English 245 Introduction to Contemporary Chicano/Latino Literature Fall 2004 Professor: Dr. David J. V‡zquez Office:263 PLC Phone: 346-1051 OfficeHours: Monday 1:00 pm Ð 2:00 pm Email: [email protected] Wednesday 1:00 Ð 3:00 pm

ClassTime: M, W, F 12:00 Ð 12:50 pm

Course Description: Chicano/as and Latino/as have lived and worked in what isnow the United States since at least the early part of the sixteenth century.Yet, for some reason, we are constantly characterized as foreigners and/ornewcomers in North America. This trend has accelerated at an alarming ratesince the last half of the twentieth century. In this course we will examine anumber of literary texts and critical works that ask the following questions:Who are Chicano/as (Mexican Americans)? Who falls under the rubric Latino/a?What are the differences between Chicano/as and Latino/as? What are thesimilarities? What does it mean to be a Latino/a in the United States at thistime? How is citizenship constructed in relation to Latino/as? What historicaltrajectories shape(d) our lives? How do Chicano/as and Latino/as continue toevolve and change as group(s) in the U.S.?

Course Goals: In this course youÕll be required to perform lots ofanalysis and close reading. In other words, youÕll be doing more than simplyrestating ÒWHATÓ the text says. Rather, youÕll be attempting to unpack the textby examining specific words, phrases, images, symbols, characters, etc. Youranalysis and close readings will help you to understand and explain the morecomplicated interwoven meanings that lie beneath the surface. YouÕll also berequired to place texts into dialog with one another, and to begin to makeconnections between abstract ideas and their literary representation.

Required Texts Acosta, Oscar Zeta, The Revolt of the Cockroach People (Mother KaliÕs) Cofer, Judith Ortiz: The Line of the Sun (Mother KaliÕs) Rechy, John: The Miraculous Day of Amalia G—mez (Mother KaliÕs) Viramontes, Mar’a Helena: Under the Feet of Jesus (Mother KaliÕs) Course Pack (U of O Bookstore)

Requirements 1. Read, Read, Read! My main requirement is that you read. The reading for this course is both engaging and intensive. However, falling behind in the reading will spoil the endings of these novels and stories, and put you at a disadvantage during class discussions. If I feel that people are falling behind in the reading, I reserve the right to give reading quizzes. I would prefer to spend our time in class discussing these interesting and provocative texts. However, I will not hesitate to give reading quizzes.

2. Paper: There is one paper required in this course. It will be a seven- to 10-page response paper due at the beginning of class on Friday, December 3. I will provide you with more information on the assignment as the course progresses. 3. Two Exams: One Mid-term and one Final. The Final for the course is cumulative. It is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, December 9 at 10:15 am. IÕll provide details on both exams as the quarter progresses.

4. An email account that you check daily.

Grading Paper: 30 percent Mid-Term: 25 percent Final: 25 percent Participation: 20 percent

Participation consists of the following: reading theassigned texts on time, participating in in-class discussions, and attendance.

Policies  Attendance and Participation: Attendance is not mandatory. However, most of the material for themajority of your grade (i.e., exams) will be drawn from my lectures and ourclass discussions. Therefore it is in your interest to attend and participate.In addition, participation counts for 20 percent of your final grade. In orderto receive full credit for participation, you must come to class prepared. Thismeans ALWAYS bring the text(s) with which we are currently working, alwaysbring any other necessary writing materials, always bring your questions aboutthe reading, and always bring a respectful and positive attitude. Participationincludes oral participation, completing in-class and homework assignments,coming to class prepared (and on time), AND taking advantage ofoffice hours.  Tardiness: Since we onlyhave 50 minutes per class session, it is imperative that you get to class on time. I will also respectthis aspect of our time together. We all have tight schedules. Please respectme, your classmates, and most of all yourself by getting to class on time.  Deadlines: Deadlines areinflexible. Plan your schedule carefully, and consider all of the assigned workfor this class and the others you are currently taking. In the case of a direemergency that will force you to miss a deadline (i.e., severe illness, birth,death), contact me as soon as possible.  All written work must be typed, stapled, and double-spaced withone-inch margins on all sides. Fonts should be no larger than 12 points, and nosmaller than 10 points. All written work must include your name, the course,the instructorÕs name, and the name of the assignment in the upper left corner.Handwritten work will not be accepted.Make sure to number your pages.  You are responsible for keeping a backup copy of all of yourwork. Backups may take the form of computer copies, hard copies, or both. Inany event, make sure that you have a readily accessible copy of ALL of your work. Your computer crashing is not a validexcuse for missing an assignment.  Bring the assigned text to class.  Please feel free to bring coffee or any other nourishment thatyou need. However, make sure to clean up after yourself. If I am forced toclean up, I will no longer allow food or drink in the classroom.

