Teaching Gender through Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Texts and Cultures

Teaching Gender through Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Texts and Cultures provides a dynamic exploration of the subject of teaching gender and feminism through the fundamental corpus encompassing Latin American, Iberian and Latino authors and cultures from the Middle Ages to the 21st century. The four editors have created a collaborative forum for both experienced and new voices to share multiple theoretical and practical approaches to the topic. The volume is the first to bring so many areas of study and perspectives together and will serve as a tool for reassessing what it means to teach gender in our fields while providing theoretical and concrete examples of pedagogical strategies, case studies relating to in-class experiences, and suggestions for approaching gender issues that readers can experiment with in their own classrooms. The book will engage students and educators around the topic of gender within the fields of Latin American, Latino and Iberian studies, Gender and Women’s studies, Cultural Studies, English, Education, Comparative Literature, Ethnic studies and Language and Culture for Specific Purposes within Higher Education programs. “Teaching Gender through Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Texts and Cultures makes a compelling case for the central role of feminist inquiry in higher education today ... Startlingly honest and deeply informed, the essays lead us through classroom experiences in a wide variety of institutional and disciplinary settings. Read together, these essays articulate a vision for twenty-first century feminist pedagogies that embrace a rich diversity of theory, methodology, and modality.” – Lisa Vollendorf, Professor of Spanish and Dean of Humanities and the Arts, San José State University. Author of The Lives of Women: A New History of Inquisitional Spain “What is it like to teach feminism and gender through Latin American, Iberian, and Latino texts? This rich collection of texts ... provides a series of insightful and exhaustive answers to this question ... An essential book for teachers of Latin American, Iberian and Latino/a texts, this volume will also spark new debates among scholars in Gender Studies.” – Mónica Szurmuk, Researcher at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council of Argentina. Author of Mujeres en viaje and co-editor of the Cambridge History of Latin American Women’s Literature ADVANCE PRAISE FOR TEACHING GENDER THROUGH LATIN AMERICAN, LATINO, AND IBERIAN TEXTS AND CULTURES 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS 10 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 12 INTRODUCTION: Gender Pedagogy through Latin American, Iberian, and Latino Texts—The What, How, and Who 14 I. FEMINISM IN THE AFTERMATH IN LATIN AMERICAN, IBERIAN AND LATINO STUDIES 21 II. NEW CANONS, NEW READINGS IN THE CLASSROOM 21 III. SHIFTING THE GROUND WHEN READING 24 IV. BREAKING THE AGREEMENT OF SILENCE, TEACHING UNCOMFORTABLE SUBJECTS 25 V. INTERDISCIPLINARY AND CROSSROADS 26 NOTES 29 REFERENCES 30 I. FEMINISM IN THE AFTERMATH IN LATIN AMERICAN, IBERIAN AND LATINO STUDIES 31 2. MOBILIZING MEANINGS: QUESTIONS FOR A PEDAGOGY OF WOMEN’S WRITING 32 INTRODUCTION 32 FEMINISM’S AFTERMATH 33 FOUCAULT AND THE CANON 39 MOBILIZING MEANINGS AND NEW POSITIONS AND DEPARTURES 41 NOTES 47 REFERENCES 48 II. NEW CANONS, NEW READINGS IN THE CLASSROOM 51 3. CADA MAESTRILLO TIENE SU LIBRILLO: Personal Reflections on Teaching Gender through Medieval Iberian Texts 52 FRAMING GENDER: IBERIAN AND MEDITERRANEAN STUDIES 54 HISTORICIZING GENDER PERFORMATIVITY 59 CONCLUSIONS 61 NOTES 62 REFERENCES 63 4. “THE PERSONAL IS POLITICAL”: Teaching Gender and Nation through Nineteenth-Century Texts 66 GENDER IN PRACTICE 69 NOTES 85 REFERENCES 85 5. TEACHING HISPANIC FEMINISMS: From Academic Consciousness-Raising to Activism 89 VOICE AND VISIBILITY THROUGH THE COURSE TITLED “ESCRITORAS MEXICANAS Y MEXICOAMERICANAS” 94 INTRODUCTION OF FEMINIST THEORIES THROUGH HISPANIC LITERATURE IN THE COURSE TITLED “NOVELA ESPAÑOLA DESDE 1897” 96 EXAMINATION OF THE FEMALE PROTAGONIST IN 20TH-CENTURY SPANISH LITERATURE AND FILM 98 DESIGN OF COURSE TAUGHT IN ENGLISH FOR THE LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN STUDIES PROGRAM, “HISPANIC FEMINISMS” 100 NOTE 103 REFERENCES 104 6. GENDERED MATTERS: Engaging Research on Early Modern Dramaturgas in the Classroom 106 CROSS-DRESSING AND GENDER PERFORMANCE 108 PASSING 112 SUBJECTIVITY, MIMETIC DESIRE, AND FEMALE AGENCY 113 PATRIARCHAL AUTHORITY 116 WOMEN AS AGENTS OF VIOLENCE 117 ÉCRITURE FEMININE / WRITING THE FEMALE BODY 118 THE MALE GAZE 119 APPENDIX OF AUTHORS AND EDITIONS 120 Multiple Authors 120 Azevedo, Angela de 121 Caro, Ana 121 Cecilia del