Latin American and Iberian Cultures

SPAN UN1101 ELEMENTARY SPANISH I. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: a score of 0-279 in the department's Placement Examination.
Prerequisites: a score of 0-279 on the department's Spanish as a Second Language Placement exam. An introduction to Spanish communicative competence, with stress on basic oral interaction, reading, writing, and cultural knowledge. Principal objectives are to understand and produce commonly used sentences to satisfy immediate needs; ask and answer questions about personal details such as where we live, people we know and things we have; interact in a simple manner with people who speak clearly, slowly and are ready to cooperate; and understand simple and short written and audiovisual texts in Spanish. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN1102 ELEMENTARY SPANISH II. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN1101 or a score of 280-379 in the department's Placement Examination.
Prerequisites: SPAN UN1101 or a score of 280-379 on the department’s Spanish as a Second Language Placement exam. An intensive introduction to Spanish language communicative competence, with stress on basic oral interaction, reading, writing and cultural knowledge as a continuation of SPAN UN1101. The principal objectives are to understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of immediate relevance; communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a direct exchange of information on familiar matters; describe in simple terms aspects of our background and personal history; understand the main point, the basic content, and the plot of filmic as well as short written texts. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN1113 Spanish Rapid Reading and Translation. 3 points.

Open to graduate students in GSAS only.

This course, conducted in English, is designed to help graduate students from other departments gain proficiency in reading and translating Spanish texts for scholarly research. The course prepares students to take the Reading Proficiency Exam that most graduate departments demand to fulfill the foreign-language proficiency requirement in that language. Graduate students with any degree of knowledge of Spanish are welcome. A grade of A- or higher in this class will satisfy the GSAS foreign language proficiency requirement in Spanish.

SPAN UN1120 COMPREHENSIVE BEGINNING SPAN. 4.00 points.

Intensive, fast-paced elementary Spanish course for multilingual learners who have had little to no formal education in Spanish. Replaces the sequence SPAN UN1101-SPAN UN1102. Prerequisites: Take the Department's Language Placement Examination. (It is only for diagnostic purposes, to assess your language learning skills, not your knowledge of Spanish). If you score approximately 330 OR MORE, you may qualify for this course if: - you have had little to no formal education in Spanish, AND - you identify with ONE of the following language learner profiles: Learners of Spanish as a 3rd language: fluent in a language other than English Informal learners of Spanish: English speakers who have “picked up” Spanish by interacting with Spanish speakers in informal settings “Receptive” Spanish heritage learners: English dominant, but you understand Spanish spoken by family and community members (The exam is only an initial assessment for diagnostic purposes. Your score might be high, even if you have never studied Spanish in a formal setting). You do not need my permission to register*. I will further assess your level during the Change of Program period. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or if you are unsure about your placement in this course. *Students who do not have the necessary proficiency level may not remain in this course. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN2101 INTERMEDIATE SPANISH I. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN1102 or SPAN UN1120 or or a score of 380-449 in the department's Placement Examination.
Prerequisites: SPAN UN1102 or SPAN UN1120 or or a score of 380-449 in the departments Placement Examination. An intensive course in Spanish language communicative competence, with stress on oral interaction, reading, writing, and culture as a continuation of SPAN UN1102 or SPAN UN1120. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN2102 INTERMEDIATE SPANISH II. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN2101 or a score of 450-625 in the department's Placement Examination.
Prerequisites: SPAN UN2101 or a score of 450-625 in the departments Placement Examination. An intensive course in Spanish language communicative competence, with stress on oral interaction, reading, writing and culture as a continuation of SPAN UN2101. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN2103 INTERMED SPAN II - MEDICAL. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN2101 or a score of 380-449 on the Department’s placement examination.
Prerequisites: SPAN UN2101 or a score of 380-449 on the Department’s placement examination. This is an intensive course in Spanish language communicative competence with an emphasis on oral interaction, reading, writing, and culture at an Intermediate II level with focus on health-related topics in the Spanish-speaking world. In an increasingly interconnected world, and in multilingual global cities such as New York City, the study of a foreign language is fundamental not only in the field of the humanities but also in the natural sciences. This interdisciplinary course analyzes the intersection between these two disciplines through the study of health-related topics in Iberian and Latin American cultural expressions (literature, film, documentaries, among other sources) in order to explore new critical perspectives across both domains. Students will learn health-related vocabulary and usage-based grammar in Spanish. Students will develop a cultural understanding of medicine, illness, and treatment in the Spanish-speaking world. Finally, students will be able to carry out specific collaborative tasks in Spanish with the aim of integrating language, culture, and health. * This course fulfills the last semester of the foreign language requirement. Therefore, students who have taken SPAN UN 2101 (Intermediate Spanish I), or have a score of 380-449 on the Department’s placement exam, and are interested in health-related topics may proceed and enroll in SPAN UN 2103 (Intermediate Spanish II: Health-Related Topics in the Spanish-Speaking World). Pre-med and pre-health students, as well as those students majoring in the natural sciences—including biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and physics—will be given registration priority. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN2108 SPANISH FOR HERITAGE SPEAKERS. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN1108 or scoring at this level on the department’s Spanish as a Heritage Language Placement test (https://columbia-barnard.vega-labs.com). The principal aim of SPAN UN2108 is to build upon and further develop the knowledge of Spanish that heritage learners bring to the classroom – from SPAN UN1108 and/or from family and neighborhood exposure to the language. This course cultivates intermediate-level formal speaking, listening, reading, and writing abilities. Spanish heritage language courses at Columbia/Barnard focus on the development of communicative abilities and literacy from sociolinguistic and sociocultural approaches. Throughout the semester, students will be reviewing spelling patterns, building vocabulary, acquiring and effectively using learning strategies, and strengthening composition skills in Spanish. Cultural projects and readings reinforce learners’ understanding of the multiple issues related to Hispanic cultures in the United States and in other Spanish-speaking societies

