Integrating Project Seminar (395-0-21)

Topic

Dystopia in the Americas or How not to Fall into D

Instructors

Gabriel Restrepo Parrado

Meeting Info

Harris Hall L05: Tues, Thurs 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

Course title: Dystopia in the Americas or How not to Fall into Despair

Dystopia is everywhere. From Marvel movies to daily news predicting natural disasters in the upcoming decades due to human extractive activities, today we are constantly exposed to dire visions of the future. However, the word "dystopia" has been used to describe a sharp critique of the present while maintaining the principle of utopian hope, that is, the belief that we can live better and actually prevent catastrophe. Dystopias can be political, social, environmental, racial—among others—but they all have something in common: they express our anxieties stemming from our experience of the present. This course offers a transnational overview of different types of dystopias (ecological, political, racial, technological) in the Americas and promotes critical engagement with these narratives. We will explore movies, tv series, short stories, and artworks from Latin America-Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Cuba, Mexico—and the United States to understand how dystopias can articulate our deepest fears and anxieties, but also how, in critiquing the present, they might suggest alternatives to think outside our nightmares and envision better futures.

Class Attributes

Attendance at 1st class mandatory