SMC Core Curriculum Course Proposal

SMC Core Curriculum Course Proposal

1. Name of proponent: Professor Myrna Santiago
2. E-Mail address:
3. Department of proponent: History
4. Name of Department hosting the course: History
5. Name of Department Chair: Myrna Santiago
6. Course Information: History 152: Revolution! Latin America and the Search for the Common Good in the Twentieth Century
7. Semester in which the course will be offered: Fall 2013
8. How often is this course taught: Every other year
9. Course prerequisites: None
10. Unit value of course: One
11. Proper audience for course: sophomores, juniors, seniors
12. The learning goals for which the course is being submitted: Engaging the World: Global Perspectives, Option 2

Teaching Narrative for Global Perspectives

The course will examine how revolutionary movements in Mexico, Bolivia, Guatemala, Cuba, Chile, and Venezuela constructed their own visions of a just world and the common good over the course of the twentieth century and early twenty-first and sought to bring them into fruition through peaceful or violent actions. With regards to the learning objective of asking students to demonstrate an understanding of the world from a specific non-US and non-Western European viewpoint, the course will ask students to identify how various movements understood their own socio-economic realities, what theories they used to critique their own societies, and how they defined the common good for the future of their countries in the first place. Students will then discuss and analyze to what degree those same movements put in practice their ideas and theories through governmental policies and socio-economic priorities. Lastly, students will write three papers in which they will have to articulate viewpoints from the countries assigned (Mexico, Cuba) and those they select themselves (four different ones). In correctly articulating how those different movements diagnosed the world and sought solutions for the problems they identified, the students will be demonstrating an understanding of Latin American perspectives on issues of justice and the common good in the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.

Learning Narrative for Global Perspectives

The course will use oral participation and three papers to evaluate students’ progress in understanding how Latin American revolutionary movements interpreted their realities and organized to change them. Using a Socratic method, I aim to steer oral participation in the direction of discussing Latin American notions of the common good, community, social justice, and the social order over the course of the twentieth century in class, every day. Thus the requirements for participation are stringent (see syllabus) and student participation is carefully monitored. The students’ understanding of Latin American perspectives deepens over time as they move from one case to the next chronologically and they begin to do comparisons on their own. Here the instructor’s task is to make sure students keep in mind how historical change takes place and how one revolutionary experience affected the next, as the revolutionaries themselves refined their ideas, broadened their social base, and tried to correct mistakes they believed their predecessors committed. The conversation is cumulative at that point, even though the concepts remain the same at heart. Three writing assignments, increasing in length, focus on the constituent parts of the learning goal: defining terms and articulating someone else’s point of view accurately before moving to critique mode. Students will start with two papers, one on Mexico and one on Cuba, poking at those issues in six pages of text. The final paper allows them to play to their interests and strengths in choosing theory or synthesis, or both, but challenging them to see if there are patterns across four different countries in four different periods of time, asking them to test whether professed revolutionaries lived up to their ideas and promises.

Syllabus is attached.

History 152:

Revolution! Latin America and the Search for the Common Good in the Twentieth Century

Professor: Myrna Santiago

Course description. Latin Americans have been debating what constitutes the common good as they fight for social justice over the course of centuries. In the 20th and 21st that struggle led to multiple revolutionary movements and the rise of several revolutionary governments. Why has revolution been so pronounced in the continent? Who was involved in those debates and great upheavals? What were their grievances and how did they define the common good? And what did revolutionaries achieve when they gained power? To what degree did they achieve their vision of the common good and social justice? Those are the questions that frame this course on Latin American Revolutions. The class follows a case study method in chronological order. Mexico is the first case, as it was the first social revolution of the 20th century (1910-1946) and it produced its share of theoretical documents about the common good. It is compared to the Bolivian Revolution (1952-1964). Next is a set of readings about the Guatemalan experiment that began in 1944 and was crushed in 1954, with an eye to its legacy for politically radical movements, including the 1959 revolution in Cuba. After analyzing socialism in Cuba and the theoretical work of Ernesto “Che” Guevara on his conception of the common good and social justice, the focus will turn to Chile’s peaceful road to socialism (1970-1973), followed by the Sandinista Revolution in Nicaragua (1979-1990). The class will return to Mexico briefly to look at the Zapatista revolt of 1994 and its vision of the same topics, to finish with a glance at lasnuevasizquierdas in South America, particularly Bolivia under Evo Morales and Venezuela under Hugo Chávez. Throughout, the class will analyze and discuss the ideas about a just social order based on the common good each revolution produced, articulating their points of view and debating them. To that end, students will read primary sources that speak to a Latin American point of view on social justice and the common good to complement the secondary literature and answer the questions posed.

