City Life in
South America
Prof. Pablo Ben
Arts & Letters, Office 523
pben@mail.sdsu.edu
HIST 582: Section 1: City Life in South America
PSFA-300, Tuesdays 4:00 to 6:40 pm.
Office Hours:
Tuesdays, 2:00 – 3:00 pm
Wednesdays, 2:00 – 4:00 pm or by appointment.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course will present the urban history of South America with an emphasis on the history of
Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The course will discuss the importance of cities in
South America in comparison to other parts of the world. After a brief introduction to the
region through readings on colonial history, students will focus on the 1880 to 2012 period.
The first part of the course presents the rise of the largest cities in South America between the
1880s and 1930s, exploring issues like migration, race, gender, urban planning, the
configuration of space, etc. After this the students will study the transformation of these cities
in megalopolis, the problems associated to this change and the impact of urban growth in the
context of economic decline between the 1960s and 1990s. The last part of the course focuses
on the growing gap between the wealthy and the poor in the last decades. In this context,
students will focus on the housing problem, the formation of slums, poverty, the rise of crime,
increasing segregation and drawing of racial boundaries.
GRADING
Assignment
- First Essay
- Quizzes
- Class Participation
- Final Essay
Percentage of the grade
Due Date
25%
10%
15%
50%
3/26
2/26 and 4/16
3 classes to be assigned by prof.
May 10th
Grade
Points
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
D
E
F
94-100
90-93
86-89
83-86
79-82
75-78
72-75
68-71
65-68
Below 65
ASSIGNMENTS AND DUE DATES
Students will still be expected to complete assignments on time. If you have any problems
doing so, please contact me to explain your situation at least two days before the due date;
otherwise, late assignments will lower your grade. Make-up assignments will only be granted if
a serious emergency occurs and there will be no extra-grade opportunities.
CLASS ATTENDANCE
Your presence is a fundamental component in the process of learning and it is mandatory.
More than two absences will significantly affect your grade and you will fail the course if you
are absent more than three times. Students are also expected to be on time and should not leave
class early without prior notification.
READINGS AND CONTENTS OF THE CLASS
Students will read the bibliography and be prepared to discuss it by the dates listed in
the schedule. The reading materials may be challenging, but you will find that with patience
and practice, you can keep up and fully participate in the course. Not doing the reading – or
allowing yourself to fall far behind – will leave you unable to understand lectures and
participate in discussions. This could seriously affect your grade.
In addition to knowing the reading materials, students will also take lecture and class notes. In
addition to the bibliography, the professor will provide handouts of primary sources and other
documents and guidelines. Students will also study those materials for the assignments.
Any information provided by the professor in class is considered part of the content of this
course and students should always keep track of it.
USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Students cannot use ANY electronic device for the duration of the class unless it is used for
accessibility purposes. If you are not using your device for reading or taking notes, this will
affect your grade or cause you to fail this course.
PLAGIARISM
Academic integrity is expected of every student. Students must not plagiarize the work of
others. This means that if you quote directly from any author’s work (including texts on
Internet sites), you must put quotation marks around that material, and you must cite it in a
footnote or endnote. Plagiarism also includes using someone else’s phrases, strings of words,
special terms, or ideas and interpretations without citing your source, even if you have not
quoted directly from that source.
In short, you must give credit where it is due. If you have doubts, feel free to come and ask me,
or check the SDSU General Catalogue for more information. Cheating on any exam or
plagiarizing on papers will result in a failing grade for the course.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
George Reid Andrews, Blacks and White in São Paulo Brazil, 1888-1988 (Madison: The
University of Wisconsin Press, 1991).
George Reid Andrews, Afro-Latin America (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004).
Haim Avni, Argentina and the Jews: A History of Jewish Immigration (Tuscaloosa: The University
of Alabama Press, 1991).
Samuel L. Baily and Eduardo José Míguez (eds.), Mass Migration to Modern Latin America
(Wilmington: Scholarly Resources, 2003).
Teresa P. R. Caldeira, City of Walls: Crime, Segregation, and Citizenship in São Paulo (Berkeley:
University of California Press, 2000).
Vicente del Rio and William Siembieda, Contemporary Urbanism in Brazil: Beyond Brasília
(Tallahassee: University Press of Florida, 2009).
Alan Gilbert, The Mega-City in Latin America (New York: United Nations University Press,
1996).
Jorge E. Hardoy, "Theory and Practice of Urban Planning in Europe, 1850-1930: Its Transfer
to Latin America," in Richard Morse and Jorge E. Hardoy, Rethinking the Latin American City
(Washington DC: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992), p. 20-49.
Jeffrey D. Needell, “Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires: Public Space and Public Consciousness in
Fin-de-Siècle Latin America” Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol. 37, No. 3 (July
1995), p. 519 to 540.
Teresa A. Meade, ‘Civilizing’ Rio: Reform and Resistance in a Brazilian City, 1889-1930
(University Park: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997).
Thomas W. Merrick, “The Population of Latin America, 1930-1990,” in: Leslie Bethell (ed.),
Latin America: Economy and Society since 1930 (New York: Cambridge, 1998), p. 3-65.
José C. Moya, Cousins and Strangers: Spanish Immigrants in Buenos Aires, 1850-1930 (Berkeley:
University of California Press, 1998).
Ronn Pineo & James A. Baer (eds.), Cities of Hope: People, Protests and Progress in Urbanizing
Latin America, 1870-1930 (Boulder: Perseus Books, 1998).
James R. Scobie, Buenos Aires: Plaza to Suburb, 1870-1910 (New York: Oxford University Press,
1974).
James R. Scobie, “The growth of Latin American cities, 1870-1930” in Leslie Bethell, The
Cambridge History of Latin America, Volume IV, c. 1870-1930 (New York: Cambridge University
Press, 1986), p. 233 to 265.
Annalisa Spencer, "The Informal Architecture of Brasilia: An Analysis of the Contemporary
Urban Role of its Satellite Settlements," p. 53 to 71 in: Felipe Hernandez, Peter Kellett and Lea
K. Allen, Rethinking the Informal City: Critical Perspectives from Latin America (New York:
Berghahn Books, 2010).
CLASS SCHEDULE
1/22
Introduction
1/29
Formation of Modern Cities: Rio de Janeiro
Meade, introduction and chapters 1 to 3.
2/5
Rio de Janeiro
Meade, chapters 4 to 6 and conclusion.
2/12
Formation of Modern Cities: Buenos Aires
Scobie (1974), chapters 1 to 4.
2/19
Buenos Aires
Scobie (1974), chapters 5 to 7.
2/26
Formation of Modern Cities: São Paulo
Teresa Caldeira (chapter 6) and Scobie (READER)
3/5
Haussmannization in South America
QUIZ
Hardoy and Needell (READER)
3/12
Haussmanization in Lima and Valparaiso
Parker and Pineo (READER)
3/19
Immigration and Race
Moya (chapter 1) and Andrews (chapter 3) (READER)
3/26
Migration to Buenos Aires
FIRST ESSAY DUE
Devoto, Baily and Avni (chapter 3) (READER)
Spring Break 4/1 to 4/5
4/9
Migration to Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro
Lesser (2) and Baganha (Reader)
4/16
Industrialization, Population Growth and Race
QUIZ
Merrick and Andrews (chapter 5) (READER)
4/23
New Cities and Mega-Cities
Spencer, Riofrio, Tolosa, Santos, Macedo (READER)
4/30
New Challenges
Ainstein, Guillermoprieto (Lima 1990, Rio 1993), Lacabana and Cariola (READER)
5/7
New Challenges and Review
FINAL ESSAY DUE ON MAY 10TH