Central American Studies Courses

Lower Division

CAS 100. Introduction To Central American Studies (3)

Comparative, historical introduction to political, cultural, and socioeconomic aspects of the Central American experience both in Central America and in the United States. Considers the question of whether there can be a single Central American identity in light of the great variety of experiences of race, gender, ethnicity and social class in the Central American community. (Available for General Education, Comparative Cultural Studies).

CAS 102. The Salvadoran Experience (3)

Introduction to the political, economic, social and cultural realities of Salvadoran life in El Salvador and in the United States. Emphasis is on various aspects of the institutional and private life of Salvadoran communities. The course is framed by historical and contemporary comparisons with other Central American national groups with re­spect to their experiences of race, ethnicity, class, gender and nation­al identity. (Available for General Education, Comparative Cultural Studies).

CAS 201. Survey of Central American Literature (3)

Analysis of literary traditions throughout the history of Central America from pre-Hispanic times to the present. The course will focus on 20th and 21st century literary movements, with the main emphasis placed on the historical and political elements, and the ideological proposals of these works. It includes a discussion of the relationship between literary creation and the construction of Central American identity (Available for General Education, Arts and Humanities).

CAS 202. Survey of Central American Visual, Installation, And Performance Arts (3)

Analysis of artistic traditions throughout the history of Central America from pre-Hispanic times to the present. The course will focus on the cultural and sociopolitical construction of Central American identities through historical and contemporary artistic creation and representation. The main emphasis will be placed on the historical and political elements, Central American ethnic and cultural diversity, the multiple struggles for visibility, and the ideo­logical proposals that these works pose. It includes dimensions of art and the relationship between artistic production and the construction of Central American identity.

CAS 270. Fieldwork in Central American Communities (3)

Preparatory: CAS 100 or 102. Field study in a selected Central American community. By reflecting on their work experience stu­dents learn how the needs of the community can best be met, and how the well-being of the community is impacted by its relation­ships to state and local governments, community organizations, and private institutions. Faculty Supervisor assists students in obtaining appropriate work placements. Field study to be conducted under supervision and after preparatory instruction to acquaint students with field learning techniques. Variable content. May be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor. Academic Internship course. (Available for General Education, Lifelong Learning).

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Upper Division

CAS 303. Central American Film (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. History of the development of Central American cinema and analysis of film and video production by Central Americans. The course will focus on 20th and 21st century film and video production, with the main emphasis placed on the historical and political context in which Central American cinema is produced, the ideological proposals that these works make, and the ways in which this production con­tributes to the construction of a contemporary version of Central American identity.

CAS 309. Ancient To Pre-modern History of The Central American People (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement. Survey of the history of Central Americans from pre-Hispanic times to the pre-Independence days. Major topics include: Indigenous cultures (complex and single societies); Indigenous and European (Spanish and Anglo) relations; religion, family and land tenure; lan­guage and education; disease, labor and population; local and global trading; Indigenous revolts and pre-independence movements. (Available for General Education, Social Sciences).

CAS 310 Modern History of The Central American People (3)

Preparatory: completion of the lower-division writing requirement. Survey of the History of Central Americans from Independence times to the present. Major topics include: Independence move­ments; 19th and 20th century dependency; state-nation and iden­tity formation; politics of mestizaje; indigenous resistance; imperi­alism and economic growth; relations with the United States and Europe; politics of development; contemporary social movements; Central American diaspora. (Available for General Education, Social Sciences).

CAS 311. The Central American Diaspora (3)

Preparatory: Completion of the lower-division writing requirement. Comparative survey of the socioeconomic conditions and cultural life of Central American peoples in the United States today, par­ticularly in California. Issues of immigration, employment, income, education, gender, family, language, national identity, acculturation and political participation will be examined. Discussion of Central American diaspora communities in other parts of the world may also be included. (Available for General Education, Comparative Cultural Studies).

CAS 350. Urbanization in Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. During the second half of the twentieth-century the Central American so­cieties were transformed from an agrarian to an urban based service economy. As a result of this process and the political instability in Central America, the Central American population was massively displaced towards urban areas inside and outside the region. This interdisciplinary course will provide students with an understanding of the cultural, social, economic, demographic, and political impli­cations of the planning and development of the urban landscape in Central America and of the Central American population move­ment to urban spaces inside and outside the region.

CAS 355. Environment, Development & Social Exclusion in Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. The focus of this course will be the origins and ramifications of environmental degradation that stems from developmental policies which have his­torically impoverished Central American peoples. It examines the socio-cultural, demographic, economic, political and environmental problems experienced by Central America. It also addresses the ef­fects of mono-crop cultivation and the devastation produced by the use of pesticides. Additionally, this course shows the linkages of land degradation and poverty, strategies of survival and resistance, and the communal response to the dynamics of global capitalism.

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CAS 356 Afro-Caribbean Central American Cultures & Identities (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. This in­terdisciplinary course examines the history of colonization and rac­ism, as well as the socio-economic, political, and religious condi­tions that Afro-Caribbean peoples in Central America have endured since the time of their arrival as part of the slave trade until their most contemporary quests for self-determination. This course ex­plores the diverse cultures of the Afro-Caribbean population, the transnational movements and initiatives linked to this population's struggle for liberation, and the challenges that such struggles have represented to the Central American nation/states. Emphasis will be placed on Afro-Caribbean Central American peoples' cultures, iden­tities, movements, rights, media, gender, and migratory issues.