Method. The professor will use a Socratic style to run this seminar course, with mini-lectures as necessary. That means students should be prepared to answer questions in class on a daily basis.

Learning objectives and outcomes. By the end of the course, students will have working definitions of a number of historical concepts, including 19th century Liberalism; capitalism; anarchism; socialism; communism; revolution; feminism; solidarity; liberation theology and the common good. In addition, students will be familiar with some of the historiographical debates about revolution in Latin America. Students should also be able to demonstrate an understanding of the world from a Latin American perspective and articulate that point of view in writing, including reflection on the ways Latin Americans envisioned finding fulfillment in community. At the same time, students will use a comparative framework to write critical accounts of what Latin Americans believed to constitute a just social order, as part of their study of violent and peaceful revolutions as means to achieve those goals. Likewise, students will sharpen their skills in critical reading of media coverage of the region and will practice analyzing visual material (photographs, art, and film) and expressing themselves orally with confidence, sophistication, and poise. Lastly, students should be able to write critical essays referring to historical questions and theoretical problems raised by their readings, the professor, class discussion, and the media.

Requirements and assessment. Grades measure performance, not personality or any other quality. Thus, preparation for class is essential. The reading load will be around 150 pages per week. Positive, active class participation is expected. That means students must demonstrate to the professor that they have done the reading, answering questions and commenting on the material, supporting their points of view with textual references. Fluff, off-topic and irrelevant remarks do not constitute a positive contribution to class discussion and will count against the grade. Attendance is mandatory. Three absences will automatically deduct one whole grade for the course. Students are required to attend two history-sponsored co-curricular events outside of class. The professor will make note of attendance. Such events are an integral part of a college education and developing the habit of life-long learning. Participation is 20% of the grade.

Each student will make a brief presentation on a news item, do a critique of it in class, and turn it in for evaluation (see “newsbrief” for details; 10%). The purpose of this exercise is to track what the mainstream media says about Latin American countries, paying close attention to tone, point of view, and reliability. The learning objective of this assignment is to sharpen students’ critical approach to the news media.

Students will write three papers. Two will be 6 pages of text, plus additional pages for footnotes at the end and a bibliography (20% each). The third paper will be 9-10 pages of text, plus additional pages for footnotes at the end and bibliography (30%). Instructions are attached. Papers should be turned in as hard copies on the day they are due. Neither e-mailed papers nor late ones will be accepted. Drafts are encouraged; re-writes are not. All grades are final.

Class Etiquette. Education is a serious and professional affair. Therefore classroom demeanor should be up to par: no tardiness, no early departures, no walking out of the classroom for any reason; no food (drinks are fine), no cell phones, no pajamas. Computers will be allowed unless they become a distraction or a nuisance. The professor will determine what a distraction is and what constitutes a nuisance. Breaking class etiquette rules will result in a diminished participation grade. Agreement on issues and ideas is not expected; respect for each other’s opinions is. Remember the following: if classes do not make you intellectually uncomfortable, you are not learning.

Final reminder: education is your profession. If you miss work, arrive late, leave early, walk in and out of your place of employment, and do not perform, you get fired. The same holds for class: you fail.

Policy regarding disabilities:

Student Disability Services extends reasonable and appropriate accommodations that take into account the context of the course and its essential elements, for individuals with qualifying disabilities. Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Student Disability Services Director at (925) 631-4164 to set up a confidential appointment to discuss accommodation guidelines and available services. Additional information regarding the services available may be found at the following address on the Saint Mary’s website:

Required Readings:

William H. Beezley and Colin M. Maclachlan, Mexicans in Revolution, 1910-1946

Nellie Campobello, Cartucho/My Mother’s Hands

Thomas Wright, Latin America in the Era of the Cuban Revolution, Revised Edition

Ernesto Che Guevara, Back on the Road

Hilda Gadea, Ernesto: A Memoir of Che Guevara

Packet of articles and primary sources on e-reserve, marked with an *

Highly recommended:

Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History, 5th Edition

Class Schedule

Mon, Aug 29Introduction: “The Revolution will not be televised”

Mexico: First Social Revolution of the 20th Century, 1910-1946

Wed, Aug 31ThePorfiriato as Historical Context

Discuss: Beezley and MacClachlan, Introduction, Ch 1; Plan de San Luis Potosí,

Definitions due today: 19th century Liberalism, capitalism, democracy

Fri, Sept 2Zapata and the Common Good: ¡Tierra y Libertad!

