Mar 29, 2024  
College Catalog 2012-2013 
    
College Catalog 2012-2013 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Latin American Studies Major


Major Requirements


The Latin American Studies major consists of 13 courses, as follows:

I. Introduction to Latin American Studies—1 course

Latin American Studies majors must take the introductory course by the end of the sophomore year. Choose one of the following courses:

LATI 141 /POLI 141 - Latin America Through Women’s Eyes  or LATI 181 - Introduction to Latin America and the Caribbean  

II. Language—1 or more courses

Competency in Spanish to the level of HISP 305 . Students who arrive at Macalester already competent at this level must achieve competence either in French to the level of 204 or Portuguese to the level of HISP 331 . In addition, the following course is required:

LATI 307 /HISP 307 - Introduction to the Analysis of Hispanic Texts 

III. Latin America Across the Disciplines—6 courses

Choose six courses, including at least one Arts in Context, one Humanities, and one Social Science course. At least one of these courses must be an advanced seminar (i.e., 300- or 400-level). Portuguese (HISP 331 ) does not count as advanced.

Latin American Arts in Context

LATI 282 - Latin America: Art and Nation 
LATI 268 - Rights and Resistance: Theatre and Film in Latin America 

Humanities

HISP 308 - Introduction to U.S. Latino Studies 
HISP 331 - Luso-Brazilian Voices: Conversations and Composition 
HISP 414 - Here and There: Superando Límites/Crossing Boundaries 
HISP 419 - “Neither Saints Nor Sinners”: Women Writers of the Early Modern Hispanic World 
HISP 420 - One Hundred Years of Plenitude: Modern and Postmodern Hispanic Fiction 
HISP 425 - Dictators, Revolutions and Insurrections 
HISP 435 - History of the Spanish Language 
HISP 444 - The Family as History: The Stories of US Latinos 
LATI 281 - The Andes: Race, Region, Nation 
LATI 286 - Media and Cultural Studies of Latin America 
LATI 415 - Cultural Resistance and Survival: Indigenous and African Peoples in Early Spanish America 

Spanish America

LATI 416 - Mapping the New World: Exploration, Encounters, and Disasters 
LATI 436 - Spanish Dialectology 
LATI 494  (topics), Varies each semester.

Social Sciences

ANTH 358 - Anthropology of Violence 
ANTH 487 - Theory in Anthropology 
ECON 119 - Principles of Economics  (when taught by Amy Damon or Raymond Robertson)  
ECON 221 - Introduction to International Economics * (paper must focus on Latin America)
ECON 333 - Economics of Global Food Problems  (paper must focus on Latin America)
LATI 244 - Urban Latino Power 
LATI 245 - Latin American Politics 
LATI 246 - Comparative Democratization 
LATI 255 - Peoples and Cultures of Latin America 
LATI 265, Economics of International Migration*
LATI 323 - Economic Restructuring in Latin America *
LATI 341 - Comparative Social Movements 

IV. Methods—1 course

In consultation with their advisor, Latin American Studies majors choose a methods course that will prepare them for their senior Capstone project. This class should be taken before studying abroad. Possible courses include:

ANTH 230 - Ethnographic Interviewing *
HIST 379 - The Study of History 
POLI 269 - Empirical Research Methods 
SOCI 269 - Social Science Inquiry   
SOCI 270 - Interpretive Social Research 
SOCI 275 - Comparative-Historical Sociology 
THDA 110 - Introduction to Theatre Studies 
THDA 260 - Performance Studies Praxis: Avant Garde and the Social 
THDA 489 - Seminar in Performance Theory and Practice 

V. Study Abroad in Latin America—3 courses

Latin American majors must complete one semester of full-time study on a study abroad program approved by the departmental steering committee. This fulfills the requirement of 3 study abroad courses.

VI. Capstone—1 course

Majors normally complete their capstone via the senior seminar, which is offered every fall. Occasionally, a student may be approved to complete their capstone via an independent project or another appropriate course. Students participating in the honors program take LATI 488 - Senior Seminar  in the fall and LATI 644  (Honor Independent) in the spring of their senior year.

VI. Curricular Overlap

Due to the high degree of potential overlap between major plans in Latin American studies and international studies, students seeking to complete both majors must list, on each plan, at least six courses that do not appear on the other plan.

*Indicates a prerequisite is required. See course description for details.