This course focuses on the culture of Spain. The methodology is interdisciplinary.
The order of presentation is mostly chronological, beginning in pre-history
and ending in Spring 2004. The purpose is to discover major trends and themes
that run throughout the target culture in such a way that we can appreciate
both the positive and negative aspects of Spanish culture--positive and negative,
of course, being relative to what is different and distinctive about Spanish
culture and its people. Some comparative culture methodology is employed as
a pedagogical device.
The goal, above all, is to enrich our lives here and now of both students
and instructor. Therefore, the focus balances theoretical knowledge about
the culture of Spain on the one hand and fairly direct experience of the same
culture by means of art, music, literature, essay, photographic slides, and
film.
The required reading material includes Spain's national epic poem, the Star
Wars-like chivalric romance in which the idea of California itself was created
(when not out of print), short masterpiece prose fictions by Cervantes, a
twentieth-century play, and a book about contemporary politics, society, economy,
morality, and education in Spain.
General textbook list (specific
texts vary from term to term):
Poem of the Cid: (anonymous epic poem)
The Labors of the Very Brave Knight Esplandián by Garci Rodríguez
de Montalvo. Translation by William Little (chivalric romance)
Exemplary Stories: Miguel de Cervantes (short stories)
Las Meninas: Antonio Buero Vallejo (play)
The Story of Spain, by Mark Williams(history of Spain)
The New Spaniards, John Hooper (journalistic book)
La piel del tambor, Arturo Pérez Reverte (contemporary
popular novel)
El País (Spain's "national" newspaper)
Special handouts on poetry, history, art, and music
Visits to museums, buildings, monuments, rivers, mountains, cafés,
etc. (when course is taught in Spain)
All materials on this Web site
Enter HUM 310/SPN 3742 course materials by clicking on the
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