Spring 2006
PHIL 206R
Office: Hollenbeck
310/Office Hours:
e-mail: mmartinezsaenz@wittenberg.edu
Richard Rodriguez Brown:
The Last Discovery of America
Las Casas A short account of the destruction of the indies
Susana Nuccetelli Latin American Thought: Philosophical Problems and
Arguments
Other material will be
placed on E-Reserve
The student will be
exposed to different philosophical perspectives from different regions in
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
By taking this class,
students should 1) gain a basic understanding of Latin American thought 2) gain a greater understanding of the ideas
that shaped Latin American thought and the context in which those ideas
developed 3) gain a greater appreciation of the diverse world around them and a
greater understanding of the extent to which the past shapes the present 4)
improve their written and oral communication skills, gain greater perspective
and hone their critical and analytical skills (such as the ability to
distinguish between fact and interpretation) and finally 5) nurture
intellectual curiosity and skepticism and enjoy having a supportive audience
with which to share ideas.
Quizzes and
Participation 15%: This class
will not be exclusively a lecture class.
While I will lecture, at least half of the class will be devoted to
discussion. This means that students ought to be prepared to discuss the
readings, the films or the general topics assigned for the day. Since participation is an integral part of this
class, attendance is required. Quizzes
will be given periodically to determine if and what students are reading. These quizzes will require a very short
answer to a question related specifically to the text. If you have not read the assignment for the
day please do not try to make up some nonsense.
It will serve you better in the long run to acknowledge your mistake and
perform better the next time.
IF YOU MISS MORE THAN
6 SCHEDULED CLASSES YOU WILL RECEIVE AN “F” FOR THE SEMESTER.
Film Reviews 20%: If you read your syllabus you will notice that we
don’t meet on Friday with the exception of January 13, 2006 and January 20,
2006. This is not meant to give you an easier semester. During the course of
the semester you will be required to watch some films outside of class.
Moreover, you will have to provide a review of each film that is at least two
pages long. Each film is approximately 2
hours in length. As you can see there
are four films selected.
1/30- Diarios de
motocicleta/Motorcycle Diaries
2/13- The Mission
3/13- Historia
Oficial/The Official Story
4/24- Life
without a Mexican
Newspaper Responses
20%:
Each student will be
responsible for reading and responding to a current editorial from a Latin American
Newspaper. Your responses are due every Monday that a film review is not due.
In other words, you will not be required to complete a film review and a
newspaper response for the same day.
Format:
i.
Newspaper,
Country, date, Article title, author’s name
ii.
Thesis
of article (Keep in mind the article has to be an opinion piece. It cannot simply be a report.)
iii.
Reasons
that support the author’s thesis
iv.
Article’s
strengths
v.
Article’s
weaknesses
General site that
contains links to many newspapers is
http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/news/
.
You will have to check to
see which newspapers have English translations.
I have listed a few newspapers below.
Some newspapers in
English on-line:
http://www.buenosairesherald.com/
http://www.mercopress.com/index.asp
Mid-term exam 20%: An in class midterm essay exam will be given on
March 1, 2006. A list of potential essay questions will be supplied at least
one week prior to the exam enabling students to prepare a study sheet.
Final Exam 25%: An in class final essay exam will be given
during final exam week. A list of
potential essay questions will be supplied at least one week prior to the exam
enabling students to prepare a study sheet.
1/9- Introduction
1/11- Chapter 1
Nuccetilli
1/13- Nuccetelli Chapter
1 continued
MAP QUIZ
1/16- MLK Day Class
Cancelled: Assignment on Web Page
1/18-Nuccetelli Chapter 2
1/20-Nuccetelli Chapter 2
continued
In class: The Story of
the Aztecs [videorecording]
1/23-Chapter 3 Nuccetelli
1/25- Rigoberta Menchu “Noble Prize lecture”
http://nobelprize.org/peace/laureates/1992/tum-lecture.html
1/27-No class
1/30-Nuccetelli Chapter 4
FILM REVIEW DUE Motorcycle Diaries
2/1- Chapter 4 Continued
In class: Rage Against
the Machine [videorecording]
2/3- No class
2/6-Nuccetelli Chapter 5
2/8-Chapter 5 continued
2/10-No class
2/13- Review-In class
exercise FILM REVIEW DUE The
2/15- No class
2/17- No class
2/20-Las Casas A short
account of the destruction of the
2/22- Las Casas continued
2/24-No class
2/27-Nuccetelli Chapter 6
3/1- MIDTERM
3/3- No class
3/6-3/10 SPRING BREAK
3/13- FILM REVIEW DUE
Historia Oficial
Sor Juana E-Reserve
315-“Philosophical
Genealogies and Feminism in Sor Juan Inés de la Cruz”-Reserve
3/17- No class
3/20-O’Gorman “Invention
of
3/22- Bolivar and
Sarmiento E-Reserve
3/24-No class
3/27- Martí “Our
3/29- Nuccetelli Chapter
7
3/31-No class
4/3-Leopoldo Zea, “The
Actual Function of Philosophy in
4/5-(T) Augusto Salazar
Bondy, “The Actual Function of Philosophy in Latin America” E-Reserve and Arturo Andres Roig, “The Actual Function
of Philosophy in
4/7- No class
4/10-Enrique Dussell
“Philosophy in
In class: Carlos Fuentes
[videorecording]
4/12- Ofelia Schutte
“Towards and Understanding of Latin American Philosophy: Reflections on the
Formation of a Cultural Identity” E-Reserve
4/14-No class
4/17- Liberation
Theology: Documents E-Reserve and
4/19- Paulo Freire Pedagogy
of the Oppressed chapter 2
http://www.marxists.org/subject/education/freire/pedagogy/
4/21-No class
4/24-Nuccetelli Chapter 8
FILM REVIEW DUE Life without a Mexican
4/26- Chapter 8 continued
4/28- No Class
5/1-Richard Rodriguez Brown:
The Last Discovery of
In class: Richard
Rodriguez: victim of two cultures [videorecording]
5/3-Review
Final Exam: May
___________________
Academic Dishonesty
will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Please refer to your student handbook for