SPAN UN2120 Comprehensive Intermediate Spanish. 4 points.

Prerequisites: This course is an intensive and fast-paced coverage of both SPAN UN2101 and SPAN UN2102. Students MUST demonstrate a strong foundation in Spanish and meet the following REQUIREMENTS: a score ABOVE 480 on the Department's Placement Examination; or A- or higher in SPAN UN1120. If you fulfill the above requirements, you do not need the instructor's permission to register. HOWEVER, the instructor will additionally assess student proficiency during the Change of Program Period. Students who do not have the necessary proficiency level may not remain in this course. Replaces the sequence SPAN UN2101-SPAN UN2102. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade.

SPAN UN3300 ADV LANGUAGE THROUGH CONTENT. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: SPAN UN2102 or AP score of 4 or 5; or SAT score.
Prerequisites: SPAN UN2102 or AP score of 4 or 5; or SAT score. An intensive exposure to advanced points of Spanish grammar and structure through written and oral practice, along with an introduction to the basic principles of academic composition in Spanish. Each section is based on the exploration of an ample theme that serves as the organizing principle for the work done in class (Please consult the Directory of Classes for the topic of each section.) This course is required for the major and the concentration in Hispanic Studies. Formerly SPAN W3200 and SPAN BC3004. If you have taken either of these courses before you cannot take SPAN UN3300. All Columbia students must take Spanish language courses (UN 1101-3300) for a letter grade

SPAN UN3349 HISPANIC CULTURES I (SP). 3.00 points.

CC/GS/SEAS: Partial Fulfillment of Global Core Requirement

Prerequisites: L" course: enrollment limited to 15 students. Completion of language requirement, third-year language sequence (W3300).
Prerequisites: L course: enrollment limited to 15 students. Completion of language requirement, third-year language sequence (W3300). Provides students with an overview of the cultural history of the Hispanic world, from eighth-century Islamic and Christian Spain and the pre-Hispanic Americas through the late Middle Ages and Early Modern period until about 1700, covering texts and cultural artifacts from both Spain and the Americas

SPAN UN3350 HISPANIC CULTURES II (SP). 3.00 points.

