Fall 2012
English Literature: ENLT 2552
Consuelo López Springfield
A/15:50 – 17:10
Women in Literature: Caribbean Women in Transition
"when the multitudes shall run rioting . . .
against you and against everything unjust and inhuman
I will be in their midst with the torch in my hand."
"To Julia de Burgos"
Julia de Burgos (Puerto Rico)
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The Caribbean region is defined by a history of conquest and colonialism, slavery,
racial and cultural admixture. It is a place where natural disasters wipe out national
economies, structural unemployment and underemployment plague the most resourceful
workers, and sustained dependency on U.S. and global conglomerates threatens the
survival of local industries and agricultural producers.
Marked by interregional,
hemispheric, and cross-oceanic migration, it is a site of permeable boundaries and
multiple identities, offering continuous redefinition of the self and of one's relationship to
society.
This course examines how changes in the international labor force and political
activism have led women to redefine their domestic roles and challenge traditional
societal norms. It examines identity--often ambulatory, transnational, and defined by
shifting states of interdependency--as people seek or are forced to seek work in other
lands. We will explore the ways in which women reconstitute networks of relatives and
friends in exile communities while maintaining strong ties to their families at home. An
interdisciplinary course, it investigates the interplay of race and gender in the construction
of national cultures and literary responses to the impact of economic practices on
women's lives.
The course is informed by critical essays on the nature of Caribbean feminism(s)
and women's literature as they capture and combat historical processes. It will analyze
women's contemporary history in Haiti, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and diaspora communities in
the U.S. It will also explore how women create cultures in opposition to traditional,
constraining ones, and seek wholeness in new, communities.
The course involves readings in the literature (novels and autobiographies)
feminist studies, and film.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Students will learn to appreciate the richness of Caribbean culture and contemporary
societal changes through women’s literature and film. They will explore their divergent
historical heritages and ways that women come together to heal wounds and create new
visions of self-enhancement in post-colonial contexts. The field experience will also help
them to understand creative responses to colonialism and migration.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
In addition to mandatory class attendance and participation in class discussions, students
are required to write a reflection paper on course material and another on their fieldtrip.
There will be a final essay examination. The exam will be based on lectures and readings.
Classroom participation guidelines:
All students are required to arrive on-time. If there is any reason for tardiness, leaving
early, or (emergency) absences, please let me know in advance. Open and respectful
intellectual exchange is valued highly.
Plagiarism:
Be particularly attentive to the university’s policy on plagiarism (honor code)
GRADING SYSTEM:
Attendance/Participation
Reflection paper (course)
Reflection paper (fieldtrip)
Final Exam
20%
20%
20%
40%
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
AUTHOR: Edwidge Danticat,
TITLE: Breath, Eyes, Memory. ,
ISBN 0-375-70504-X
Publisher: New York: Vintage
Publication Date: 1994
AUTHOR: Consuelo López Springfield, ed.
TITLE: Daughters of Caliban: Twentieth Century Caribbean Women
ISBN : 1-899365-15X
PUBLISHER: Indiana University Press
PUBLICATION DATE: 1997
Cost: low
AUTHOR: Achy Obejas
TITLE: Days of Awe
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ISBN: 035 44154-0
PUBLISHER: NY Ballantine
PUBLICATION DATE: 2001
Cost:
AUTHOR: Esmeralda Santiago
TITLE: When I Was Puerto Rican
ISBN: 0-679-75676-0
PUBLISHER: Vintage
PUBLICATION DATE: 1993
Cost:
AUTHOR: Alicia Valdez Rodríguez
TITLE: Dirty Girls Social Club
ISBN: 032-3181-0 (also in paperback)
PUBLISHER: St. Martin’s Press
PUBLICATION DATE: 2003
Cost:
FILMS:
“Sugar Cane Alley” (in French, subtitled)
“Soy Boricua Pa’Que Tu Lo Sepas” (documentary)
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Session 1
Sat. Aug. 25:
Session 2
Mon., Aug. 27:
Session 3
Wed., Aug, 29:
Introduction to the course
Sugar Cane and the Shaping of Caribbean Cultures:
Video ("Sugar Cane Alley” 103 min.) First part: 65 min.
From the Colonial Yoke to the World Beyond Borders:
Discuss “Sugar Cane Alley”
TRAVEL TO IRELAND:
Irish people suffered over a thousand years of English colonialism.
How was their history defined by a plantation economy dominated
by absentee land owners? How do Caribbean populations in Ireland contribute
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to Irish society today?
Session 4
Tues., Sept. 4:
Reflections on Ireland:
How do artists and contemporary chroniclers describe the Irish famine in the 19th
Century?
What do nationalists in the Caribbean and Ireland have in common?
TRAVEL TO ENGLAND
(How have Caribbean populations contributed to contemporary society in the U.K.?
TRAVEL TO EUROPE:
(In paintings of the “new world,” how are the Caribbean and
South America portrayed? What does this tell us of European
Colonialism? How are Europeans of Caribbean and Latin American
heritage integrated into European societies?
Session 5
Sun., Sept. 16
Session 6
Tues., Sept. 18
Caribbean and Latin Americans in Europe:
Discuss visual (art/film) depictions, relate perceptions of
contemporary immigrant communities? Do you see Latin American
and Caribbean people in European societies? What did you learn of
the history of Judaism in Europe today?
