Spanish: Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Whitman College

Spanish Courses

105, 106 Elementary Spanish
4, 4 Chandler
Basic Spanish grammar, with emphasis on its use through oral practice in class. Reading and writing introduced with more emphasis placed on them in the second semester of the course. The use of English in class is at a minimum. Four periods per week plus required laboratory work. Students who have previous work in Spanish are required to take a departmental placement examination for entrance.

205, 206 Intermediate Spanish
4, 4 Chandler
A comprehensive, progressive Spanish grammar review. Daily in-class conversation and daily written homework. Equal emphasis on proficiency in the four language skills: speaking, listening comprehension, writing, and reading. The language of the students and the instructor is Spanish. Prerequisite: Spanish 106. Students who have not taken Spanish at Whitman previously are required to take a departmental placement examination for entrance.

305, 306 Advanced Spanish: Topics in Contemporary Hispanic Culture
4, 4 Galindo, Solórzano-Thompson
Use of various text and media sources (literature, film, music, popular culture, etc.) to access contemporary topics in Hispanic culture for advanced conversation, academic writing, and grammar practice. Students will be required to do research projects using primary and secondary sources in Spanish, write short compositions, participate in all daily in-class discussions, complete advanced grammar exercises, and collaborate in at least one group creative project. Class participation, including attendance, is part of the grade for the course. Prerequisite: all students are required to take a departmental placement examination for entrance.

325 Translation: Healthcare and Language in the Walla Walla Community
x, 4 Galindo
This course is designed for students with an interest in Spanish-English translation in medicine, including nursing, medical science, human rights advocacy, and scientific research. Spanish-language literary texts and films will be used to explore the following topics: the uses of languages in patient/doctor relationships, healthcare access, patients’ rights, equality, development and human rights. Stress will be given to class discussion. The course also requires student participation in a community outreach project with a local health clinic or organization throughout the entire semester. Taught in Spanish. Prerequisites: Spanish 306 or consent of instructor.

335, 336 Introduction to Spanish, Latin American, and U.S. Latino and Latina Literature and Culture
4, 4 Lema-Hincapié, Entrena
A survey course that provides an understanding and appreciation of the Spanish-speaking and Hispanic world (Latin America, Spain and the U.S.) through language, literature, film, theater, culture, geography, history, economics, sociopolitical issues, folklore, and art. The different units in this course are geographically oriented, and they will focus on individual countries or particular Hispanic groups. Emphasis in the fall will be on Latin America and U.S. Latino and Latina cultural production; the spring semester will focus on Spain. Writing skills will be refined by the completion of research papers, and communication skills will be developed further by class discussions and oral presentations. Taught in Spanish. Prerequisite: all students are required to take a departmental placement examination for entrance. Note: Spanish 335 and 336 can be taken in any order.

440-449 Topics in Spanish and Spanish American Theatre and/or Cinema
4
An introduction to both Spanish and Spanish American film. The topic will change with each offering, as will the films, permitting a different vantage point from which to center critical inquiry.

441 ST: The Theatre and Poetry of Federico García Lorca
4, x Solórzano-Thompson
This seminar will examine Federico García Lorca’s portrayal of pre-Civil War Spain through close readings of representative theater and poetry works. Other readings will include theoretical and critical texts about García Lorca and Spain. Themes discussed will include: gender roles, gay desire, politics, modernism, modernization, modernity, and poetics. At least one of the assignments will be a collective project to stage a play and/or a selection of one of the plays. In addition to this project, evaluation will be based on written assignments in essay form and presentations. Stress given to discussion. Taught in Spanish. Prerequisites: Spanish 306 or consent of instructor.

442 ST: Pedro Almodóvar’s Spain
x, 4 Solórzano-Thompson
This seminar will examine representative films by Pedro Almodóvar spanning his cinematic career from the 1970’s to the present. The focus of the course will be to decode Almodóvar’s multifaceted and often contradictory portrayal of post-Franco Spain. Themes discussed will include: gay desire, transgender issues, violence, sex, politics, and modernity. Readings will include theoretical and critical texts by Paul Julian Smith, Marsha Kinder, Teresa Vilaros, and Susan Mart’n-Márquez, among others. Students will be evaluated through presentations, written assignments in essay form, and a group video project. Taught in Spanish. Stress given to discussion. Prerequisites: Spanish 306 or consent of instructor.

443 ST: Maricones, Travestis, Tortas, and Other Raros: Subjectivities in Queer Latin American Cinema
4, x Lema-Hincapié
A study of contemporary films from Argentina, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, and Peru dealing with queer identities and socio-political issues. Topics covered are: the intriguing politics of queer bodies, ethical and political crossroads, queer theory, Christian beliefs, and how the films condemn micro-strategies implemented by the State and hegemonic institutions to make queer desires invisible. Studied films will include: Y tu mamá también (2001), Fresa y chocolate (1994), Before Night Falls (2000), and La venganza del sexo (1967). Students will be evaluated through papers, presentations, and participation. Weekly film showings will be scheduled. Taught in Spanish. Prerequisites: Spanish 306 or consent of instructor.