This course surveys cultural production of Spain and Spanish America from the eighteenth to the twenty-first centuries. Students will acquire the knowledge needed for the study of the cultural manifestations of the Hispanic world in the context of modernity. Among the issues and events studied will be the Enlightenment as ideology and practice, the Napoleonic invasion of Spain, the wars of Spanish American independence, the fin-de-siecle and the cultural avant-gardes, the wars and revolutions of the twentieth century (Spanish Civil War, the Mexican and Cuban revolutions), neoliberalism, globalization, and the Hispanic presence in the United States. The goal of the course is to study some key moments of this trajectory through the analysis of representative texts, documents, and works of art. Class discussions will seek to situate the works studied within the political and cultural currents and debates of the time. All primary materials, class discussion, and assignments are in Spanish. This course is required for the major and the concentration in Hispanic Studies

SPAN UN3991 SENIOR SEMINAR. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: Seniors (major or concentrator status).
The course is a requirement for all the LAIC majors. In this seminar, students develop an individual research project and write an essay under the guidance of the course’s instructor and in dialogue with the other participants’ projects After an introductory theoretical and methodological section, and a research session at the library, the syllabus is entirely constructed on the students’ projects. Every participant is in charge of a weekly session. Essay outlines and drafts are discussed with the group throughout the semester. The final session is a public symposium with external respondents

SPAN UN3315 New York as Theatre of Spanish Modernity. 3 points.

From the beginning of the XXth Century some of the key figures of Spanish contemporary culture, writers, filmmakers or architects, had a very close relationship to New York, sometimes as travelers, sometimes living in the city for long periods of time. That transatlantic contact, far from anecdotal, turned into an essential element of the self-understanding of those authors and a crucial presence in their work. The contact with New York modernity would be an unavoidable component in their own versions of modernity but their presence would also leave an important trace in the city. As yet more Spanish cultural travelers got in contact with the city a different phenomenon developed: from the 1950’s, New York would be used as a privileged stage to project a certain institutional idea of Spain, to sell a refurbished image of the nation as sophisticated and modern after decades of international marginalization under Francoism. This course will develop a comparative study of both processes as seen in literary sources, film and architecture (García Lorca, Camba, Dalí, Tápies, Buñuel, Loriga, Sert, Calatrava…)

SPAN UN3366 Unseen Things: Fantastic Narratives in Contemporary Spain. 3 points.

This course is a survey of Spanish literature and cinema that offers a glimpse to the Spanish canon through the cultural topology of “Fantasy”. By conceiving fantasy as a historically produced—and therefore historically changing—notion, we will travel across five centuries to examine how phenomena associated with the supernatural and the paranormal were understood in their time and how they are understood today. Haunting memories and spaces, ghosts and imaginary representations, supernatural events, monsters, spiritistic practices, and phantasmagorias will parade before our eyes as we try to come up with a comprehensive account for what we could call the “Spanish uneven development”. The discussions over differential temporalities, social and political imaginaries, collective memories, the role of fiction and symbolic representations, and the connection between fantasy and the economic, political, and ideological practices in a determinate social formation will be interrogated in our seminar from different historical vantage points. Readings (most of them by major authors) will be the center of the discussion, whereas visual materials, documentary, art and movies will do their part to illustrate the readings. Several questions will be raised (and hopefully answered) along this journey: How can we explain proliferation of fantastic narratives in Contemporary Spain? And, finally, how can we examine the recent boom and success of Spanish fantastic, supernatural and horror pieces, particularly in film and in the novel? Is there such thing as a “Spanish fantastic” genre?

SPAN UN3731 ENV. ＆ CITI: CULTRS OF IBERIAN PENINSULA. 3.00 points.

This course examines the role of nature and the environment in both contemporary literature and the arts, and attempts to explore a conceptual framework for the definition of environment as a cultural and material production. Environmental peculiarities and historical discontinuities and continuities have created social and political conjunctures in the Iberian Peninsula in which questions concerning nature, space, landscape, and urban and rural experiences have become central to the cultural and the critical imagination in the 20th & 21st Centuries. From the debate over the privatization and erosion of communal rights and the environmental dispossession (and repossession) of the resources to the history of the constructions of nature(s) in literary and cinematic landscapes, the guiding question is how cultural and social practices interfere in the production of what Rob Nixon has called ‘slow violence’, that is, the incremental dynamics of environmental violence that intensify the vulnerability of populations and natural ecosystems. To address this issue, we will not only read a number of novels, essays, poems, short stories and theoretical production, but also engage in the study of artwork and new Iberian democratic experiences, and the development of the cultural environmental studies and ecocriticism in literature and the arts today. The class will be conducted in Spanish and all written assignments will also be in that language.