Discuss: *Peter Calvert, “Emiliano Zapata,” pp. 3-26; Plan de Ayala:

Define: anarchism, socialism

Wed, Sept 7Pancho Villa and his norteños: All action, but the Common Good?

Discuss: Campobello, Sections I, II, III; *Friedrich Katz, “Villa and Hollywood”;

*Charles Burress, “Wells Fargo’s Hush-Hush Deal with Pancho Villa,” San Francisco Chronicle (May 5, 1999)

Film recommendation: “And Pancho Villa Starring as Himself”

Fri, Sept 9Las soldaderas: No Voice, All Action

Discuss: *Elisabeth Salas, Soldaderas, Ch 3: Amazons and Wives, Ch 4: In the thick of the

Fray

Define: patriarchy, feminism

Film: “Como Agua Para Chocolate”

Mon, Sept 12Las soldaderas and their Representation

Discuss: *Elisabeth Salas, Soldaderas, Ch 5: We, theWomen; *Corridos: “La Rielera,”

“Adelita,” “Valentina,” “Marijuana, la Soldadera”

Film: “Antonieta”

Wed, Sept 14Revolutionaries in Power: Justice? Common Good?

Discuss: Beezley and MacClachlan, Ch 2; *Martha Eva Rocha, “The Faces of Rebellion: From Revolutionaries to Veterans in Nationalist Mexico,” from Mitchell and Schell, The Women’s Revolution in Mexico; *Patience A. Schell, “Of the Sublime Mission of Mothers of Families,”from Mitchell and Schell, The Women’s Revolution in Mexico

Fri, Sept 16High Politics and Private Lives

Discuss: Beezley and MacClachlan, Ch 3; *Nancy Deffebach, “Frida Kahlo: Heroism of PrivateLife,” from Brunk and Fallaw, Heroes and Hero Cults

Film: “Frida”

Mon, Sept 19The Zenith and End of the Mexican Revolution

Discuss: Beezley and MacClachlan, Ch 4- Conclusion

Wed, Sept 21Youthful adventurer: Ernesto Guevara hits the road

Discuss: *Alberto Granado, Traveling with Che Guevara, “Ernesto cannot tell a lie”;

*“For actors, Motorcycle Diaries is a revolutionary lesson” (September16, 2004);

*Aleida Guevara, “Riding My Father’s Motorcycle,” NYT (October 9, 2004)

Film: “The Motorcycle Diaries”

Bolivia 1952-1964: The Miners’ Revolution

Fri, Sept 23Bolivia: Another Mexico?

Discuss: Ernesto Guevara, Back on the Road, pp. 3-18; *Alan Knight, “The Domestic Dynamicsof the Mexican and Bolivian Revolutions Compared,” Ch 3 from Grindle and Domingo, Proclaiming Revolution

Mon, Sept 26The United States’ Reaction

Discuss: *Ken Lehman, “Braked but Not Broken: Mexico and Bolivia—Factoring the

UnitedStates into the Revolutionary Equation,” Ch 4 from Grindle and Domingo,

Proclaiming Revolution

Paper on Mexico due

Guatemala, 1944-1954: The Revolution Crushed

Wed, Sept 28“The Battle for Guatemala:” Whose Common Good?

Discuss: *Susanne Jonas, The Battle for Guatemala, Ch 1: Legacies of the Past: 1524-1944,and Ch 2: The Revolution of 1944-1954: The Democracy that Gave Way

Fri, Sept 30Eyewitness to History

Discuss: Guevara, Back on the Road, pp. 19-82; *“The CIA’s Cover Has Been Blown,” NYT (July 6, 2003)

Mon, Oct 3The Aftermath

Discuss: *Richard Gott, “The Fall of Arbenz and the Origins of the Guerrillas,” Ch 7 from Castro,Revolution and Revolutionaries; *Tyche Hendricks, “Coup Still Sears Guatemalans 50 Years Later,” SFGate.com (June 26, 2004); Guevara, Back on the Road, pp. 83-117

Films: “Men with Guns” and “El Norte” and “Discovering Dominga”

