MAS 363C Unique 40020 LIN 373 Unique 39775 PHL 354 Unique 41390 MWF 10:00-11:00 in GEA 114 - Spring 2020 Mistranslating and Misrepresenting Latinxs Instructor: Anna Lawrence Email: [email protected] Office hours: W 11-12:30 and Th 12:30-2 in GWB 2.104B (or by appointment) Course description ● This course explores the mistranslation (literary, cultural, political, sociolinguistic) and corresponding misrepresentations of Latinx-identifying individuals’ cultural production and/or language in the dynamic socio-political context of the U.S. We address various themes surrounding both the language use of Latinxs and its representation by non-Latinx peoples, including myths and ideologies about language, linguistic discrimination and profiling, and language and identity, especially focusing on the phenomenon of what is termed Spanglish as manifested in the repertoires of individuals and communities and as a resource in print and broadcast media and in diverse artistic forms, such as film, literature, and music. Course requirements ● Attendance and active participation: 10%. Careful preparation and discussion of readings and completion of in-class and home activities. ● Written assignments: 50%. In-class and at-home assignments designed to assess the student’s knowledge of pertinent concepts and ability to analyze data and to communicate findings. ● Research report: 40%. Original research that analyzes a small language text (e.g., a YouTube video, speeches by public figures, open corpora, social networks, excerpts from film or television programs, etc.). The results must be presented as a concise research report (2500-3000 words) that includes an introduction motivating the project, a review of a limited body of relevant literature, a description of the methods and analysis, an accurate representation of results, and a discussion of the significance of the findings. The report will be elaborated over the course of several weeks; dates for submitting specific components of the project (proposal, bibliography, literature review, data, outline, draft, presentation, manuscript) will be announced in due time. Expected outcomes ● The student will become a critical reader of scholarly texts. ● The student will understand the terminology employed to discuss language behavior and be able to use it correctly. ● The student will be able to access, synthesize, and properly use relevant literature and resources. ● The student will be able to produce a written, well-researched scholarly text that aims to contribute to our understanding of Latinx language. ● The student will be able to discuss research results in a concise, informative way. ● The student will be able to write in clear and precise prose, using terminology appropriate to the discipline. Course materials ● Course readings and assignments will be posted on Canvas. Tentative syllabus *subject to alteration* Part I: Latinx Language as Stereotype and Repertoire [January 22-February 24] ● Language myths and ideologies ● Language and discrimination ● Language and identity Part II: Latinx Language as Resource [February 26-April 15] ● Translating Latinx Language ● Print and broadcast media ● Film and television ● Popular prose fiction ● Music Part IV: Research and research forum [April 17-May 8] The detailed syllabus will be posted in segments, following the course outline. 1 Course policies * 1. Materials: The readings will be posted on Canvas. 2. Mobile phones and Laptops: As a courtesy to others, students are requested to refrain from using mobile phones during class time and laptops used for note-taking only. 3. Grading: The grading scale for the course appears below. Note that it is inappropriate for students to tell the professor what grade they want/expect/need from the class or how relevant or important this course is to their studies or graduation schedule. A A 93 – 100% Represents achievement that is outstanding relative to the level necessary to A- 90 – 92% meet course requirements.
B+ 87 – 89% B B 83-86% Represents achievement that is above the level necessary to meet course B- 80.0 – 82% requirements. C+ 77 – 79% C C 73 – 76% Represents achievement that meets the course requirements. C- 70 – 72% D+ 67-69% D D 63-66% Represents achievement that is worthy of credit but fails to fully meet the course D- 60-62% requirements. Represents failure and signifies that the work was either completed but at a level F F F: ≤59% of achievement that is not worthy of credit or was not completed at all.
4. Submissions: No work will be accepted via email unless directed or agreed upon by the professor in advance. 5. Email: In general, email should be used for brief questions or doubts regarding course content. 6. Office hours: Students are encouraged to attend office hours hosted by the instructor, as needed. [This is especially important because it provides students a chance to receive individual attention.] Students should knock and make their presence known if the instructor is with another student. 7. Overall philosophy: While the syllabus presents promises and expectations, it is up to students to demand excellence of themselves. University Policies & Procedures 1. The University of Texas Honor Code: The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the University is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community. 2. Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. 3. Services For Students With Disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY. 4. Religious Holidays: Religious holy days sometimes conflict with class schedules. If you miss a work assignment or other project due to the observance of a religious holy day you will be given an opportunity to complete the work missed within a reasonable time after the absence. Students must notify the professor prior to the classes scheduled on dates they will be absent to observe a religious holy day. 5. Behavior Concerns Advice Line (BCAL): If you are worried about someone who is acting differently, you may use the Behavior Concerns Advice Line to discuss your concerns about another individual’s behavior. Call 512-232-5050 or visit http://www.utexas.edu/safety/bcal. 6. Emergency Evacuation Policy: Occupants of buildings on the UT campus are required to evacuate and assemble outside when a fire alarm is activated or an announcement is made. Students should (1) Familiarize themselves with all exit doors of the classroom and the building; (2) Remember that the nearest exit door may not be the one they entered; (3) Inform the instructor during the first week of class if they require assistance in the event of an evacuation; (4) Follow the instructions of class instructors; (5) Not re-enter a building unless given instructions by the Austin Fire Department, the UT-Austin Police Department, or the Fire Prevention Services office.
1* Portions of the course overview and guidelines are borrowed, with permission, from Professor Benjamin Schmeiser of Illinois State University, and/or adopted from Ken Bain’s What the Best College Teachers Do, 2004, Harvard University Press.