SPAN GU4010 LANGUAGE CROSSING IN LATINX CARIBBEAN CULTURAL PRODUCTION. 3 points.

Prerequisites: Intermediate reading knowledge of Spanish

This course considers how language has traditionally shaped constructs of national identity in the Caribbean vis-à-vis the US. By focusing on language ‘crossings’ in Latinx Caribbean cultural production, we critically explore how various sorts of texts–narrative, drama, performance, poetry, animated TV series, and songs–contest conventional notions of mainstream American, US Latinx, and Caribbean discourses of politics and identities. Taking 20^th-century social and historical context into account, we will analyze those contemporary styles and uses of language that challenge monolingual and monolithic visions of national and ethnolinguistic identities, examining societal attitudes, cultural imaginaries, and popular assumptions about the Spanish language in the Greater Caribbean and the US.

SPAN G4030 Spanish Pragmatics. 4 points.

In one sense, Pragmatics is concerned with how we use the language, why and how the speakers communicate in social interactions. The interpretation of meaning in context is probably the main field of study of this multidiscipline, considering the speaker-meaning as the central point of departure. The term Pragmatics refers to a broad perspective on different aspects of communication, including linguistics, but also cognitive psychology, cultural anthropology, philosophy, sociology and rhetoric among others. Through this course we will study chronologically and apply in specific cases of study of the Spanish language the most meaningful pragmatic theories, such as: Context, Deixis, Speech acts, Implicature, Cooperative Principle, Politeness, Relevance, Pragmatic markers, Metaphors and Cross-cultural pragmatics. Pragmatics, as we know, is a most helpful criterion in the interpretation of many different types of texts. As a course within our Department’s curriculum this instrument of rhetoric analysis is a basic tool in the comprehension of our students’ discourse in their literary, cultural, and critical papers. This discipline goes beyond the analysis of strictly forms or verbal utterances, hence its multidisciplinary applicability to a wide range of fields of studies in Spanish. Whichever the student’s field of study might be, Pragmatics provides a valuable and accurate vocabulary that can be applied to any textual interpretation. In this course, the pragmatic perspective is a starting point to delve into the processes of communication in Spanish. After this first approach, the student will gain an insight into new aspects of the linguistics of language use in general and the use of Spanish in particular.

CPLS GU4810 Theories of the Subject. 4 points.

This seminar will revisit some major texts and concerns in the theoretical humanities that develop genealogical, psychoanalytical or political theories of the subject, roughly from Marx until today. The goal is to come to a critical understanding of the centrality of this notion of the subject as one of the founding concepts of modernity, as well as to draw out all the consequences of its crisis in radical humanistic (or even so-called posthumanist) thought today. Thinkers to be discussed further include Freud, Foucault, Badiou, Butler, Althusser, Rozitchner, Žižek and Zupančič.

PORT UN1101 ELEMENTARY PORTUGUESE I. 4.00 points.

A beginning course designed for students who wish to start their study of Portuguese and have no proficiency in another Romance language. The four language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing are developed at the basic level

PORT UN1102 ELEMENTARY PORTUGUESE II. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: PORT W1101 or the equivalent. A course designed to acquaint students with the Portuguese verbal, prepositional, and pronominal systems. As a continuation of Elementary Portuguese I (PORT W1101), this course focuses on the uses of characteristic forms and expressions of the language as it is spoken and written in Brazil today