458 Cervantes
x, 4 Lema-Hincapié
Reading and discussion of Cervantes’ Don Quixote and Persiles and Sigismunda. Many critical approaches focus on plot, characters, themes, and ideas. Emphasis on how these works reflect a synthesis of the spiritual and social problems of Spain in the early seventeenth century. Conducted in Spanish. Offered every spring.

467, 468 Topics in Spanish and Spanish American Literature
4
Designed to permit the study of topics in Spanish Peninsular and/or Spanish American literature generally not considered in other courses offered by the department. The specific material will vary from semester to semester. Class is conducted in Spanish.

468 ST: Latin Lovers: The Discourse of Love in Twentieth-Century Latin American Fiction and Poetry
x, 4 Lema-Hincapié
A study of the construction of love objects and subjects in twentieth-century Latin American fiction and poetry. Themes explored will include: the rhetorical techniques of the discourse of love, the cultural implications of that discourse, the intended interaction between mind and body, and gender and sexuality inclusions and exclusions in Latin American writing on desire. Authors and works studied will include: Sirena selena vestida de pena (2000) by Mayra Santos-Febres, Crónica de una muerte anunciada (1981) by Gabriel García Márquez, Tala (1938) by Gabriela Mistral, and Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (1924) by Pablo Neruda. Students will be evaluated through papers, presentations, and participation. Taught in Spanish. Prerequisites: Spanish 306 or consent of instructor.

470, 471 Special Topics Taught in English
4, 4
These courses cover topics in Spanish, Latin American, and U.S. Latino/a literature, film, theater, and culture generally not considered in other courses offered by the department. These courses taught in English include Spanish-language material in translation and/or present English-language literary and cultural production by Hispanic and Latino/a populations in the United States. The specific material will vary from semester to semester. These courses can be counted towards the Spanish major as electives, but do not count towards the Spanish minor as they are taught in English.

470 ST: Constructing the Caribbean
4, x Galindo and Simek
This course proposes a comparative study of different Caribbean traditions and their contexts through a variety of literary texts and films. While focusing on the Francophone and Hispanic Caribbean, we will also engage with experiences in other geographical areas, such as the Anglophone and Dutch-speaking regions. Topics to be discussed include: race, national identity, gender, sexuality, migration, imperialism, globalization and language. Readings and discussion will be in English. May be elected as WLit 381A.

471 ST: Media and Culture in Latino/Latin America
x, 4 Galindo
This course focuses on the increasing presence of Latinos and Latin Americans in the media as a way of explore debates on culture and politics. Topics for class discussion include: media bias, uses of language, representation, marketing and buying power, and political clout. Media to be studied in class ranges from film, TV and radio to print and digital journalism. Students will be evaluated through papers, presentations, and participation. A collective class project will study the current representation of Latino and Latin American cultures in the U.S. media. Taught in English. May be elected as RFS 368A or WLit 382.

490 Senior Seminar
4, x Solórzano-Thompson
A critical study of selected primary sources in Spanish Peninsular and Spanish American literature and cinema. The structure and material of the course varies from year to year, but is always designed in part to help Spanish majors prepare for the comprehensive oral examination. The analysis of texts and films includes discussion of a variety of theoretical approaches and contested issues. The course is discussion-based with student leaders at times. Short critical papers on the works studied are required. Required of and open only to senior Spanish majors. Offered every fall.

491, 492 Independent Study
2-4, 2-4 Staff
Designed to allow the advanced student to pursue an individually designed project, expressing a specific interest or topic in Spanish Peninsular literature, and/or Spanish-American literature, and/or cinema in Spanish. The student must propose a project, arrange a scheduled time to discuss (in Spanish) the project and its progress with the faculty member, complete the project and submit written evidence (in Spanish) of the work. Evidence of the work may also be presented in an oral or multi-media format in Spanish, but the presentation must include or be accompanied by some written component. Prerequisites: a) the completion of one or more advanced Spanish courses at Whitman above Spanish 336; b) consent of a tenure-track member of the faculty in Spanish to direct the project; c) a one-page proposal (written in Spanish) which sets forth a summary of the project and includes at least a preliminary bibliography. That proposal must be approved by a majority of the tenure-track members of the faculty in Spanish.

498 Honors Thesis
x, 4 Staff
Designed to further independent research projects leading to the preparation of an undergraduate thesis or a project report. Required of and limited to senior honors candidates in Spanish. Prerequisite: admission to honors candidacy.