Cuba: Religion and Politics
Read and Discuss: Miguel de La Torre, La Lucha for Cuba:
Religion And Politics in the Streets of Miami (UC Press, 2003)
pps. 120-129
TRAVEL TO PORTUGAL AND SPAIN
How would you describe the cultural contributions and historical
experiences of Sephardic Jews? How did Spain and Portugal view
their Caribbean colonies? What do artistic works in museums reveal about their
relationships with their “new world” colonies? How are Caribbean and Latin
Americans living in Spain and Portugal contributing to contemporary culture?
Session 7
Th., Sept. 27
Discussing Colonial Roots and Contemporary Contexts:
Reflections on Spain and Portugal
TRAVEL TO MOROCCO:
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Are there synergies between Arab art and Iberian art? Market life?
How are modern Moroccan women expressing their social, political,
economic and gender identities?
Session 8
Wed., Oct. 3:
Session 9
Sat., Oct. 6
Shared perceptions of Morocco
Gender, Religion, and Identity:
Discuss Achy Obejas, Days of Awe, Chapters 1-8 (pps. 1-73)
TRAVEL TO GHANA
What roles do women play in religious, educational, and communal
lives? How do women manage their multiple roles? How long ago
did Ghana achieve independence? What does this mean to women
today?
Session 10
Sat., Oct. 13
Session 11
Mon., Oct. 15
Session 12
Wed., Oct. 17
West African Women in the Twenty-First Century
Describe how a history of colonialism shapes contemporary women’s
lives. What have you learned of women’s strengths from your
experiences in Ghana?
Revisiting the Past:
Days of Awe, (pps. 236-243) and (pps. 325-331) and 346-357
Race, Class and Motherland:
Read and Discuss: Ruth Bejar, “Daughter of Caro” and Lisa
Paravisini-Gebert’s essays in Daughters of Caliban
TRAVEL TO SOUTH AFRICA
How has South Africa created new visions of social democracy?
How did they defeat institutional apartheid? How are women’s roles defined
today? How are they involved in education, finance, and religion?
Session 13
Wed., Oct. 24:
Session 14
Fri., Oct. 26
Women ‘s Roles in a New African Nation
Reflections of South Africa
Transnational Societies: Haitians in Contemporary Times
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Read, Karen McCarthy Brown, “The Power to Heal: Haitian Women
In Vodou” (Daughters of Caliban)
Session 15
Mon., Oct. 29
Confronting Motherhood: Home and Abroad
Read and Discuss Edwidge Dandicat, Breadth, Eyes, Memory,
pps. 4-49
Session 16
Wed., Oct. 31
Continue BEM discussion, pps. 50-146
TRAVEL TO ARGENTINA AND URAGUAY
How does the class system affect women’s roles?
How do fashion dictates, politics, and economics impact women’s
self-achievement? What do the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo
represent today? Who was Evita Peron? Why is there a musical about her?
What makes her so popular?
Session 17:
Fri., Nov. 9
Latin American Women of the Southern Cone:
Reflections of women’s roles in Argentinian and Uraguayan
societies.
TRAVEL TO BRAZIL
Field Lab: Field Lab: Rio de Janeiro: Female Saints and Mothers
Explore Afro-Brazilian popular religion and the portrayal of strong female spiritual
guides. What does this tell us of syncretic
religion in the new world?
Session 18
Wed., Nov. 14
Session 19
Fri., Nov. 16
Session 20
Mon., Nov. 19
Brazilian Women of Yesterday and Today
Reflections: Field Lab in Rio de Janeiro
The Power to Heal:
Continue BEM discussion: pps. 147-236
*Hand in Field Lab Reflection paper
Caribbean and Latina Girlfriends:
Discuss Dirty Girls Social Club, pp. 71-136
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Session 21:
Wed., Nov. 21:
Solidarity in Multicultural Latina Cultures:
Discuss Dirty Girls, pp. 137-212
TRAVEL TO MANAUS ON THE AMAZON RIVER
How do women of the Amazon basin contribute to tourism?
What can we learn of their social roles?
Session 22:
Mon., Nov. 26
Session 23
Nov. 28
Women of the Amazon:
Reflections of a river voyage.
Continuation: What does friendship mean to women--and to me?
Discuss DGSC: pp. 213-308
TRAVEL TO DOMINICA
Do you see similarities among West Indian women and West African women?
Session 24
Mon., Dec. 3
Hand in course reflection paper
Final examination
Due tour travels, we may not be able to explore Esmeralda Santiago’s When I Was
Puerto Rican, an autobiographical novel that has garnered international repute. However,
I hope that you will enjoy it. I will be delighted to discuss this with you informally during
our trip together as it is one of my favorite Caribbean books.
In addition, we’ll discuss this book in my course on “Autobiographies of Childhood.” That
“B” course is held from 3:55 – 5:10 p.m. (15:55 – 17:10). Please feel free to join in our
discussions, if it fits into your schedule!
FIELD ASSIGNMENT:
This field trip focuses on female religious figures (either as patron saints, priestesses,
and devotees) in religious syncretism and the blending of Catholic and West African
religions in Brazil and the Caribbean. We will explore female deities as an Africanized
expansion of the idea of the Virgin Mary, which itself is a purified version of the preChristian, ancient European earth mother.
Students will grasp an understanding of a broad landscape of contemporary religious
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syncretism in Rio de Janeiro, including Catholic masses with African cultural elements.
We will visit churches in Rio de Janeiro.
Students will write a two-three page paper discussing Afro-Caribbean female saints and
deities. Students may decide to integrate knowledge gleaned from readings; and it is
encouraged that they reflect on how these images evoke new concepts of women’s
roles.
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