About Making Life Easier for Each Other This course is not designed to be competitive. In fact, acompetitive atmosphere will work against the activities of the class. Many ofthe activities are interactive, and each individual deserves the fullcooperation of everyone else. The one rule that is sacred in this classroomis to respect everyoneÑeach other, me, andthe authors. Disagreements will happen and ideas will be challenged, but theymust be controlled and expressed academicallyÑwhich means in acivil, well-considered, and intelligent manner. Please note that we WILL bediscussing the political ramifications of these texts. These may includediscussions that may at first seemunrelated to the material at hand. My hope is that you will begin to understandthat NO text emerges in a political or aesthetic vacuum. In fact, as we willsoon see, these texts have important political and social implications for oureveryday lives. For this reason, please bring an open mind and a patientattitude. It is much easier to learn from each other, about each other, andabout ourselves when we are listening. Timeline Thissyllabus is primarily a reading guide. As such, it may be subject to revision. Week 1: Introduction Readby This Date: Monday9/27 Introduction

Wednesday 9/29 EarlShorris: ÒWelcome to the Old WorldÓ from Latinos: A Biography of thePeople (Course Pack)

Friday 9/31 SuzanneOboler, ÒHispanics in the UnitedStates: ÔWe All Sing a Different SongÕÓ from EthnicLabels, Latino Lives(Course Pack)

Week 2: Introduction (cont.), and Key Contemporary Issues Monday10/4 SuzanneOboler, ÒHispanics? ThatÕs What They Call Us,Ófrom Ethnic Labels, Latino Lives (Course Pack) andLeslie G. Espinoza, ÒLatino/a Identity and Multi- Identity,Ófrom The Latino/a Condition (Course Pack)

Wednesday 10/6 JuanG—nzalez ÒImmigrants Old and New: Closing Bordersof the Mind,Ó from Harvest of Empire (CoursePack)

Friday 10/8 WilliamFlores and Rina Benmayor, ÒConstructingCultural Citizenship,Ó from Latino CulturalCitizenship (CoursePack)

Week 3: Chicano/a Nationalism Monday 10/11 RobertoRodriguez, ÒThe Origin and History of the Chicano Movement,Ó from Voicesof a New Chicano/a History (Course Pack), Oscar ÒZetaÓ AcostaÓ Revolt of theCockroach People pp1-104

Wednesday 10/13 Revolt pp 105-155

Friday 10/15 Revolt pp 155-197

Week 4: Chicano/a Nationalism (cont.) Monday 10/18 Revoltof the Cockroach Peoplepp 197-end

Wednesday 10/20 Revoltwrapup, mid-termreview

Friday 10/22 Mid-term

Week 5: Puerto Rican/Nuyorican Literature Monday 10/25 JudithOrtiz Cofer, The Line of the Sun pp 1-104 Wednesday 10/27 Cofer,Line of the Sun pp105-156

Friday 10/29 Cofer,Line of the Sun pp157-214

Week 6: Nuyorican Literature (cont.) and Chicana Feminist Critiques Monday 11/1 Cofer,Line of the Sun pp215-end

Wednesday 11/3 Cofer,Line of the Sun wrapup,Angie Chabram- DernersesianÒIThrow Punches for My Race, but I DonÕtWant to Be a Man: Writing UsChica-nos (Girl, Us)/ChicanasIntothe Movement ScriptÓ (Course Pack)

Friday 11/5 GloriaAnzaldœa, ÒLa conciencia de la mestiza/Towards a New ConsciousnessÓ from Borderlands/La frontera (Course Pack)

Week 7: Chicana Feminist Critiques (cont.) Monday 11/8 MariaHelena Viramontes, Under the Feet of Jesus pp 1-90

Wednesday 11/10 Viramontes,Under the Feet of Jesus pp 90-130

Friday 11/12 Noclass, reading day Week 8: Chicano/a Gender and Sexuality Monday 11/15 Viramontes,Under the Feet of Jesus pp 130-end

Wednesday 11/17 Viramontes,Under the Feet of Jesus wrapup

Friday 11/19 JohnRechy, The Miraculous Day of Amalia G— mez pp 1-39

Week 9: Chicano/a Gender and Sexuality (cont.) Monday 11/22 Rechy,Amalia G—mez pp40-104

Wednesday 11/24 Rechy,Amalia G—mez pp104-148

Friday 11/26 ThanksgivingHoliday

Week 10: Wrapup/Final Review Monday 11/29 Rechy,Amalia G—mez pp148-end

Wednesday 12/1 Rechy,Amalia G—mezwrapup

Friday 12/3 TermPaper Due, Final Exam Review