Studies in 20th Century Literatures & Cultures (420-0-1)

Topic

Urban Lenses, Urban Voices: Spatiality and Habitat

Instructors

Alfonso Fierro

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-435: Thurs 2:00PM - 4:50PM

Overview of class

Spatial Forms: Urban Space, Habitation, and Writing in Modern Mexico

This seminar will depart from the hypothesis that, among the social conflicts rendered visible by the Mexican revolution, the struggle over the living conditions of Mexico's popular urban sectors evolved and became increasingly salient throughout the twentieth century as cities expanded with the country's industrialization. On the one hand, the seminar will explore the rise of a postrevolutionary governmental discourse that, using specific registers and languages such as urban photography and statistics, aimed to observe, classify, diagnose, and ultimately disciple popular forms of habitation. At the same time, we will compare this with other aesthetic registers and practices that aimed at offering contrasting accounts of popular urban habitation and the impoverished housing conditions of Mexico's urban working classes, from socialist realism novels to melodrama in film and radionovelas, from the "culture of poverty" anthropology to the late 1960s literary turn towards documental literary forms like the testimonial chronicle. In the process, this seminar will allow us to trace glimpses of key habitational struggles in modern Mexico, leading to experiences such as state-developed housing projects and grassroots cooperative housing experiences.

Learning Objectives

-Students will practice key research skills including close textual analysis, visual analysis, paraphrasing theoretical arguments, comparing and contrasting different materials, and more.
-Students will practice key presentation and teaching skills such as oral presentation and discussion management.
-Students will develop a concise and complete research project leading to the production of a podcast episode in collaboration with peers. This will offer practice in digital humanities skills including, research, design, digital production, and outreach.
-Students will develop debating skills through a seminar format based on discussions.
-Students will engage with modern Mexico's cultural history and scholarship in this field.
-Students will engage with theoretical sources in critical urban studies.

Class Materials (Required)

All course materials will be available on Canvas.

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Please contact the department of Spanish & Portuguese to request a permission number, spanish-portuguese@northwestern.edu.