History 404/504

Office: Admin 305 A

Office Hours: Wednesday 3:30-4:30 or by appointment

Office Telephone: 885-8956

www: http://www.uidaho.edu/~Graden/

The purpose of this course is to offer an overview of modern Brazilian history. Through readings, discussion and films, we shall analyze some of the important historical forces that made Brazil the extraordinary nation and region that it is today. You need no background in Brazilian or Latin American history, or Portuguese language skills, to take this course.

It is important that you attend the classes and participate in the discussions. At every class meeting there will be opportunities for an exchange of ideas. A course of this nature can only be successful through your active involvement and participation. I encourage debate and questions. Feel free to question my interpretations. I want our class to be an environment where each of you is challenged to think critically about the complex problems faced by Brazilians and all inhabitants of the Americas. I am hopeful that this course is as stimulating for you as it is for me, and one that inspires you to read about, visit and understand better Brazil.

I reserve the right to determine a grade based on attendance and participation. If you miss more than five class meetings during the semester without an excuse, your final mark will drop by a grade. If you cannot attend a class for health or other legitimate reasons, please inform me by email. I want to emphasize that we all benefit by your commitment to this class from beginning to end.

There will be no mid-term examination; there will be a final examination (December 22 at 1-3 p.m.). For the final exam, I will provide you with the question at the last class meeting. Then you will prepare a response and write for two hours during the scheduled exam period.

I would also like you to write three book critiques. Everyone is required to write critique number one on Benedita da Silva, An Afro-Brazilian Woman’s Story of Politics and Love, and this first written assignment is due at the class meeting on September 26^th. Critiques number two and three are chosen from the other suggested readings in the course. Critiques number two and three that you select are due on the dates noted below on the syllabus. At each meeting when an assigned reading is due, we will discuss the book or essay. Each critique is worth twenty (20) points, the final exam is worth thirty (30) points, and your participation is worth ten (10) points.

If you are taking this class for graduate credit, I request that you write an extra paper of five to ten (5-10) pages on a topic of your choice. This paper will be worth thirty (30) points, and the final grade of graduate students will be based on 130 points.

The 2-4 page critiques of a single book or article are assigned to all students to ensure that you read the book thoroughly and come to the class meetings prepared to share your insights. Your paper should address some theme(s) that you consider relevant and worthy of analysis. I would prefer not to receive a superficial overview of the book or article in these short essays. Rather, point out what you consider to key arguments of the author and comment on them. Don’t hesitate to make comparisons to other sources or to express your own opinions or interpretations. Good examples of book critiques can be found in The New York Review of Books and other magazines and journals that provide in-depth analyses of recent publications.

Please, write the critique two or three days before the due date, so that you can return to the computer the day before you hand it to me and make corrections and refinements. I have read hundreds of these short papers, and I know when someone has scribbled down a bunch of ideas the night before and when the assignment has been approached seriously. I believe that these short papers are among the most important exercises that you can do as a student at a university. Why do I believe this, you ask! Because the majority of students graduate from universities and colleges across the land unable to read and write effectively. You are welcome to rewrite a critique; any paper you submit a second time will be taken into consideration when I determine the final grade. You are also welcome to write as many times as you wish, and I will read each of your essays with great interest.

The following books are available at the UI Bookstore and are on reserve in the library.

Benedita da Silva, An Afro-Brazilian Woman’s Story of Politics and Love

Robert Levine, ed., The Brazil Reader

Emilia Viotti da Costa, The Brazilian Empire

Paulo Freire, Letters to Cristina

Thomas Skidmore, Brazil: Five Centuries of Change

Geoffrey O’Connor, Amazon Journal

The New York Times is available daily at reduced rate for UI students during the semester. You are also welcome to join the UI Latin American Interest Group. You will receive notice of current events in the Palouse and weekly news coverage of South America from the Nicaragua Solidarity Network.

Week One, August 29 and 31

Reading: Skidmore, Brazil, 1-42; Levine, The Brazil Reader, 1-57

Introduction; indigenous cultures; the arrival of the Portuguese; colonialism; plantation agriculture; the modern world-system.

Week Two, September 5 and 7

Reading: Skidmore, Brazil, 43-64; Levine, The Brazil Reader, 59-90

The Age of Revolution in the late 18^th century and Brazil’s independence movement.

Week Three, September 12 and 14

Reading: Viotti da Costa, The Brazilian Empire, 24-77, 125-71; recommended is Levine, The Brazil Reader, 121-47.

Slavery in Brazil, liberal thought, emancipation in 1888, the new republic, race and immigration at the end of the 19^th and early 20^th century.

Week Four, September 19 and 21

Reading: Benedita da Silva, An Afro-Brazilian Woman’s Story of Politics and Love, all; recommended is Viotti da Costa, The Brazilian Empire, 234-65; and recommended is Levine, The Brazil Reader, 351-94

Race, gender and class in modern Brazil, international political economy of the 20^th century, television in Brazil.

Week Five, September 26 and 28

Reading: Da Silva, An Afro-Brazilian Woman’s Story, conclude

On Tuesday September 26, we will discuss da Silva, An Afro-Brazilian Woman’s Story. First required book critique is due.

Week Six, October 3 and 5

Reading: Levine, The Brazil Reader, 149-224; Skidmore, Brazil, 93-125

Getúlio Vargas and his epoch

Week Seven, October 10 and 12

Reading: Levine, The Brazil Reader, 225-97; Skidmore, 159-88

Carmen Miranda; Bossa Nova; radical movements in the late 1950s and 1960s; military security state 1964-1985 and its aftermath

Week Eight, October 17 and 19

On Tuesday October 17, we will discuss Skidmore and Levine’s perspectives on military rule. Optional critique number two is due.

Week Nine, October 24 and 26

Reading: Levine, The Brazil Reader, 299-349

Womens’ Lives

Week Ten, October 31 and November 2

Reading: Freire, Letters to Cristina, all

Educational reform; poverty in Brazil.

Week Eleven, November 7 and 9

Reading: Freire, Letters to Cristina, conclude

On Thursday November 9, we will discuss Freire’s Letters to Cristina. Optional critique number three is due.

Week Twelve, November 14 and 16

Reading: O’Connor, Amazon Journal

The Amazon

Thanksgiving Break

Week Thirteen: November 28 and 30

Reading: conclude O’Connor, Amazon Journal

On Thursday November 30, we will discuss O’Connor’s Amazon Journal. Optional critique number four is due.

Week Fourteen, December 5 and 7

Reading: Levine, The Brazil Reader, 395-440

"Realities"

Week Fifteen, December 12 and 14

Reading: Levine, The Brazil Reader, 441-504

On Tuesday December 12 we will discuss the readings you found most interesting from The Brazil Reader, 441-504. Optional critique number five is due.

Thursday December 14, conclusions. Student evaluations and final exam question will be distributed.

Final exam on December 22