Modern Latin America

Latin America since Independence /311-234-01/ Fall 2008

Dr. Jonathan Ablard

Time: 9:25-10:40am

Where: Smiddy Hall 114

Office Hours: Muller 403/ T 2:30-3:30pm, W 1:30-3 pm, Th. 8am-9am

607-274-3558/ jablard@ithaca.edu

Course Description and Goals

In this course, we will examine the major political, economic and social developments that have shaped Latin America since the late colonial period. Emphasis will be placed on integrating different forms of historical scholarship in order to gain a more synthetic picture of modern Latin America. Major themes of the course include the relationship of Latin America to Europe and the United States, the relationship of race, class and gender to politics and economics and the impact of politics (domestic and international) on the writing of history.

I teach this course with two assumptions. First, the history of Latin America is deeply connected to that of the United States. Throughout the course, I will argue that one cannot understand either place without studying both. As such, by studying Latin America we will also develop a better appreciation of the political, social, and economic history of the United States. Second, I argue that Latin America is not as radically different from the United States as the media often suggests. Throughout the class, we will stop to consider the ways in which events in Latin America have parallels in the United States.

Students who work hard in this class can expect to improve their reading, writing and research skills. To achieve that goal, the instructor pledges to grade all papers and exams solely on their merits.

Academic Honesty

“Academic honesty is a cornerstone of the mission of the College. Unless it is otherwise stipulated, students may submit for evaluation only that work that is their own and that is submitted originally for a specific course. According to traditions of higher education, forms of conduct that will be considered evidence of academic misconduct include but are not limited to the following: conversations between students during an examination; reviewing, without authorization, material during an examination (e.g., personal notes, another student's exam); unauthorized collaboration; submission of a paper also submitted for credit in another course; reference to written material related to the course brought into an examination room during a closed-book, written examination; and submission without proper acknowledgment of work that is based partially or entirely on the ideas or writings of others. Only when a faculty member gives prior approval for such actions can they be acceptable.”

-Article 7.1.4. Ithaca College Policy Manual

Students found to be in violation of this policy will be expelled from the class, will receive a failing grade and will have their name reported to the appropriate college authorities.

Class Policies

Students are expected to come to class well-prepared to discuss the readings. I welcome questions about the readings and do not expect students to always understand everything that they have read. Consistent failure to come to class prepared, however, will lead to a reduction in your final grade. Students who consistently come to class late will be asked to explain their chronic tardiness to the entire class. Disruptive behavior, be it use of cell phones, loud eating, passing notes, falling asleep, leaving the classroom and returning, etc. will result in a public discussion of these behaviors, as well as other sanctions.

Attendance Policy

Excused absences include medical and family emergencies, religious holidays, and IC sanctioned activities. Whenever possible, please give me advanced warning that you will be absent. Every three unexcused absences will lead to a ½ step reduction in your final grade. Although getting notes from a classmate is fine, you should not count on getting a full report of discussions, observation of films, etc.

Books

Course Reader (Pick up and cost TBA)

Marshall C. Eakin, THE HISTORY OF LATIN AMERICA: Collision of Cultures (Palgrave)

Thomas O’Brien, The Century of US Capitalism in Latin America (New Mexico)

Robert H. Holden and Eric Zolov, Latin America and the United States: A Documentary History (Oxford)

Mariano Azuela, The Underdogs (Hackett)

Nick Cullather, Secret History: The CIA’s Classified Account of Its Operations in Guatemala, 1952-1954 (Stanford)

Greg Gandin, Empire’s Workshop: Latin America, the United States, and the Rise of the New Imperialism (Owl Books)

Sandra Lauderdale Graham, House and Street: The Domestic World of Servants and Masters in Nineteenth-Century Rio de Janeiro (Texas)

Jo Fisher, Mothers of the Disappeared (South End Press)

Assignments and Grading:

Note: I reserve the right to change or add assignments provided that the changes are reasonable and that I provide at least a week’s notice.

Doyle Response Paper (5%)

One page single spaced response to Kate Doyle’s “The Atrocity Files.” What are the challenges and dangers of writing about the recent past in Guatemala? What does this article suggest to you about some of the challenges or issues of studying modern Latin American history?

Public Event Response Papers (5%)

Once during the semester students will attend a film, public talk, etc. which relates to Latin America or to the themes addressed in the course. Write a one page single spaced response paper in which you discuss the relationship of the event to the readings and discussions in class. I will provide a schedule of events. Students who write about an event which they did not attend will receive an F for the course and be reported to the Office of Judicial Affairs. An extensive list of possible events will be distributed during the first or second week of the semester. Some events are listed on the syllabus.

Paper Proposal (5%)

This should be a one page description of your research question and sources that you will use to answer it.

Mid-Term Exam (20%): In class exam with Blue Books (sorry).

