SYLLABUS: LATINA/O LITERATURE

Robert Oscar Lopez: 722 Sierra Tower

Course Overview: In this class, we will engage in a trans-national study of Latina/o authorship. Using authors from a wide range of backgrounds, including both Spanish-speaking writers (translated into English) and English-speaking Latinas/os, we will attempt to identify a common ground binding the “Latin” majority of the Western Hemisphere together. Jose Marti will be our starting point, and we will conclude with two Dominican writers of the 1990s: Julia Alvarez and Junot Diaz.

Course Requirements: Grades for this course will be calculated out of a total of 1,000 points, broken down as follows:

            Two papers, each 4-5 pages and worth 200 points. Total = 400 points

            One five-minute presentation, worth 200 points. Total=200 points

            A final exam, worth 300 points. Total=300 points

            Participation, worth 100 points. Total=100 points

            Course total: 1,000 points.

Schedule of Readings: Please note that texts with an asterisk are available through the campus bookstore, while those with a footnote are available through the Oviatt Library course reserve (online).

 

  1.  M 8/24: Intro. Walt Whitman, Song of Myself and Calamus, from Leaves of Grass.* Whitman, Walt. Leaves of Grass. London: J.M. Dent, 1994.
  2. W 8/26: José Martí[1], “Our America” and “The Trial of Guiteau”.
  3. m 8/31: Martí on Whitman, Versos Sencillos.
  4. w 9/2: Darío, Ruben. [2] “The Great Cosmopolis,” “Jose Marti,” “Saluting the Eagle,” “Song to Argentina,” “To Columbus,” “To Moises Ascarrunz,” “To Roosevelt,” “Tutecotzimi,” “Walt Whitman,” and “Wire Service.”
  5. w 9/9: Paredes, Americo. George Washington Gomez. Houston: Arte Publico, 1992.*
  6. m 9/14: Paredes, cont.*
  7. w 9/16: Paredes, cont.*
  8. m 9/21: Paredes, cont.*
  9. w 9/23: Clarice Lispector, Family Ties. Trans. Giovanni Pontieri. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1972.*
  10. m 9/28: Lispector, cont./ Graciliano Ramos, “The Thief.”[3]
  11. w 9/30: Burgos, Julia. Song of the Simple Truth, excerpts. Willimantic, CT: Curbstone Press, 1997.*
  12. m 10/5: Arenas, Reinaldo. Before Night Falls. Trans. Dolores Koch. New York: Penguin, 1993. 1-118.*
  13. w 10/7: Arenas, BNF, 119-223.*
  14. m 10/12: Arenas, BNF, 224-END.*
  15. w 10/14: Gabriel García Márquez, “Erendira.”[4]
  16. m 10/19: “Erendira”, cont.
  17. w 10/21: Pablo Neruda, Twenty Love Poems, Poems 1, 7, 15, and 20.[5]
  18. m 10/26: Pablo Neruda, “Arte Poetica,” “Only Death,” and “Ode with a Lament.”[6]
  19. w 10/28: Borges “The Self and the Other,” first part.[7]
  20. m 11/2: Borges, “The Self and the Other,” second part..[8]
  21. w 11/4: Valdez, Zoot Suit[9]
  22. m 11/9: Valdez, Zoot Suit, cont.
  23. m 11/16: Gloria Anzaldua. Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza. San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books, 1987.*
  24. w 11/18: Gloria Anzaldua.*
  25. m 11/23: Gloria Anzaldua.*
  26. w 11/25: Julia Alvarez. How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents. New York: Penguin, 1992.*
  27. m 11/30: Julia Alvarez.*
  28. w 12/2: Julia Alvarez.*
  29. m 12/7: Junot Diaz, “Drown.”[10]
  30. w 12/9: Junot Diaz, “Edison, New Jersey”[11]

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CODE OF HONOR

 

It is your professor’s policy not to take attendance. I am also extremely flexible with due dates, since I prefer to give extensions and receive quality work, rather than receive poorly done work on time. As a result, it is not necessary to email me to explain absences or extenuating circumstances affecting your work. In the interest of reducing our email burden, I prefer that students do not communicate with me via email if it is at all possible to speak during or after class.

 

The flexibility regarding attendance and due dates requires, however, that you show maturity and take responsibility for the work expected of you. I cannot recap lectures for classes that you have missed, nor can I elaborate at length on guiding principles for assignments I went over in class if you were not there. I advise you to find a “buddy” in class and keep in touch with him or her so you can get the notes for days you missed. If you were not in class and did not receive important information about the assignment, you will still be graded based on the same expectations as those who did attend. In other words, be an adult and come to class, and pay attention.

 

Because I am easygoing about attendance, I have to be much stricter about academic honesty. If you turn in papers that do not address the primary texts we read in class, or if your essay seems to be far adrift from the themes I went over during lecture times, I will usually return the paper to you and ask for a rewrite. Unfortunately, in an age of rampant Internet dishonesty, I cannot give students the benefit of the doubt; papers tend to look plagiarized if they show a general disconnect from the class discussions. Please do not become alarmed if I ask for a rewrite. I am not “turning you in” or “accusing you” of anything; I simply need for your work to adhere more closely to the assignment guidelines so we can all feel confident in the integrity of each other’s work.

 

To prevent plagiarism, it is also crucial that you cite everything properly and use the formatting established by the Modern Language Association. Your Penguin Handbook should provide you with most information you need, and I will supplement it from time to time with my own course study guide. If you turn in essays that use other citation methods (like APA or Chicago), this usually raises a red flag and casts doubts on the authenticity of your authorship. Please acquaint yourself with Northridge guidelines about academic honesty, and above all pay close attention to my instructions, and we should be fine. – ROL

 

 


[1] Marti, Jose. “Our America.” Trans. Esther Allen. In Jose Marti: Selected Writings. Ed. Esther Allen. New York: Penguin, 2002. 288-296.

----.”Poet Walt Whitman.” Trans. Esther Allen. In Jose Marti: Selected Writings. Ed. Esther Allen. New York: Penguin, 2002. 183-194.

----.“The Trial of Guiteau.” Trans. Esther Allen. In Jose Marti: Selected Writings. Ed. Esther Allen. New York: Penguin, 2002. 94-106.

----. Versos Sencillos. .” Trans. Esther Allen. In Jose Marti: Selected Writings. Ed. Esther Allen. New York: Penguin, 2002. 270-285.

 

[2] Excerpted from Ruben Dario: Selected Writings. Ed. Ilan Stevens. New York: Penguin, 2005.

[3] Ramos, Graciliano. “The Thief.” Trans. William L. Grossman. In Modern Brazilian Short Stories. Ed. William L. Grossman. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967. 43-52.

[4] Marquez, Gabriel Garcia. “The Incredible and Sad Tale of Innocent Erendira and her Heartless Grandmother.” Trans. Gregory Rabassa. In Innocent Erendira and Other Stories. Ed. Gregory Rabassa. New York: Harper & Row, 1978. 1-50.

[5]Neruda, Pablo. Excerpted from The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems. Trans. by various. Ed. Mark Eisner. San Francisco: City Lights Books, 2004.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Borges, Jorge Luis. “The Self and the Other.” Trans. Alastair Reid. Selected Poems: Jorge Luis Borges. Ed. Alexander Coleman. New York: Viking Penguin, 1999. 145-245.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Valdez, Luis. Zoot Suit. In Zoot Suit and Other Plays. Houston: Arte Publico, 1992.

[10] Excerpted from Diaz, Junot. Drown. New York: Riverhead, 1996.

[11] Ibid.

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