AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE
Latina Literature
Spanish 370
Prof. Gisela Norat
Office: Buttrick 357
Required books
Woman Hollering Creek – Sandra Cisneros
Shattering the Myth: Plays by Hispanic Women – Denis Chávez, Linda Feyder
Real Women Have Curves – Josefina López
Waiting in the Wing: Portrait of a Queer Motherhood – Cherríe Moraga
What Night Brings – Carla Trujillo
The Latin Deli – Judith Ortiz Cofer
Rituals of Survival: A Woman’s Portfolio – Nicholasa Mohr
African Passions and Other Stories - Beatriz Rivera-Barnes
Blessed by Thunder: Memoir of a Cuban Girlhood – Flor Fernández Barrios
The Dirty Girls Social Club – Alisa Valdés-Rodríguez
How the García Girls Lost Their Accent – Julia Alvarez
Course description:
This course introduces students to a fast growing sector of contemporary literature written in English by Latinos
living in the U.S.A. This literary boom reflects both the interest and need on the part of intellectuals to
represent their experiences as members of a Hispanic group thriving within an Anglo population. These
Hispanic Americans often write memoirs to record their lives and those of their people, or they filter their
fiction through an ethnic lens that captures recollections of another country, the Spanish language, and their
respective cultures. The readings selected for this course will help us examine how ancestry, immigration, bicultural and gendered realities shape the identity and perspective of Latinos across communities and generations
in the U.S.A.
Course objectives:
• Familiarize students with the experiences of Latinos in this country as expressed by authors who currently
live and publish in the United States.
• Help students understand differences and similarities among major Latino groups in the U.S.A.
• Promote class discussions, critical thinking and written skills through specific class assignments.
Course requirements:
Sign and pledge all written work to be handed in. It is your responsibility to complete all work by the class
period indicated on this syllabus. Late work will incur a grade penalty. Please familiarize yourself with the
attached information sheet containing the Spanish Program’s policies regarding course work!
• Participation (20 %) is expected from every student. Active participation means answering questions
about the readings and volunteering contributions relevant to our discussion topic. On occasion students
may be asked to lead the discussion on an assigned reading. The participation grade will take into account
the questions you prepare to lead the discussion, thoroughness in completing the assigned readings and
video viewer sheets as scheduled on this syllabus.
There will be eight videos on reserve for this class. You are required to view and hand in a typed viewer
sheet for any six of your choice (three by midterm and another three by the end of the semester) as
scheduled on this syllabus. The viewer sheets are posted on Blackboard and designed to help you take
notes on the films and recall information on the topic. Please type directly on the viewer sheets that you
hand in. Viewer sheets will not be accepted after the Friday of the week in which they are due.
Only with your involvement will our class succeed in interpreting this literature from multiple and diverse
perspectives. I urge all students to present their views and hear those of others with respect for differences.
• *Midterm exam (25%) will be assigned as scheduled on this syllabus.
• *Final exam (25%) will be self-administered during the college’s exam period.
*Note on exams: A portion of the midterm or final exam may consist of a take-home assignment. If this is
the case, you are expected to abide by the Honor Code and work on your own, unassisted. Take-home tests
must be typed and double-spaced. You may use a dictionary, thesaurus and spell-checker, but peer tutors
may not be consulted for a take-home test.
•
Final paper (30%) consists of a 7-10 page topic paper. The final paper must bring into the discussion at
least two (2) course readings that are relevant to your topic. Please note that a draft is due weeks before the
deadline of the completed paper. I, therefore, encourage you to read ahead of the syllabus. Only drafts
handed in by the due date will be reviewed by the instructor to provide feedback for editing your final
version.
Final Grade Calculation:
•
•
•
•
Homework & Participation
Midterm
Final Exam
Final Paper
20%
25%
25%
30%
Course schedule
January:
Assignment for Discussion
Source
F/19
Course Introduction
M/22
“Eleven,” “Mericans,” “Anguianos
Religious Articles Rosaries Statues...,”
in Woman Hollering Creek by Sandra Cisneros
W/24
“Little Miracles, Kept Promises”
Woman Hollering Creek
F/26
“Woman Hollering Creek”
Woman Hollering Creek
M/29
“Never Marry a Mexican”
Woman Hollering Creek
(1) Viewer sheet for video # 1449 due this week (Americano as Apple Pie: The Blending of Cultures)
W/31
Shadow of a Man – Cherríe Moraga
in Shattering the Myth: Plays by Hispanic
Women, eds. Denis Chávez & Linda Feyder
February:
F/2
Shadow of a Man
M/5
Real Women Have Curves – Josefina López
(2) Viewer sheet for DVD Adelante mujeres: History of Mexican-American Women due this week
W/7
Waiting in the Wings – Cheríe Moraga
F/9
Waiting in the Wings – Cheríe Moraga
M/12
What Night Brings – Carla Trujillo
(3) Viewer sheet for video #567 due this week (The Status of Latina Women)
W/14
What Night Brings – Carla Trujillo
F/16
What Night Brings – Carla Trujillo
M/19
What Night Brings – Carla Trujillo
W/21
“Nada”; “Advanced Biology”;
“The Patterson Public Library”; “American History”
F/ 23
Final Project topic research
M/26
“Not for Sale”; “The Story of my Body”;
in The Latin Deli
“The Myth of the Latin Woman...”
(4) Viewer sheet for video #1448 due this week (Americano as Apple Pie: The Yearning to be.. . )
W/28
“A Thanksgiving Celebration”
“Happy Birthday”
in Rituals of Survival: A Woman’s Portfolio by
Nicholasa Mohr
F/2
“Aunt Rosana’s Rocker,”
“A Time with a Future”
Rituals
M/ 5
“The Artist”
Rituals
W/7
Midterm
F/9
“African Passions”; “What Miranda Lost”
in The Latin Deli - Judith Ortiz Cofer
March:
African Passions and Other Stories -
Beatriz Rivera
Mar.12-16
Spring break
M19
“Life Insurance”;
‘Once in a Lifetime Offering”
African Passions
W/21
“Paloma”
African Passions
F/23
“Bells”; “Grandmother’s Secret”
African Passions
M26
Blessed by Thunder – Flor Fernández Barrios
Chapters 1-4
(5) Viewer sheet for video #587 due this week (Biculturalism and Acculturation Among Latinos)
W/28
Blessed by Thunder
Chapters 5-9
F/30
Blessed by Thunder
Chapters 10-16
April:
M/2
Blessed by Thunder: Memoir of a Cuban
Chapters 17-20
(6) Viewer sheet due this week for video on The Cuban-Americans
W/4
The Dirty Girls Social Club - Alisa Valdés-Rodríguez
F/6
Easter break
M/9
The Dirty Girls Social Club
(7) Viewer sheet for Spanglish due this week (DVD PN 1997.S663)
W/11
Final Paper draft due
F/13
The Dirty Girls Social Club
M/16
The Dirty Girls Social Club
W/18
Chapters: Antojo; The Kiss; The Four Girls
F/20
Classes canceled for President’s inauguration
M/23
Chapters: Joe; The Rudy Elmenhurst Story,
How the García Girls
A Regular Revolution,
(8) Video #1450 due this week (Ties that Bind: Immigration Stories)
W/25
Chapters: Daughter of Invention; Trespass, Snow,
Floor Show
F/27
Chapters: The Blood of the Conquistadores,
How the García Girls
The Human Body, Still Lives; An American Surprise; The Drum
M/30
Final Paper due
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
Julia Alvarez
How the García Girls