Final Exam (20%)

Take home exams. Students are expected to focus on answering the questions in a manner that is analytical and critical and which employs all of the relevant class readings. Exams which simply provide large amounts of information with no argument, or that make an argument but provide no evidence will receive poor marks.

Book Reviews (3 x 10% each)= 30%

Write on three of the four books listed below. Each essay will be three pages, double spaced, with social science citation format. Due dates are listed in class schedule. Late policy: 1 full letter grade off for every day late. Late papers will receive no comments.

• Lauderdale Graham, House and Street

More than a description of the lives of domestic servants, slave and free, in nineteenth century Rio de Janeiro, Lauderdale Graham provides an incisive analysis of how class, race, economics, and health shaped life in this important Brazilian city. In an essay, explain and analyze the author’s argument. In what ways does the book provide a useful window into the social dynamics of the city? What are the book’s shortcomings?

• Azuela, The Underdogs

Many critics and historians consider this book to be the most accurate depiction of the Mexican Revolution by a novelist. What kinds of conflicts does Azuela describe in the novel and how do they fit into the broader tensions within Mexican society during the period of the Porfiriato and Revolution?

• Cullather, Secret History

Cullather’s book raises a number of critical questions that can form the basis of your paper. First, according to the book, why did the U.S. government wish to take out the Arbenz government? How did various U.S. officials justify the overthrow? From what you can tell, what was their perception of what was going on in Guatemala between 1944 and 1954? Was their assessment accurate? If not, why did they believe what they did?

• Fischer, Mothers of the Disappeared

Use one or more of the following questions to analyze this book. What explains the ability of the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo to resist such a violent military regime? What were the challenges to organizing such a group, other than the obvious threat from the military? What role did international factors play in their movement? How would you describe their ideology?

Research Paper (1) (20%)

The capstone assignment of the course is an ten page research paper. I will base your grade upon the strength of your thesis, the clarity of your writing and the depth and breadth of the sources that you use. (Effort, time expended, and frequent meetings with me will not have any impact on your grade). As a general rule, the only acceptable internet sources are those that are accessed via Ithaca College Library’s website. These include such sites as The New York Times, J-Stor, Project MUSE, Current History, etc. There are also useful internet sources that are connected with major research libraries. Two most important of these are the Handbook on Latin American Studies which is housed at the Library of Congress and the Hispanic American Periodical Index.I absolutely forbid students in this class to use Wikipedia or any other encyclopedia or web-based resource (including blogs, personal web-pages, etc.) which is not connected to a certifiable university or government agency (including the governments of Latin America, the United States, etc.). If you are not clear about an electronic source (and I would err on the side of caution), speak with me first. Failure to follow these guidelines will result in a failing grade on the final paper.

The final product must include the following:

Title, author, date at top of the 1st page (No title pages or covers)

Paper Abstract: one paragraph synopsis of your argument.

Footnotes (Chicago or Turabian)

Bibliography (Chicago or Turabian)

Numbered pages (8-10 pages)

Six scholarly secondary sources

Essay Options:

What follows are some suggested topics to get you thinking about how to frame a research paper. Considering the novelty of this region to most of you, I would suggest that you consider developing a question about how historians have debated a given issue over time. You may also wish to use one of the assigned readings as a starting point for finding a topic.

• What factors led to the abolition of slavery in Brazil? How is the

Brazilian case different from the United States?

• How and why have Latin American women participated in political movements on both the left and the right? How and why does Latin American feminism differ from its North American equivalent?

• How did the US justify the occupation of various Caribbean and Central

American nations from 1898 through 1933? What sorts of debates existed

within the United States over these occupations?

• What are major themes in the history of race in Cuba and/or Brazil since

independence? How do their histories compare with that of the United States?

What factors explain the differences?

• Why have Asians and Middle Easterners immigrated to Latin America? What

challenges have these groups experienced in their adopted homes? How do

their experiences compare with that of similar groups in the United States?

• Compare and contrast the military governments of Chile (1973-1990) and

Argentina (1976-1982) or Argentina and Brazil (1965-1988). Why did the military take power? How did they rule? What was their relationship to

various civil and ecclesiastic groups? Why did they leave power?

• Colombia continues to be vexed by guerrilla warfare, drug trafficking

and political violence. What are the origins of these problems and what

historical and social factors seem to be impeding the peaceful resolution of

this conflict?

• How has Latin American immigration to the United States changed during

the twentieth century? What factors account for the change?

• What were the positive and negative results of the development of the

coffee industry in Central America? Why was the political, social and

economic impact of coffee different in Costa Rica, Guatemala and El Salvador

in the period from 1850-1930?