Wed, Oct 5The Making of a Revolutionary Man

Discuss: Hilda Gadea, Ernesto: A Memoir of Che Guevara, Chs 12-19

Cuba’s Socialist Revolution, 1959 – 1990

Fri, Oct 7Independence: A Vision Frustrated

Discuss: *JosèMartì, “Our America”; *1897: The Breckenridge Memorandum; *1899: From theDiary of General MàximoGòmez; *1891: Text of the Platt Amendment; Wright, Ch 1

Film: “The Last Supper” and “José Martí and Cuba Libre”

Mon, Oct 10The Making of a Revolution

Discuss: Wright, Ch 2; *Guillermo Cabrera Alvarez, Memories of Che, Introduction, pp. 15-29;*Jon Lee Anderson, Che Guevara: A Revolutionary, IV, pp. 384-393

Films: Che, Part I (by Sodebergh) and “Memories of Underdevelopment”

Wed, Oct 12Social Justice and the Common Good in Theory

Discuss: *Guevara, “On Revolutionary Medicine” (1960), Monthly Review 58:8 (January 2005); *Guevara, “To Be a Young Communist” (1962), “The Philosophy of Plunder Must Cease,”(1964), and “Socialism and Man in Cuba” (1965), from Deutschmann, TheChe Guevara Reader

Define: Communism

Film: “El Che: Investigating a Legend”

Mon, Oct 17Social Justice and the Common Good in Practice?

Discuss: *Guevara, Reminiscences of the Cuban Revolutionary War, “Lydia and Clodomira;”*”Women in Revolutionary Cuba,” (1972) from Hahner, Women in Latin America; *MargaretRandall, Cuban Women Now (1974), 10, 11, 14, 15, 17, 22; *Margaret Randall, Women inCuba (1981), Ch 1: The Struggle against Sexism

Definition due today: sexism

Films: “Up to a certain point” and “Teresa”

Wed, Oct 19Social Justice and the Common Good in Practice?

Discuss: * Nora Hamilton, “The Cuban Economy: Dilemmas of Socialist Construction,” Ch 3 from Chaffee and Prevost, Cuba: A Different America; *Susan Eckstein, Back from the Future,Ch 5: The Irony of Success

Film: “Fidel”

Fri, Oct 21TheLimits of Social Justice and the Common Good

*David Craven, “Cuban Art and Culture,” Ch 8 from Chaffee and Prevost, Cuba: A Different America; *Rafael Ocasio, “Gays and the Cuban Revolution,” Latin American Perspectives,Issue 123, 29:2 (March 2002)

Film: “Before Night Falls” and “Strawberry and Chocolate”

Mon Oct 24The United States’ Reaction and the Latin American Response

Discuss: Wright, Ch 4, Ch 5 (up to p. 80); *Duncan Campbell, “638 Ways to Kill Castro,” TheGuardian (August 3, 2006)

El Che en Bolivia

Wed Oct 26The Death of Che Guevara in Bolivia, 1967

Discuss: *Michèle Ray, “The Execution of Che by the CIA,” Ramparts; *Franco Pierini, “CheGuevara’s Angry End,” Atlas (January 1968); *Guillermo Cabrera Alvarez, Memories of Che, “Autopsy Report,” “An Interview with Mario Terán by journalist Jorge Canelas,” “What OneJournalist had to say,” “A UPI Dispatch”; *Norman Gall, “The Legacy of Che Guevara,” Commentary (December 1967)

Film: “Che,” Part II (by Sodebergh)

La via chilena al socialismo, 1970-1973

Fri, Oct 28The Peaceful Road to Socialism: Allende’s Vision for the Common Good

Discuss: Wright, Ch 8; *Salvador Allende, Chile’s Road to Socialism, Chs 2, 7, 9, 17; *“AllThe President Had to Do Was Ask,” NYT (September 13, 1998)

Paper on Cuba due

Films: “Missing” and “Machuca”

Mon Oct 31The Legacy of September 11

Discuss: *Paul Heath Hoeffel and Peter Kornbluh, “The War at Home: Chile’s Legacy in theUnited States,” NACLA, Report on the Americas, 27:5 (September/October 1983); *ChristopherHitchens, “The Case Against Henry Kissinger,” Part I and Part II Harper’s Magazine (February2001 and March 2001); *Diana Jean Schemo, “Kissinger Accused of Blocking Scholar,” NYT (June 5, 2004)

Nicaragua: The Sandinista Revolution, 1979-1990