essay |
|||
Reassessment component is the same |
|||
Feedback on assessment
Feedback will be provided in the course of the module in a number of ways. Feedback should be understood to be both formal and informal and is not restricted to feedback on formal written work.
Oral feedback will be provided by the module tutor in the course of seminar discussion. This may include feedback on points raised in small group work or in the course of individual presentations or larger group discussion.
Written feedback will be provided on formal assessment using the standard SMLC Assessed Work feedback form appropriate to the assessment. Feedback is intended to enable continuous improvement throughout the module and written feedback is generally the final stage of this feedback process. Feedback will always demonstrate areas of success and areas for future development, which can be applied to future assessment. Feedback will be both discipline-specific and focussed on key transferrable skills, enabling students to apply this feedback to their future professional lives. Feedback will be fair and reasonable and will be linked to the SMLC marking scheme appropriate to the module.
Courses
This module is Core option list A for:
- Year 4 of UHPA-R4W4 Undergraduate Hispanic Studies and Theatre Studies
This module is Option list B for:
- Year 3 of UPOA-M16H Undergraduate Politics, International Studies and Hispanic Studies (3 year degree)