| Unit name | Brazilian Backlands, Universal Borders |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HISP30105 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. King |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Hispanic, Portuguese and Latin American Studies |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will be taught by Dr Rosane Carneiro Ramos in 2023/24.
Why is this unit important
The Brazilian backlands (o sertão) can be considered a mythical version of Brazil, a parallel universe not only within the country's borders, but also in relation to the South American continent. This space, at the same time imaginary and hyper realistic – much less recognised compared to other themes related to Brazilianness – provides an opportunity for countless and rich critical studies. This unit encourages you to engage critically with the unique cultural, political, economic and environmental issues that integrate past and present in contemporary Brazil. It considers topics such as republican revolts, dictatorships, national identity, land distribution, migration, endemic culture, environment. However, more than tracing the historical path of this specific area of Brazil, the unit will explore through different theoretical resources how the regional uniqueness of the hinterland can also be representative of the universality of postcolonial citizens. Through the selection of primary and secondary sources distributed in different media and artistic genres, by the end of the unit you will be able to formulate and critically articulate the relationships between colonial conditions and contemporary circumstances that involve the subject of the backlands.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
For students of Portuguese, this unit will build on the knowledge of Lusophone societies that you acquired in previous years of study. It will also bring together and further refine the cross-disciplinary interpretive skills you have developed to date. Finally, since the unit assumes a diachronic perspective, it allows you to relate the colonial past and the decolonial present, and to think about how the arts analyse and contribute to social change in contemporary times.
For joint-honours students, the unit will offer a rich and distinctive case study that you can compare and contrast with the specific disciplinary knowledge gained in other areas of the degree program. It will therefore offer an opportunity to make transnational connections and comparisons, allowing you to deploy and extend your interpretive skills based on new material. At the same time, this unit will give you an insight into the convergences that historical processes provide in different contemporary societies – in which subjects can be interpreted as the unfolding of past conditions.
You will cultivate writing, research, oral and presentation skills, both independently and as part of groups.
An overview of content
In this unit, you will have contact with central cultural artifacts related to the sertão theme. Many of these are considered classics of Brazilian and Latin American literature and visual arts, including Morte e vida Severina by João Cabral de Melo Neto, and Grande sertão: veredas by João Guimarães Rosa. We will study the materials in the historical and political context of the region as well as examining comparisons between literary works and their cinematic adaptations. The more contemporary and updated approach of these films exposes the recurrence of issues experienced in the hinterland. The theoretical contribution of the secondary readings will help you to expand the interpretation towards a more global understanding of the phenomena of exclusion, derived from historical processes also in other Portuguese-speaking countries.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
The interdisciplinarity of this unit will equip you for critical cultural and political analysis, essential for any professional activities in the field of Humanities. Human rights, environment, migration and land distribution are some of the topics to be addressed through the selection of primary and secondary sources. Although specific, the examination of artistic productions about the Brazilian backlands will provide you with distinct interdisciplinary tools and interpretive skills useful for analyses in transnational and transhistorical contexts. You will be able to articulate your independent research orally and in writing, and also through teamwork, emphasising the relevance of your studies for professional settings.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:
1. Recognise the historical, social and cultural uniqueness of the Brazilian backlands;
2. Identify the consequences of the historical process of colonisation on contemporary societies;
3. Interpret diverse literary texts and specific adaptations in audiovisual media;
4. Analyse, compare and contrast documents/visual sources from different periods and genres;
5. Develop a well-structured written argument about aspects of the Brazilian hinterland and its possibilities of interpretation in relation to the contemporary moment;
6. Deliver critical and sophisticated presentations based on informed and evidence-based research practice.
The two-hour weekly sessions will be divided into lectures and seminars. The lectures will provide background information and theoretical frameworks to allow students to develop their own lines of enquiry, while seminars will encourage student participation and independent exploration of the subject. You will also be expected to carry out ongoing independent study outside of classes.
There will be an option to conduct some or all of the teaching and/or class discussions in Portuguese. We will discuss this during the first class of the teaching block.
Tasks that help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks
In-class group presentation or equivalent 15 minutes (25%) [ILOs 1,2,3,4 and 6]
Coursework essay, 3,000 words (75%) [ILOs 1-5]
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
We will work regularly on primary and secondary source analysis and essay plans to prepare you for the summative tasks.
Oral feedback will be given during seminar discussions.
Additional one-to-one feedback will be provided during consultation hours or by making an appointment with the unit tutor.
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. HISP30105).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
