Module Information
Module Identifier
HY39020
Module Title
Twentieth-Century Latin America and the Caribbean through its arts and traditions
Academic Year
2026/2027
Co-ordinator
Semester
Semester 1
Exclusive (Any Acad Year)
Other Staff
Course Delivery
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | Essay 2000 Words | 50% |
| Semester Exam | Open examination 2000 Words | 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Essay 2000 Words | 50% |
| Supplementary Exam | Open examination 2000 Words | 50% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
Demonstrate familiarity with the main events, processes and conflicts emerging from the study of the twentieth-century Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) through the use of arts and traditions as primary sources.
Demonstrate an understanding of main schools and trends in twentieth-century LAC history, navigating their fragmentation and diversity in analytical units, to discover the potential for gaps and innovative histories – and sources – as well as to engage in current debates.
Demonstrate an understanding of alternative sources of history, such as arts, traditions and collective memory works, while positioning themselves properly to advance decolonial approaches to the official, mainstream, or colonial narratives.
Demonstrate the ability to further explore historical memories in art and traditions in twentieth-century Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) using the appropriate methodologies.
Brief description
This module offers a journey through twentieth-century Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) through the arts and traditions emerging during key moments within a difficult century of conflicts, dictatorship and exile. These major historical events shaped the collective memory of LAC peoples and, therefore, had an impact on cultural expressions and national identities.
This module uses a twofold historiographical approach: first, an examination of the history of Latin America in the twentieth century; and second, an analysis of Latin American traditions in music, literature, and the visual arts during the same period.
It also proposes an examination of art and culture as a form of collective memory that can help us understand the past from an unorthodox set of alternative primary sources that go beyond the archives.
This module uses a twofold historiographical approach: first, an examination of the history of Latin America in the twentieth century; and second, an analysis of Latin American traditions in music, literature, and the visual arts during the same period.
It also proposes an examination of art and culture as a form of collective memory that can help us understand the past from an unorthodox set of alternative primary sources that go beyond the archives.
Content
18 lectures: This is an active learning module where students can have very quick preparation for the class (with a question, provocation, small reading, video, music piece, etc), recorded lectures can be short (ca 30 min), and students are invited to do a small activity (10 min) as part of the session.
6 seminars: Seminars are organised into three main topics, with Part 1 and Part 2.
Lectures
1. Music of the Mexican Revolution
2. Muralism and socialism
3. Tango and Buenos Aires urban development
4. Post-emancipation Black literature and soundscapes
5. “Magical Realism,” debates on cultural identity in Latin America
6. Macondo and the Banana Massacre
7. “The feast of the goat” Military dictatorship and political violence in Peru.
8. “Tropicalismo” cultural resistance against the military dictatorship in Brazil (1964–1985)
9. Popular Unity and the coup d'état in Chile (1973).
10. Chilean and Argentinian art in exile and "New Latin American Song"
11. El Monte: Pre-revolutionary Santería
12. Music and arts of the Cuban revolution
13. Cuban salsa in exile
14. Guatemalan civil war and Indigenous literature
15. Neoliberalism and the “Rock en español” era
16. Music and conflict in Colombia
17. Chavez's Witches
18. Holy Death and Forbidden Corridos
Seminars
Mexican muralism
1. Part 1: Construction of national identities in the arts and traditions: Mexico
2. Part 2. Influence on the rest of LAC
Syncretic arts and traditions
3. Part 1. Afro-descendant soundscapes
4. Part 2. Witchcraft and other misappropriations
Art as a means of social protest and resistance
5. Part 1. "¡El pueblo unido jamás será vencido! - Chilean solidarity
6. Part 2. Music for the soul. Memories of the armed conflict in Colombia
6 seminars: Seminars are organised into three main topics, with Part 1 and Part 2.
Lectures
1. Music of the Mexican Revolution
2. Muralism and socialism
3. Tango and Buenos Aires urban development
4. Post-emancipation Black literature and soundscapes
5. “Magical Realism,” debates on cultural identity in Latin America
6. Macondo and the Banana Massacre
7. “The feast of the goat” Military dictatorship and political violence in Peru.
8. “Tropicalismo” cultural resistance against the military dictatorship in Brazil (1964–1985)
9. Popular Unity and the coup d'état in Chile (1973).
10. Chilean and Argentinian art in exile and "New Latin American Song"
11. El Monte: Pre-revolutionary Santería
12. Music and arts of the Cuban revolution
13. Cuban salsa in exile
14. Guatemalan civil war and Indigenous literature
15. Neoliberalism and the “Rock en español” era
16. Music and conflict in Colombia
17. Chavez's Witches
18. Holy Death and Forbidden Corridos
Seminars
Mexican muralism
1. Part 1: Construction of national identities in the arts and traditions: Mexico
2. Part 2. Influence on the rest of LAC
Syncretic arts and traditions
3. Part 1. Afro-descendant soundscapes
4. Part 2. Witchcraft and other misappropriations
Art as a means of social protest and resistance
5. Part 1. "¡El pueblo unido jamás será vencido! - Chilean solidarity
6. Part 2. Music for the soul. Memories of the armed conflict in Colombia
Module Skills
| Skills Type | Skills details |
|---|---|
| Co-ordinating with others | Students will be expected to play an active part in group activities (e.g. short group presentations in seminars) and to learn to evaluate their own contribution to such activities. |
| Creative Problem Solving | Students are expected to note and respond to historical problems which arise as part of the study of this subject area and to undertake suitable research for seminars and assignments. |
| Critical and analytical thinking | Students will develop their critical and analytical thinking by reading a range of texts and evaluating their usefulness in preparation for the coursework and the seminars. |
| Digital capability | Students will be encouraged to locate suitable material on the web and to apply it appropriately to their own work. Students will also be expected to word-process their work and make use of Blackboard. These skills will not be formally assessed. |
| Professional communication | Written communication skills will be developed through the coursework; skills in oral presentation will be developed in seminars but are not formally assessed. |
| Real world sense | Students will develop a range of transferable skills, including time management and communication skills, which may help them identify their personal strengths as they consider potential career paths. |
| Subject Specific Skills | Students will develop knowledge of main events, processes and conflicts emerging from the study of the twentieth-century Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) through the use of arts and traditions as primary sources. They will also gain familiarity with approaching alternative primary sources (arts and traditions). |
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 6