SPAN 5400 - Borderlands

Goals: To explore and interpret cross-cultural Borderlands experiences as they relate to the Latino world, with a special focus on female iconography and folklore in Mexico and in the United States. This course is designed to help the student understand the role that icons play in forming models of behavior for women (and men) and how those models are perpetuated, challenged, or reinterpreted in our time. The objective is to explore, in theory and in practice, communication across cultural boundaries.

Content: Three female figures, La Llorona, la Malinche, and la Virgen de Guadalupe, are well known Mexican icons that are increasingly important in the U.S. due to the continuing borderlands immigration experience. Emphasis is placed on the origin of stories related to these female figures and to the evolution of the attitudes surrounding them. These icons are redefined according to the wants and needs of successive generations and play an important role in various aspects of social, political, and religious life. Concepts related to these icons are found and discussed in such disparate female figures as Frida Kahlo, Dolores del Rio, Selena, Lilith (Adam’s first wife), Medea, and Madonna. Readings include works by Rudolfo Anaya, Sandra Cisneros, and Gloria Anzaldua. Films include the Life of Frida Kahlo, Lone Star, and the Forbidden Goddess.

Taught: Alternate years.

Recommended prerequisite: SPAN 1120 or equivalent.

Credits: 4