CAS 364. Culture And Violence in Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. This course will provide students with a basic theoretical and practical understanding of the relationship between culture and violence in Central America and the historical and socio-economic conditions that have generated a culture of violence in the region. The course will include an analysis of the concept of violence as it takes ideo­logical and physical forms, both in public and private spaces. Major topics of discussion include the historical legacy of exclusion, au­thoritarianism, and the militarization of Central America; the co­lonial legacy of ethnic exclusion, the destruction and exploitation of the environment; the role that violence plays in the experience of displacement that Central American immigrant communities un­dergo, as well as the relationship between violence, culture, and the construction of Central American identity.

CAS 365. Changing Roles of Central American Women (3)

Preparatory: Completion of the lower-division writing require­ment and either CAS 100 or 102. Comparative examination of the shifting cultural, political, economic and sex/gender roles that have shaped the lives of Central American women, including women's roles prior to and after the revolutionary movements. Also includes discussions of women activists and women's movements in various Central American communities both in the United States and in Central America; the search of Central American women for iden­tity in the United States; and women's contributions to art, mu­sic, poetry, literature, politics, and culture. (Available for General Education, Comparative Cultural Studies).

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CAS 366. Contemporary Indigenous Peoples of Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. This in­terdisciplinary course examines the new socio-economic, political, and religious conditions that contemporary Indigenous people of Central America are facing in their daily quest for self-determina­tion. In the last two decades the study of Indigenous practices has challenged the traditional notion that portrays native peoples as pas­sive subjects of the modern forces of assimilation. This course ex­plores the transnational spaces occupied by Indigenous associations and the challenges that this Indigenous movement represents to the Central American nation/states, the participation of women in de­fining the future of Indigenous communities, and resistance to the imposing socio-cultural and political paradigms. Emphasis will be placed on contemporary Indigenous culture, identity, movements, rights, media, gender, and migratory issues.

CAS 367. Contemporary Religious Movements in Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. Designed to provide students with a basic theoretical and practical understand­ing of the contemporary religious movements that shape Central American life in both Central America and the U.S. Emphasizes the transnational nature of Central American religious movements, as well as the ways in which these movements are responding to the legacy of war and violence that has impacted Central American life, both in the region and in diaspora communities.

CAS 368. Central American Revolutionary Movements (3)

Preparatory: Completion of the lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100 or 102. Examines the historical and socio-eco­nomic conditions that have shaped the Central American revolu­tionary movements. Major topics of discussion include: the history of Central America leading up to these movements, the role of the U.S. policy in the region before and during the movements, the ideological sources of the revolutionary movements and their or­ganizing strategies, the impact of the U.S. anti-intervention and solidarity movements, the peace processes in the region, and the influence of these movements on the post-revolutionary diaspora communities in the United States. (Available for General Education, Social Sciences).

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CAS 369. Contemporary Social Movements in Central America (3)

Preparatory: Completion of lower-division writing requirement and either CAS 100, CAS 102 or permission of the instructor. Course description: Designed to provide students with a basic theoretical and practical understanding of the contemporary social movements that shape Central American life in both Central America and the U.S. Emphasizes the transnational nature of Central American social movements, as well as the ways in which these movements are responding to the legacy of war and violence that has impacted Central American life, both in the region and in diaspora communi­ties. (Available for General Education, Social Sciences).

CAS 410. The Central American Child (3)

Preparatory: Completion of the Lower Division writing requirement. This course examines the educational experience of the Central American child within the context of immigration in the U.S.. At the same time, it compares the educational experience of the Central American child with that of children from other ethnic groups. This perspective provides insight into the Central American educational experience in the U.S.. It analyzes family educational strategies, Central American cultural and ethnic diversity, as well as the legacy of war and violence that has impacted Central American life in the U.S. and their influence on the Central American child's learning process. In addition, it will assess the educational system within a context of diversity, its outcomes and cultural relevance to Central American learning styles. Moreover, it will identify the national structures of culture, racism, economics and social policy, and their impacts on the local dynamics within the Central American community as well as other ethnic groups, particularly with regard to second language learning, bilingualism and non-Western cultural identities.

CAS 421. Central American Literature Seminar (3)

Examines Central American literary traditions with emphasis on the 20th and 21st centuries. Focuses on the aesthetic proposals, the historical and political context in which Central American literature is produced, the Central American transnational experience and the ways in which literary production contributes to the construction of a contemporary version of Central American identity. Emphasizes application of recent trends in literary theories and critical methodologies. Variable topics. Conducted in Spanish.

CAS 440. Research Seminar On Central American Culture (3)

Preparatory: Upper-division standing; 6 units in Central American Studies, including CAS 201. Techniques and practice of the critical analysis of culture. Develop and implement comparative research project that explore in depth some aspect of Central American cul­tures. Variable content. Possible topics include the role of literature in the construction of national identity, the creation of texts through oral history, cultural transformation and continuity in the Central American diaspora, art and social protest, medicine, religion and sorcery in the Central American diaspora. May be repeated for credit with instructor consent.

CAS 460. Research Seminar On Central American Political Issues (3)

Preparatory: 6 units in Central American Studies, including CAS 201 and Upper-Division standing. Purpose of this seminar is to acquaint students with the techniques and practice of theoretical research. Students will develop and implement comparative research projects that explore in depth some aspect of the Central American political experience. Variable content. Possible topics include: Sandinismo in theory and practice; the role of the Catholic Church and the influ­ence of Evangelical Protestantism in Central American communi­ties; postwar democracy in Central America; political activism in Central American diaspora communities in California.