PORT UN1320 COMP ELEM PORT I/II-SPAN SPKRS. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: knowledge of Spanish or another Romance language. An intensive beginning language course in Brazilian Portuguese with emphasis on Brazilian culture through multimedia materials related to culture and society in contemporary Brazil. Recommended for students who have studied Spanish or another Romance language. The course is the equivalent of two full semesters of elementary Portuguese with stress on reading and conversing, and may be taken in place of PORT W1101-W1102. For students unable to dedicate the time needed cover two semesters in one, the regularly paced sequence PORT W1101-W1102 is preferable

PORT UN2101 INTERMEDIATE PORTUGUESE I. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: PORT W1120 or the equivalent.
Prerequisites: PORT W1120 or the equivalent. General review of grammar, with emphasis on self-expression through oral and written composition, reading, conversation, and discussion

PORT UN2120 COMPREHENSIVE INTERMED PORT. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: PORT UN1102 or PORT UN1320.
Prerequisites: PORT UN1102 or PORT UN1320. Prerequisites: this course is an intensive and fast-paced coverage of both PORT UN2101 and PORT UN2102. Students MUST demonstrate a strong foundation in Portuguese and meet the following REQUIREMENT: A- or higher in PORT UN1102 or PORT UN1320. If you fulfill the above requirement, you do not need the instructors permission to register. HOWEVER the instructor will additionally assess student proficiency during the Change of Program Period. Students who do not have the necessary proficiency level may not remain in this course. This course replaces the sequence PORT UN2101-PORT UN2102

PORT UN3101 CONVERS ABOUT LUSOPHONE WORLD. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: PORT W1220.
Prerequisites: PORT W1220. This conversation class will help students develop their oral proficiency in Portuguese. We will discuss current events, participate in challenging pronunciation exercises, improve understanding of Portuguese idioms, develop conversation strengths, confront weaknesses, and increase fluency in spoken Portuguese

PORT UN3300 ADV LANGUAGE THROUGH CONTENT. 3.00 points.

Corequisites: PORT UN1220
Corequisites: PORT UN1220 An intensive exposure to advanced points of Portuguese grammar and structure through written and oral practice, along with an introduction to the basic principles of academic composition in Portuguese. This course is required for the concentration in Portuguese Studies. This course is intended to improve Portuguese language skills in grammar, comprehension, and critical thinking through an archive of texts from literature, film, music, newspapers, critical reception and more. To do so, we will work through Portuguese-speaking communities and cultures from Brazil, to Portugal and Angola, during the twentieth and twenty-first century, to consider the mode in which genre, gender and sexuality materialize and are codified, disoriented, made, unmade and refigured through cultural productions, bodies, nation and resistant vernaculars of aesthetics and performance, always attentive to the intersections of gender with class and racism

PORT UN3490 BRAZILIAN SOCIETY ＆ CIV (ENG). 3.00 points.

Each week, a historical period is studied in connection to a particular theme of ongoing cultural expression. While diverse elements of popular culture are included, fiction is privileged as a source of cultural commentary. Students are expected to assimilate the background information but are also encouraged to develop their own perspective and interest, whether in the social sciences, the humanities (including the fine arts), or other areas

PORT UN2102 Intermed. Portuguese II. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: PORT UN1120 or PORT UN1320 or the equivalent.
Prerequisites: PORT UN1120 or PORT UN1320 or the equivalent. General review of grammar, with emphasis on self-expression through oral and written composition, reading, conversation, and discussion

CATL UN1120 COMPREHENSIVE BEG CATALAN. 4.00 points.

An extensive introduction to the Catalan language with an emphasis on oral communication as well as the reading and writing practice that will allow the student to function comfortably in a Catalan environment

CATL UN2102 INTERMEDIATE CATALAN II. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: CATL UN2101 or equivalent.
Prerequisites: CATL UN2101 or equivalent Catalan 1202 is the second part of Columbia Universitys intermediate Catalan sequence. Course goals are to enhance student exposure to various aspects of Catalan culture and to consolidate and expand reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills

CATL UN2101 INTERMEDIATE CATALAN I. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: CATL W1120.
Prerequisites: CATL W1120. The first part of Columbia University´s comprehensive intermediate Catalan sequence. The main objectives of this course are to continue developing communicative competence - reading, writing, speaking and listening comprehension - and to further acquaint students with Catalan cultures