Nacimiento 122 Cueva y Silva, Leonor de la 122 Enríquez de Guzmán, Feliciana 122 Francisca de Santa Teresa, Sor 123 Marcela de San Félix, Sor 123 María de San Alberto, Sor 124 Maria do Céu, Sor 124 Zayas, María de 124 NOTES 124 REFERENCES 126 III. SHIFTING THE GROUND WHEN READING 132 7. HOW TO READ A MASCULINE CANON: Gender and Indigenismo 133 INTRODUCTION 133 ROSARIO CASTELLANO’S INDIGENISMO 134 CASTELLANOS AND THE INDIGENISTA’S READING HABITUS 137 ON THE LANDOWNER 141 CONCLUSION 142 REFERENCES 143 8. WILD NAKED LADIES: SHIFTING PARADIGMS: Gendered Approaches to María Victoria Menis’s Cámara oscura [Camera Obscura] (2008) and Albertina Carri’s La rabia [Anger] (2008) 146 NOTES 159 REFERENCES 159 IV. BREAKING THE AGREEMENT OF SILENCE, TEACHING UNCOMFORTABLE SUBJECTS 162 9. INTERROGATING GENDERED MEXICAN CULTURAL ICONS IN A “BORDER” CLASSROOM 163 INTRODUCTION 163 THE “BORDER” CLASSROOM 164 GENDERED CULTURAL ICONS 167 PANCHO VILLA AS MASCULINE CULTURAL ICON 168 VIRGIN OF GUADALUPE AS FEMININE CULTURAL ICON 171 “TÍA JUANA” AS THE UNMENTIONABLE CULTURAL ICON 174 CONCLUSION 176 NOTES 177 REFERENCES 177 10. APPROACHES TO TEACHING RAPE IN THE SPANISH LITERATURE CLASSROOM: Alicia Giménez Bartlett’s Ritos de Muerte 180 NOTES 191 REFERENCES 191 V. INTERDISCIPLINARY AND CROSSROADS 193 11. TEACHING GENDER FOR THE MULTICULTURAL WORKPLACE 194 INTRODUCTION 194 THE SPANISH FOR THE PROFESSIONS MAJOR 195 CHALLENGES OF UNBALANCED UNDERSTANDING 198 WOMEN’S PROGRESS IN PROFESSIONAL SECTORS 201 INCORPORATING INFORMATION INTO ACTIVE KNOWLEDGE 202 CONCLUSION 206 NOTES 207 REFERENCES 208 12. PERFORMING GENDER IN THE CLASSROOM AND ON THE STAGE 210 NOTES 223 REFERENCES 223 ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 225 ABOUT THE EDITORS 229 Teaching Gender through Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Texts and Cultures provides a dynamic exploration of the subject of teaching gender and feminism through the fundamental corpus encompassing Latin American, Iberian and Latino authors and cultures from the Middle Ages to the 21st century. The four editors have created a collaborative forum for both experienced and new voices to share multiple theoretical and practical approaches to the topic. The volume is the first to bring so many areas of study and perspectives together and will serve as a tool for reassessing what it means to teach gender in our fields while providing theoretical and concrete examples of pedagogical strategies, case studies relating to in-class experiences, and suggestions for approaching gender issues that readers can experiment with in their own classrooms. The book will engage students and educators around the topic of gender within the fields of Latin American, Latino and Iberian studies, Gender and Womens studies, Cultural Studies, English, Education, Comparative Literature, Ethnic studies and Language and Culture for Specific Purposes within Higher Education programs. Teaching Gender through Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Texts and Cultures makes a compelling case for the central role of feminist inquiry in higher education today Startlingly honest and deeply informed, the essays lead us through classroom experiences in a wide variety of institutional and disciplinary settings. Read together, these essays articulate a vision for twenty-first century feminist pedagogies that embrace a rich diversity of theory, methodology, and modality. Lisa Vollendorf, Professor of Spanish and Dean of Humanities and the Arts, San Jose State University. Author of The Lives of Women: A New History of Inquisitional Spain What is it like to teach feminism and gender through Latin American, Iberian, and Latino texts? This rich collection of texts provides a series of insightful and exhaustive answers to this question An essential book for teachers of Latin American, Iberian and Latino/a texts, this volume will also spark new debates among scholars in Gender Studies Front Matter....Pages i-xii Introduction....Pages 1-17 Front Matter....Pages 19-19 Mobilizing Meanings: Questions for a Pedagogy of Women’s Writing....Pages 21-39 Front Matter....Pages 41-41 Cada Maestrillo Tiene Su Librillo....Pages 43-56 “The Personal is Political”....Pages 57-79 Teaching Hispanic Feminisms....Pages 81-97 Gendered Matters....Pages 99-124 Front Matter....Pages 125-125 How to Read a Masculine Canon....Pages 127-139 Wild Naked Ladies: Shifting Paradigms....Pages 141-156 Front Matter....Pages 157-157 Interrogating Gendered Mexican Cultural Icons in a “Border” Classroom....Pages 159-175 Approaches to Teaching Rape in the Spanish Literature Classroom....Pages 177-189 Front Matter....Pages 191-191 Teaching Gender for the Multicultural Workplace....Pages 193-208 Performing Gender in the Classroom and on the Stage....Pages 209-223 Back Matter....Pages 225-230