Course Descriptions

Department of Hispanic Studies

V. Arizpe (Head), R. K. Curry, N. J. Dyer, E. Espina, J. C. Galdo, B. Imhoff, H. Kallendorf, A. Luiselli, E. Mallén, S. J. Miller, S. Misemer, T.J. Mitchell, O. Naudeau, E. Urbina, J. P. Villalobos

Graduate work in Hispanic Studies will directly prepare the student for professional careers concerned with Spanish and bilingualism, for teaching positions and for further graduate studies. A high competence in the Spanish language is required. This competence also assists the student in pursuit of professional employment outside of traditional areas.

The Ph.D. in Hispanic Studies is an interdisciplinary program with a set of required core courses and four overlapping concentrations. The four concentrations are as follows: Hispanic Literatures, Linguistics and Pedagogy, Hispanic Cultural Studies, and Bilingual/Bicultural Studies. Coursework for the program includes 12 hours of core curriculum courses, 15 hours of courses prescribed by concentration, 12 hours of elective courses in Hispanic Studies, and 6 hours of free elective courses. The program also requires an original dissertation, as well as reading proficiency in a language other than English and Spanish.

The Master of Arts program offers courses in Peninsular Spanish literature, Spanish American literature, language and linguistics, Hispanic literature of the United States, and Hispanic folklore and culture. A minimum of 6 credit hours must be taken in a selected minor field. A non-thesis option and thesis option are available.

Prerequisites: Admission to graduate studies and an undergraduate degree in Spanish or an equivalent competence in Spanish language and literature.

Hispanic Studies
(HISP)

600. Introduction to Hispanic Studies. (3-0). Credit 3.

Examination from an interdisciplinary perspective of the cultural history of the Hispanic world, with particular emphasis on what the different disciplinary approaches reveal about literature, language, historical development and socioeconomic issues. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

601. Research, Theory and Writing. (3-0). Credit 3.

Orientation to traditional and new issues in advanced study of Spanish-language literature, linguistics, cultural studies; mechanics and ethics of scholarly procedure and bibliographical guidance on original research project; and individually-tailored Spanish-language writing practicum. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

602. Applied Linguistics for Teachers of Spanish. (3-0). Credit 3.

Overview of Spanish including regional and national variation with special reference to relationship of language acquisition, performance analysis and teaching methodology. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

603. Development of the Spanish Language. (3-0). Credit 3.

The origin and development of the Spanish language from pre-Roman to modern period with emphasis on the socio-historical contexts; analysis of literary and documentary evidence of linguistic evolution. Prerequisite: HISP 602 or approval of instructor.

606. Spanish of the Southwest. (3-0). Credit 3.

Descriptive analysis of written varieties of southwest Spanish from Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Structure and variation of (a) the sound system, (b) grammatical patterns, and (c) the lexicon. Instruction to sociolinguistic issues relevant to the southwest language studies. Prerequisite: HISP 602 or approval of instructor.

607. Seminar in Spanish Linguistics. (3-0). Credit 3.

Intensive investigation of an issue important to understanding historical linguistics, dialectology, sociolinguistics, developments in theoretical and applied linguistics. May be repeated for credit as content varies. Prerequisite: HISP 602 or approval of instructor.

614. Hispanic Dialectology. (3-0). Credit 3.

Topics include varieties of Spanish spoken throughout the Americas. Spanish speaking regions covered include South America, the Caribbean, Center America and North America, including the southwestern United States. The course covers historical background, structural linguistics, and sociolinguistic issues (social and stylistic variation.) Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

618. Hispanic Folklore and Popular Culture. (3-0). Credit 3.

An examination of popular literature and other cultural forms in the Hispanic world. Students will learn to appreciate, evaluate, and compare written and oral traditional formats, and acquire methods of analyzing language and cultural artifacts that reflect recent research trends. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

620. Studies in Critical Theory. (3-0). Credit 3.

Examination of the development of theories of literary criticism and their application to the study of literary texts. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

625. U.S. Hispanic Literature and Culture. (3-0). Credit 3.

Study of the origins and evolution of U.S. Hispanic literature, culture and folklore, and U.S. Hispanic regional dialects. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

630. Studies in Latin American Literature. (3-0). Credit 3.

Possible topics include colonial literature, the chronicles, Romanticism, Modernism, contemporary trends in the Latin American novel, the novel of the Mexican Revolution, Ruben Dario, contemporary Argentine fiction, the literature of revolution in Latin America, Afro-Hispanic literature, Hispanic Caribbean literature. May be taken 3 times for credit. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

