ENROLL

Jennifer L Schaefer

Beloved or dangerous. Ordered or chaotic. Modern or backward. What motivated these conflicting descriptions of Latin American cities? Why were cities like Buenos Aires, Havana, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro so important as places of political and economic power? How were these cities sites of cultural exchange for immigrant, Afro-Latin American, and Indigenous communities? In this course, we will answer these questions by exploring the histories of Latin America cities from the colonial period to the present. We will consider how urban spaces shaped people’s identities and daily lives and how these cities became places of national and global influence.

Held for incoming first year students

Jennifer L Schaefer

Modern Latin American history is marked by both violent divisions and creative cooperation, nationalist proclamations and imperialist incursions, and democratic pursuits and dictatorial repression. This course offers a survey of this complex regional history from independence movements at the beginning of the nineteenth century through globalization in the twenty-first century. It addresses methodological issues that include the significance of multiple historical perspectives and the interpretation of sources. It considers the relationship between individuals and larger social contexts with an emphasis on race, ethnicity, class, citizenship status, and gender. It places Latin American culture and politics in regional and global contexts.