• How does the history of Puerto Rico fit with and/or diverge from that of other Caribbean nations? In what ways is the study of Puerto Rico a useful way to study both the United States and Latin America?
• Provide an historical analysis of a film from or about Latin America. Does the film accurately portray a given historical epoch? Does the film betray a particular political or social perspective? What is believable or not believable in terms of the characters’ behaviors and attitudes? Explain why?
• Historiography: select three scholarly texts from three different decades that address a single issue and explain how and why their interpretations differ. Your essay should contemplate the authors’ social or political position, their use of certain sources, and the way in which one work builds upon the argument of a previous work.

Class Schedule

Week One

8/28 Introductions

Week Two

9/2 Kate Doyle, “The Atrocity Files: Deciphering the archives of Guatemala’s dirty war,” Harper’s Magazine (December 2007) (Class Reader)

* Response Paper Due

9/4 Colonial Inheritances?

Eakin, Chapters 1-10

Note: This is essential background reading for the period prior to 1808. Students should focus on the essential social and economic themes of the period, but do not worry about the details.

Week Three “The domination of Cádiz had simply been exchanged for the hegemony of Liverpool.” -Tulio Halperin-Donghi

9/9 Independence

Eakin, Chapters 11-13; “Independence” in Class Reader; Holden & Zolov, No. 1

9/11 Early Independence

Eakin, Ch. 14

Holden & Zolov, No. 2-6

Week Four

9/16 US-Latin American relations to 1848

H&Z, No. 7,8,10, 11

O’Brien, Chapter 1

9/18 Liberals and Conservatives

“”Nineteenth Century Society and Politics”

Week Five

9/23 Slavery in the Americas

Lauderdale Graham, House and Street

*Lauderdale Graham essay due

9/25 Rise of Liberalism

Eakin, Ch. 15

Week Six

9/30 Commodities and the Dilemmas of Progress

“Export Economy,” “Immigration to Argentina and Brazil” and “War and State-formation” in Reader

10/2 Robert M. Levine, "Mud-Hut Jerusalem": Canudos Revisited

The Hispanic American Historical Review, Vol. 68, No. 3. (Aug., 1988), pp. 525-572. (J-Stor) Discussion Questions: Why did the Canudos rebellion occur? How does Levine’s interpretation differ from that of contemporary observers such as Da Cunha? What does the rebellion and the reaction to it reveal about fin de siecle Brazil (politics, science, notions of race, class, the military, etc.)?

Week Seven

10/7 David McCreery, “Debt Servitude in Rural Guatemala, 1876-1936,” Hispanic American Historical Review 63:4 (November 1983): 735-759. Discussion Questions: How did the introduction of coffee into Guatemala change the lives of the indigenous peoples? Why did economic development produce such problematic results? What does the case of debt servitude in Guatemala tell us about the political, economic and social condition of the country?

10/9 Bitter Cane

* Paper Proposal Due

Week Eight

10/14 MID TERM EXAMINATION (In-Class)

Week Nine

10/21 US-Latin American Relations, 1848-1920s

H&Z, Nos. 13-17, 21, 24, 25,28, 29, 34, 37

Eakin, Chapter 16-17

O’Brien, Chapter 2

10/23 Central America and the Caribbean

H & Z, Nos. 36, 38, 39, 46, 47, 50, 51

Grandin, Empire’s Workshop, Chapter 1

Week Ten

10/28 Social Reform in the Liberal Era

Eakin, Chapter 21 (read sections concerning pre-1959)

“Medicine and Social Reform” & “Urbanization” in Reader

10/30 Mexican Revolution

“Mexican Revolution” in Reader

Eakin, Chapters 18 and 19 (to p. 295)

Week Eleven

11/4 Mexican Revolution

11/6 The Underdogs

*Azuela paper is Due!

Week Twelve

11/11 Labor and Populism

O’Brien, Chapter 3

11/13 Democracy and Social Democracy before the Cuban Revolution

Eakin, Chapter Chapter 19 (pp. 295-303)

O’Brien, Chapter 4

“Electoral Reform and Labor Unions” in Reader

Week Thirteen

11/18 Discussion of Cullather, Secret History

* Cullather Essay Due

11/20 Cuban Revolution

Eakin, Chapter 20 (pp.305-14)

Week Fourteen

11/25-27 THANKSGIVING BREAK-No Classes

* Start Reading Grandin, Chapters 2-6

Week Fifteen

12/2 Reform, Reaction, Revolution

Eakin, Chapters 20-23; “Cold War Dictatorship” and “U$ Capital in Latin America” in Reader

12/4 Fischer, Mothers of the Disappeared

* Fischer Paper Due

Week Sixteen

12/9 What Latin America can teach us about us

Grandin, Empire’s Workshop

12/11 Open Discussion

12/15 (Monday): RESEARCH Papers DUE by 4pm

FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE

Take Home Exams due December 19thth by NOON