Juan Soriano

12/9/15

Dr. Torres

Eng 271
Course Outline

Empathy. One word, three syllables, and countless interpretations. Empathy is the ability
to identify with what others are going through. As teachers, it is our job to prepare students for
the world in which they will live in. Teaching our students empathy for people with diverse
backgrounds is a fantastic way to do this. Fortunately, literature has multiple different pieces that
give the stories and perspective of people of diverse backgrounds. This is the reason why I
believe that offering a class on Latino literature is a great way to promote empathy and prepare
students for an increasingly diverse world.
Our school has a high population of Latino and Latina students from a wide range of
countries. By offering a class in Latino literature, we can show these students that contrary to
popular belief, they do have a voice in literature and that their stories are indeed part of the
literary canon. Giving students a chance to see how their cultures are represented in novels,
poems, short stories, and videos will help them better understand their own cultures and show
them how connected they are to other Latin American cultures. By focusing on themes of
Latinidad, identity, family, gender issues, exile & diaspora, and conflict & resistance, I hope to
show my students how multifaceted Latino literature is and how interconnected their different
cultures are. I also want to bring in some texts that place these issues in a global environment to
show them how this literature, and by extension their cultures, are part of the world. In doing so,
I further educate students about the problems of the world around them and how they relate to
those problems.

My objectives for this course are to give students an alternative to the mainstream literary
canon that the students have been shown throughout their educational careers. For the students,
the first goal is to become better critical readers and writers. Im planning this course for students
in either grades 11 or 12, so I expect them to bring in some knowledge on how to analyze
literature they can apply to this class. Hopefully, they will see themselves represented in the
literature and develop a stronger sense of identity and pride in who they are. For those students
who are not Latino, I hope to instill in them a sense of empathy and show them that like the real
world, literature can be diverse and has many voices out there. I hope that students outside the
Latino community will want to take this class and see it as a step in furthering their
understanding of the many diverse cultures represented in this course.
With this course, Latino culture might go from being the other to simply being a part of
American culture. One of the reasons this will happen is the thematic focus this course will have.
The themes of Latinidad, identity, gender issues, family, exile & diaspora, and conflict &
resistance are all themes that feature strongly in Latino literature but that can also be applied to
world literature, so it will be easy to tie them into their other classes or themes in literature that
they are familiar with. The theme of Latinidad will be the starting point because it emphasizes
the unity of different cultures. Identity and gender issues will be the next two themes because
they are common to most literature. exile & diaspora and conflict & resistance will be the last
two units because they feature more heavy themes. As such, its a good idea to have them
towards the end of the semester when the class is familiar with each other and feels comfortable
talking about what might be some hot button issues. Im planning this class so that it hones in
from broad to more specific issues in Latino culture so that students who might not be familiar

with it might be able to have a jump in point. Like a swim instructor, I dont want to push those
unfamiliar with the culture into the deep waters first.
Unit: Latinidad. Duration: 1.5 weeks. Sources: Luis Rafael Snchezs The Airbus;
lvar Nez Cabeza de Vacas The Account; Martn Espadas The Republic of Poetry; Aurora
Levins Morales, Child of the Americas; Aurora Levins Morales and Rosario Morales, Ending
Poem; Calle 13s La Perla.
Our first unit, Latinidad, will serve as an introduction to Latino literature. While it might
be brief, I believe that this unit doesnt need much time. It will serve as an introduction to some
of the themes and ideas that we will be touching on in the course, so I do not plan to take too
much time on it. I plan on touching on as many cultures as I can, so I wont be using any novels
yet. I plan on doing some poems, short stories, and essays. To begin, students will read lvar
Nez Cabeza de Vacas The Account. In doing so, students will understand that Latino literature
traces back much farther than they believe. The assortment of poems and short stories they will
read will all show the interconnectedness of Latino cultures, which will serve as a perfect setup
for our unit on identity. Students will be assessed with a quiz at the end of the unit.
Unit: Identity. Duration: 2 weeks. Sources: Bodega Dreams, Ernesto Quinones; Gloria
Gaynors I Will Survive with lyrics; Celia Cruzs Yo Vivire with translated lyrics;
Photographs of El Barrio during the time of Bodega Dreams and now; Photographs of the local
community then and now; Tato Lavieras my graduation speech; Miguel Pieros A Lower
East Side Poem; The Contest of Coffee and Corn Gruel.
Discovering your identity is not only a theme common in literature from all over the
world, its a major component of the high school experience. With this unit, I plan on showing

