This course is an introduction to the major issues in the historical and anthropological study of Middle America, the Caribbean, and South America from the early 1300's until the early 20^th century. We begin with an overview of two influential Precolumbian states-the Mexica and the Inca-and with an examination of the Christian reconquista in the Iberian Peninsula. The course will then examine the consolidation of Spanish and Portuguese political and economic domination in the 16^th and 17^th centuries, the "spiritual conquest" of native Americans, the institution of slavery in the New World, and the legal, social and economic organization of colonial indigenous communities. We will then examine the social fabric of the colonial order through an analysis of the boundaries of class, ethnicity, and gender. Afterwards, we will turn to the dynamics of social and military conflicts between colonial subjects and their rulers. After an assessment of the Bourbon political reforms, the course will address the independence movements that swept the Americas in the early 19^th century, compare the various dynamics of nation-building, and examine the rapports between citizens and state in the newly independent nations. The course will end with an assessment of the economic and political influence of foreign powers on Latin American nations before the Mexican Revolution of 1910. This is an LAIS core course and a pre-requisite for LAIS seminars in Social Studies.

From the 1720's until the early 20^th century, hundreds of regional rebellions shook the countryside in Latin America, threatening the stability of colonial and national governments. In fact, one is tempted to conclude that either Latin America had too many revolutions-if every armed rebel is regarded as a revolutionist-or too few-if one takes into account only those armed movements that ushered in a new political order. This course will interrogate the rapports (or lack thereof) between spontaneous armed rebellions, political ideology, and organized insurrection in contemporary Latin America through several case studies: the Mexican revolution (1910), the Cuban revolution (1959) and its impact on Latin American insurgency movements, the Nicaraguan revolution (1979), the civil war in El Salvador, and the ongoing symbolic duel between the EZLN and the Mexican state (1994 - 2001). Through historical data, testimonies, and post-mortem analyses, we will confront some basic questions: Are there significant structural similarities in the emergence and outcome of these movements? What is the rapport between the formation of revolutionary ideologies and the pragmatic outcome of insurrection? What is the role of civil society in these social processes? How are collective and national identities refashioned by ideologies of revolution?

Prerequisite: LAIS 101

All course listed under SPANISH and

ANTH 201B Ethnography of Brazil

ARTH 160 Survey of Latin American Art

ARTH 375 Mexican Muralism

HIST 138 The Mediterranean World

PS 214 US-Latin American Relations

PS 217 Populism and Popular Culture in Latin America

PS 413 The Spread of Democracy