Course calendar January 22: Introduction and Syllabus PART I: LATINX LANGUAGE AS STEREOTYPE AND REPERTOIRE Myths and ideologies January 24: Language myths Reading ● Bloom (2012) Inescapably, you’re judged by your language. The New York Times. ● Giles & Niedzielski (1998), Italian is beautiful, German is ugly. Language myths [Myth 11]. January 27, 29: Standard language ideology Reading ● Lippi-Green (2011) Standard language myth. English with an Accent; Language, ideology, and discrimination in the United States [Ch. 4]. ● Lippi-Green (2011) ¡Ya basta!. English with an Accent; Language, ideology, and discrimination in the United States [Ch. 14]. ● Hablando bien Exercise Language and discrimination January 31, February 3, 5: Language and race Reading ● Hill (1998) Language, Race, and White Public Space. American Anthropologist. ● Hill (2008) Covert racist discourse: metaphors, mocking, and the racialization of historically Spanish-speaking populations in the United States. The Everyday Language of White Racism [Ch. 5] ● Zentella (2014) TWB (Talking while bilingual): Linguistic profiling of Latina/os, and other linguistic torquemadas. Latino Studies. February 7, 10, 12: Language and inequality Reading ● Barrett (2006) Language ideology and racial inequality: Competing functions of Spanish in an Anglo-owned Mexican restaurant. Language in Society. ● Schwartz (2011) Mockery and appropriation of Spanish in White spaces: Perceptions of Latinos in the United States. Exercise
Language and identity February 14: Language and ethnicity Reading ● Fought (2006) Language and the construction of ethnic identity. Language and ethnicity [Ch. 2] February 17, 19, 21, 24: Spanglish and Latinx identity Reading ● Fought (2006) Issues in language and identity among Latino groups. Language and ethnicity [Ch. 5] ● Toribio (2011) Code-switching among US Latinos ● Morales (2003) What I’m talking about when I speak in Spanglish, or the Spanglish manifesto. Living in Spanglish: The Search for Latino Identity in America. o Rosa (2016) From Mock Spanish to Inverted Spanish. Raciolinguistics: How Language Shapes our Ideas About Language.
Exercise
PART II: LATINX LANGUAGE AS RESOURCE Translating Latinx Language February 26, 28, March 2: Reading ● Ohlson (2019) Zombies Lost in Translation: The translation from English to Spanish of (De)Humanizing Pronouns. Revista de Lingüística y Lenguas Aplicadas. ● Munday (2007) Translation and identity. Style and Ideology in Translation: Latin American Writing in English. ● Kingery (2019) Translating Spanglish to Spanish:The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Translation Review. Exercise
Print, broadcast, and social media March 4 Reading ● Mahootian (2012) Repertoires and Resources: Accounting for Code-mixing in the Media March 6 Reading ● Potowski (2011) Linguistic and cultural authenticity of Spanglish greeting cards March 9,11 Reading ● Bishop & Peterson (2011) Comprende code-switching? Young Mexican-Americans’ responses to language alternation in Print Advertising ● Luna & Perecchio (2005) Advertising to bilingual consumers: The impact of code-switching on persuasion March 13 Reading ● Rojas & Piñon (2014) Spanish, English or Spanglish? Media strategies and corporate struggles to reach the second and later generations of Latinos ● Wells (2011) Codeswitching in the comedy of George López Exercise Recess: March 16-21 Popular prose fiction March 23 Reading ● Torres (2007) In the contact zone: Code-switching strategies by Latino/a writers ● Montes-Alcalá (2012) Code-switching in US-Latino novels March 25, 27 Reading ● Selections from Latino authors [TBA] March 30 Reading ● Alvarez (2013) Subversive English in Raining Backwards: A different kind of Spanglish April 1 Reading ● Casielles-Suárez (2013) Radical code-switching in The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Exercise Poetry, spoken word, and music April 3 Reading ● Selected poems [TBA] April 6, 8 Reading ● Loureiro-Rodríguez (2017) Y yo soy Cubano, and I’m impatient: Frequency and functions of Spanish switches in Pitbull’s lyrics. Spanish in Context. ● Pacini Hernández (2014) Urban bachata and Dominican racial identity in New York. Cahiers d’études africanes. ● Cepeda (2000) Mucho loco for Ricky Martin; the politics of chronology, crossover, and language in the Latin(o) Music Boom. Exercise Television and film
April 10, 13, 15 Reading ● Masi de Casanova (2007) Spanish language and Latino ethnicity in children’s television programs. Latino Studies 5: 455-477. ● Beltran (2002). The Hollywood Latina Body as Site of Social Struggle: Media Constructions of Stardom and Jennifer Lopez's ”Cross-over Butt". Quarterly Review of Film and Video. ● Moran (2015) “If they’re trying to say something about my culture…I’m confused”: Recognizing and resisting authenticity in Latino-Themed Television. Mass Communication and Society.
PART III: RESEARCH AND RESEARCH FORUM RESEARCH April 17 Library training in research (in PCL) April 20 Identifying a research topic and relevant sources ● Due: Research topic(s) April 22, 24 Data collection and analysis ● Statement of proposed research April 27 Writing a research paper; reporting and interpreting findings ● Preliminary proposal April 29, May 1 Research paper (outline) and peer editing ● Outline/draft FORUM May 4 Presentations May 6 Presentations May 8 Presentations
**Research report due May 14 Original research that analyzes a small language text (e.g., a YouTube video, speeches by public figures, open corpora, social networks, excerpts from film or television programs, etc.). The results must be presented as a concise research report (2500-3000 words) that includes an introduction motivating the project, a review of a limited body of relevant literature, a description of the methods and analysis, an accurate representation of results, and a discussion of the significance of the findings. The report will be elaborated over the course of several weeks; dates for submitting specific components of the project (proposal, bibliography, literature review, data set, outline, draft, presentation, manuscript) will be announced in due time.