students how themes of identity manifest themselves in Latino literature. Bodega Dreams affords
us the chance to study identity and also learn more about the difference between static and
dynamic characters. The importance of the community in this book also lends itself to analysis. I
plan on having students study the evolution of both El Barrio featured in the book and the
community the school is located in. The complementary readings will also help students
understand the importance of the double identity many Latinos struggle with. The mix of Spanish
and English influences leads to a couple of existential crises, so having it displayed in literature
might put students at ease. The students will be assessed by a small quiz and a major character
analysis group presentation where they will analyze the evolution of the identity of one character
in the book.
Unit: Gender Issues. Duration: 3 weeks. Sources: Cristina Garcias Dreaming in Cuban;
Carmen Tafollas from To Split A Human: Mitos, Machos Y La Mujer Chicana; Pat Moras
Malinches Tips: Pique from Mexicos Mother; Rafael Campos Miss Key West, 1990; Luz
Mara Umpierres Immanence, No Hatchet Job; John Rechys Mr. King: Between Two
Lions; Willie Colons El Gran Varon with translated lyrics.
Gender is a widely contested topic in todays society. Great stress is placed on gender
conformity, norms, and roles, so it would be fitting to study this in our class. Dreaming in Cuban
is a great book to analyze for gender issues as most of its protagonists are females. Analyzing
traditional gender roles and how they relate to modern gender roles in this book could spark
insightful discussion about gender in class. Alongside this book, I plan on using many short
stories and poems that touch upon LGBTQ issues and how their community is represented in
Latino literature. The concept of intersectionality will be a central idea to this unit as we analyze
what it means to be a Latina, a homosexual Latino, or a combination of both. Students will then

write an essay about intersectionality focusing on the book and any three sources they want to
focus on.
Unit: Family. Duration: 2 weeks. Sources: Robert Rodriguezs Spy Kids; Maria Cristina
Menas The Emotions of Maria Concepcion; Nocholosa Mohr, Aunt Rosanas Rocker
(Zoraida); Ruben Blades Amor Y Control with translated lyrics; excerpts from T.W. Wards
Gangsters Without Borders; clips from the documentary God Grew Tired of Us.
Every culture has some variation of what family is, but few hold it in as high regard as
Latin American cultures. Therefore, its no surprise that Latino literature strongly features family.
I selected Spy Kids as the primary text for this unit because it allows for film studies and is a fun
film to watch that the students might not expect to analyze. The complimentary stories will offer
a more adult look at the idea of family, which will offer a good contrast to the more wholesome
and childlike movie. Having a unit on family in Latino literature not only allows for the
exploration of this important aspect of the culture, it also allows us to bring in a powerful outside
source to study. Bringing in the documentary of the boys affected by the crisis in Sudan, God
Grew Tired of Us, alongside Wards ethnography of MS-13, a Salvadoran gang, allows us to
study the importance of family on a global scale. This will show students that Latino literature is
not only a literature of the Americas, its a literature for the world. There will be a short quiz on
some film studies terms used in class. The last unit ended on an essay, so I dont want to overkill.
Unit: Exile & diaspora. Duration: 3.5 weeks. Sources: Tomas Riveras And the Earth Did
Not Devour Him; Lucha Corpis Undocumented Anguish; Virgil Suarezs What We Choose of
Exile; Maria Teresa Mariposa Fernandezs Ode to the Diasporican; Juan Luis Guerras
Visa Para Un Sueo with translated lyrics; Ruth Behars The Hebrew Cemetery of
Guabanacoa; Jos Kozers Diaspora; Carolina Hospitals How the Cubans Stole Miami;