640. History of Ideas in the Hispanic World. (3-0). Credit 3.

Intensive study of cultural and ideological currents, especially as they are reflected in the works of essayists and other writers. Possible topics include Spain and European culture, European thought in Latin America, the Renaissance in Spanish literature and social life, Spain and the Western tradition, the search for national identity in Mexico, U.S. Hispanic nationalism. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

645. Hispanic Women Writers. (3-0). Credit 3.

A study of the development of writing by women in the Hispanic world, including Spain, Latin America, and the United States. Topics include identity and nation, building of a feminine aesthetics, the reception of women writers, literary canons and exclusion, women and/in the Latin American boom, Latina writers in the United States. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

646. Cultural Encounters and Borders, from Baroque to the Present. (3-0). Credit 3.

Topics include literature of marginalization in medieval Spain, colonial literature and the chronicles, Modernism, Vanguardism, contemporary trends in the Latin American novel, the novel of the Mexican Revolution, Afro-Hispanic literature, Hispanic Caribbean literature. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

650. Methods of Study in Spanish Linguistics. (3-0). Credit 3.

Examination of various methods of linguistic analysis in Spanish, such as transformational grammar, socio or psycholinguistics in Spanish. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

653. Don Quixote and the Hispanic Novel. (3-0). Credit 3.

Don Quixote and the development of modern fiction, its influence in the Hispanic narrative tradition, from Fernandez de Avellaneda to Perez Galdos, G. Garcia Marquez, and Carlos Fuentes, and the presence in the U.S. Hispanic novel. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

660. Reading and Research in Hispanic Cultural Studies. (3-0). Credit 3.

Independent research in specialized subjects not normally or not often included in the regular course offerings. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

664. Hispanic Theatre. (3-0). Credit 3.

Topics include Golden Age drama and the antecedents, Neo-Classical movement in Spain, regionalized and criollo drama in Latin America, avant-garde and collective creation theatre, Teatro Campesino and Chicano movement drama, Hispanic performance artists. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

665. Studies in Spanish Literature. (3-0). Credit 3.

Topics include El Cid, El Arcipreste de Hita, El Romancero, Spanish Renaissance poetry, Golden Age theater, Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Gongora and Gongorismo, eighteenth-century essayists, Galdos, the Generation of 98, Romanticism, Miguel de Unamuno, the theater of Garcia Lorca, contemporary Spanish poetry, Spanish literature after Franco. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

667. Hispanic Genre Studies. (3-0). Credit 3.

Selected topics in the works, authors, characteristics and classifications of a given genre cultivated by Hispanic writers. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

670. Studies in U.S. Hispanic Literature. (3-0). Credit 3.

Topics include bilingual literature, Nuyorican literature, Cuban American literature, Chicano literature, the immigrant novel, ethnic autobiography, U.S. Hispanic theater, Chicano theater. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

671. Bilingualism in Hispanic Literature. (3-0). Credit 3.

This course will explore bilingualism in Hispanic letters. From Spanish medieval literature to contemporary Hispanic literature in the United States, the course will focus on artistic, aesthetic, social, historical, and cultural aspects of the uses of two languages in Hispanic literary works. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

672. Hispanic Film and Performance Arts. (3-0). Credit 3.

A theoretical and historical exploration of cinema and performance arts in the Hispanic world. The description and interpretation of films and performance arts such as flamenco and folkloric ballet with particular attention to history, ethnology, artistic trends, and tendencies and relationships to other arts. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

675. Methods of Teaching Spanish to Native Speakers. (3-0). Credit 3.

Presentation of the various theories and methods for the teaching of Spanish to students of Spanish-speaking backgrounds in the United States. Prerequisite: HISP 602 or approval of instructor.

685. Directed Studies. Credit 1 to 4 each semester.

Directed individual study of selected problems in the field of Spanish language or literature. Prerequisite: 12 hours of advanced courses in Spanish.

689. Special Topics in... Credit 1 to 4.

Selected topics in an identified area of Spanish. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Approval of instructor.

691. Research. Credit 1 or more each semester.

Thesis research credit given only upon acceptance of completed thesis. Prerequisite: Twelve hours of advanced courses in Spanish.