Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

The History of Central American and the Hispanic Caribbean


Art by Escalet
By Frank Diaz Escalet

Dr. Aldo Lauria-Santiago

PURPOSE AND SCOPE:
This course provides an advanced introduciton to the history of Central America and the Hispanic Caribbean (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic) since the early nineteenth century.  It is organized around the concept of a dialogue between "national" political histories--that is, the formation of independent states after centuries of Spanish colonial rule and the hetereogeneous experiences and histories of workers, farmers, peasants, artisans, slaves.  Within this framework we will also examine aspects of the social history and economic development of the region, including the study of land and labor systems, gender relations, race and ethnicity, community and class formation, and state formation.   Nonetheless, the readings are intended to provide an overview of the principal historical themes in the literature on each of the countries covered.

Please notice that this course will rely heavily on student discussion of readings.  I will provide an  introductory lecture, but for the most part I will be eliciting critical class discussion by posing questions, suggesting themes and challenging perspectives.  Class sessions are for discussion of issues, questions, relationships, concepts, and approaches.

REQUIREMENTS:
Your participation in this class constitutes an agreement between us. As part of this agreement I expect you to follow the guidelines presented here and I in turn will do my best to facilitate (not deliver in a silver platter), in a variety of manners, the most important themes in the study of Central American and Hispanic Caribbean history.  Most important, I expect a reasonable degree of enthusiasm and interest from you.  You will have to complete all requirements in order to receive a grade in this course.  I expect you to come to all class sessions and be on time.  I expect all students regardless of personal style and gender to participate in debates and discussions, and to feel free to bring in any additional materials, sources, or questions to class meetings.

You can expect from me: Useful written comments on your work but also oral and individual feedback.  Careful guidance of class discussion in an open-ended but still directed fashion.  Openness to consider new questions and different ways of understanding things.  Respect for your opinions and experiences but also a careful prodding of your assumptions, biases and silences.  Fair grading and evaluation and reasonable expectations as to what can be learned in one semester, despite the longer-than-average reading load.  Most importantly: a passionate interest and concern for the peoples of the countries we will be talking about, and a live fascination with all aspects of history.  I will also provide you with weekly questions that will guide your work and give you a sense of what I expect you to come away with at the end of the week.

Participation:  Your participation in class activities, including attendance, will be an important component of your final grade.  The short assignments that form part of the participation grade include short response papers.  They should be about one page long and need not be typewritten.  They should, however, reflect some thinking, coherent questioning, analysis or reflections upon some aspect of that weeks readings.

Films:  I will schedule four or five films as part of this course.  Some showings will be during class time, others will not.  Attendance is required and encouraged.

DETERMINATION OF GRADE:

Late papers and assignments will be penalized for each day of lateness at the rate of a third of a grade per day (B to B-, B- to C+, A to A-, etc).

In the calculation of the final grade of borderline cases improvement and dynamic class participation will be decisive factors.  I consider all students equally capable of successfully completing the requirements for this class with an above average grade.  In other words, I do not automatically assume that there cannot be "too many" A's (or C's, for that matter) in any class.  I take into consideration the best and the worst that a particular class produces in determining the grade of all students.

Two Short Discussion Papers:  I will provide the topics for these papers.  Some will be based on class readings and discussion while others will involve some additional or individual work.  These papers will need to be 6-7 pages in length and reflect your participation in class, your completion of readings, and your own analysis of the materials.  They will be due as indicated in the handout that explains each project.  They must conform to the history department's handbook on the writing of papers.  The third paper will combine discussion of in-class readings and issues with open-ended research and a in-class report on a specific country.  Each student will also be responsible for organizing class discussion once during the semester.

A signficant part of your grade will be determined by your class participation, weekly written work and attendance. Students will often be asked to prepare  1-3 page reports on the readings and participate in presentations of the assigned materials. Sometimes these short assignments will be a summary or discussion of the readings. Other times I will ask you to answer specific questions.

BOOKS FOR THIS COURSE:
The following books have been ordered by the bookstore. Other readings will be available in a reading packet which will be made available to you for individual copying.

COURSE ORGANIZATION AND SCHEDULE:

Unit 1: [Jan 18,20,]  Formation of Colonial Societies 1500-1898

Unit 2: [Jan 25,27]  Land, Labor and Production during the Nineteenth Century Unit 3: [Feb 1,3,8]  Nationalism, Race and Colonialism in Cuba, 1860s-1900 Unit 4:  [Feb 10,15,17] Empire of Liberty or Empire of Sugar? US Capital in the Caribbean 1900-1930s Unit  5: [Feb 22,24] Peasants and Workers in the Social and Political History of the Region Unit 6: [Feb 29, Mar 2] Colonialism and Autonomy in Puerto Rico Unit 7: [Mar 14,21,23]  Neo-Colonialism and the origins of the Cuban Revolution Unit  8: [Mar 28,30,4]  Historical Origins of the Civil War in Guatemala Unit  9: [April 6,11,13] Succeses and Failures of the Sandinista Revolution Unit  10: [April 18,25,27]  Revolution and Counter-insurgency in El Salvador