Nicolas Poppe

Beginning Spanish I
This course is an introduction to the fundamentals of grammar and focuses on the development of four skills in Spanish: comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing. Emphasis will be placed on active communication aimed at the development of oral and comprehension skills. This course is for students who have not previously studied Spanish. Students are expected to continue with SPAN 0102 and SPAN 0103 after successful completion of SPAN 0101. 5 hrs. lect./disc.

Intermediate Spanish
This accelerated course is designed to review, reinforce, and consolidate the linguistic structures that students need in order to reach the intermediate level of proficiency in Spanish. A grammar review will accompany intensive language acquisition, vocabulary expansion, readings, discussions, and compositions. (Placement test required) 3 hrs. lect., 1 hr. drill.

Intermediate Spanish II
A course for students seeking to perfect their academic writing skills in Spanish. The course is also an introduction to literary analysis and critical writing and will include reading and oral discussion of literary texts. The course will also include a thorough review of grammar at a fairly advanced level. This course may be used to fulfill the foreign languages distribution requirement. (SPAN 0201, SPAN 0210, or placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc.

Ideas and Cultures of the Southern Cone
What’s in a name? A sub-region of Latin America, the Southern Cone consists of three countries marked by cultural, geographical, historical, sociopolitical (dis)connection. In this course we will approach Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay not only as nations, but as a region with extensive transnational connections. Through analysis of a wide-range of cultural products like Ercilla’s early modern epic poem La Araucana, Figari’s paintings depicting candombé culture, and films of the New Argentine Cinema, we will study aspects of the cultural identities and intellectual histories of these countries and the region. (SPAN 0220 or placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc

Hispanic Film
The cinema is a space of social interaction, of entertainment, of bodily (dis)pleasure, of cultural critique, of commerce, of many things. In this course we will study, with a focus on comparative analysis, the text and context of films produced throughout the Hispanic world. Through examining the work of filmmakers from diverse backgrounds, we will closely analyze film form and engage key debates in film theory such as authorship, genre (comedy, documentary, melodrama, etc.), and (trans)national cinema, as well as explore the ways in which class, culture, disability, history, politics, race, and sexuality are represented cinematically. Critical, scholarly, and theoretical readings will supplement film viewings. (SPAN 0220 or placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc.

Stars and Stardom in Latin America
Manila, 2013: Lionel Messi features in a WeChat ad. São Paulo, 1995: Ninón Sevilla walks into frame on an imported telenovela. Middlebury, 1938: Lupe Vélez appears in Life Magazine. Impinging upon even our most mundane moments, stars and stardom have become integral to our modern experience. Through the study of theories on stardom, as well as an array of works of cultural production (films, music, images, performances, etc.), in this course we will examine cultural, economic, political, racial, and social factors that influence the creation, development, and perpetuation of understandings of individual stars and, more generally, stardom in Latin America. (At least two Spanish courses at the 0300-level or above, or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect.

Intermediate Spanish: Oral and Written Communication
In this class, students improve their written expression in Spanish by studying models of good writing in Spanish and producing a variety of text types; the course also serves as an introduction to academic writing. The language functions covered include past and future narration, extensive descriptions, comparisons, expressing opinions, and hypotheses. Students will expand on previous knowledge of the cultures of the Spanish-speaking world and integrate other content areas into their work. (1 unit)