excerpts from T.W. Wards Gangsters Without Borders; clips from the documentary God
Grew Tired of Us.
Exile and diaspora are common themes in Latino literature because they are one of the
common elements of Latino culture. The immigration, exile, or migration process is something
most Latinos have in common and might even be something my students experienced firsthand.
This is why studying Latino literature that handles the process of the journey to America can be
useful to helping students gain a holistic understanding of what it means to be Latino in this
country. Riveras And the Earth Did Not Devour Him tells the stories of many Mexican
immigrants, while the short stories and poems selected tell the stories of many Cuban exiles.
Rounding out these varying perspectives is another look at T.W. Wards ethnography Gangsters
Without Borders and clips from the documentary God Grew Tired of Us. These two sources
will give students real depictions of what it is like to have to leave your home country in fear and
the effects that had on the Salvadoran and Sudanese youth. This is why the method of assessment
for this unit will be a short story detailing what the students would think being an immigrant or
exile would be like.
Unit: Conflict and Resistance. Duration: 2 weeks. Sources: Julia Alvarezs In the Time of
the Butterflies; The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez; Abelardo Lalo Delgado, From The Chicano
Movement: Some Not too Objective Observations; excerpts from T.W. Wards Gangsters
Without Borders; Pedro Pietris Puerto Rican Obituary; Martin Espadas Imagine the Angels
of Bread; pictures of civil wars in Latin American countries; Cesar Chavezs We Shall
Overcome.
The last century has seen revolutions, dictatorships, and civil wars in many Latin
American countries. Having a unit focus on these conflicts allows me the opportunity to show

this literature as a politically conscious medium that is not afraid of going places that might stir
debate and make some uncomfortable. Julia Alvarezs In the Time of the Butterflies tells the story
of a family of sisters fought against the brutal dictator Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic.
With the other stories, poems and essays, the idea of conflict gains a more universal quality. By
showing pictures of multiple conflicts in Latin American countries, I can both give the conflicts a
real element and give the visual learners in my class something that will stick to them. Using
Ward to show how the Salvadoran civil war indirectly caused the birth of MS-13, one of the most
notorious gangs in America, will make the long lasting effects of these conflicts real. Since it is
the end of the year and Alvarezs book ties into a lot of themes weve touched in class, the
method of assessment for this unit will be the final test.
Teacher Resources
Alvarez, Julia. In the Time of the Butterflies. Algonguin Books, 2010. Reprint Edition.
Garcia, Cristina. Dreaming in Cuban. Ballantine Books, 1993.
Quiones, Ernesto. Bodegas Dreams. Vintage, 2015.
Rivera, Tomas. And the Earth Did Not Devour Him. Turtleback, 1987.
Stavans, Ilan, et. al., Eds. Norton Anthology of Latino Literature. W.W. Norton, 2011.
Calle 13s La Perla with translated lyrics.
Gloria Gaynors I Will Survive with lyrics.
Celia Cruzs Yo Vivire with translated lyrics.
Photographs of El Barrio during the time of Bodega Dreams and now.

Photographs of the local community then and now.

Willie Colons El Gran Varon with translated lyrics.
Ruben Blades Amor Y Control with translated lyrics.
T.W. Wards Gangsters Without Borders.
The documentary God Grew Tired of Us.
Robert Rodriguezs Spy Kids
Juan Luis Guerras Visa Para Un Sueo with translated lyrics.
Allatson, Paul. Key Terms in Latino/a Cultural and Literary Studies. Wiley-Blackwell,
2007.
Caldern, Hctor and Jos Saldvar, eds. Criticism in the Borderlands: Studies in
Chicano Literature, Culture and Ideology. Durham/London: Duke University
Press, 1991.
Christie, John S. Latino Fiction and the Modernist Imagination: Literature of the
Borderlands.
New York: Garland Publishers, 1998.
Cortina, Rodolfo. Hispanic American Literature: An Anthology. NTC Publishing, 1997.
Cruz-Malav, Arnaldo. "Teaching Puerto Rican Authors: Identity and Modernization in
Nuyorican Texts." ADE Bulletin. 91 (Winter) 1988: 45-51.