The second midterm will be given Tuesday, November 23, 2010. The seventy-five minute examination represents 15% of the total course grade.
Part I: Essays (50% each)
Two of the following three questions will appear verbatim on the midterm examination. You will answer both questions. For each of the two essays, you should begin with a strong and clear thesis and then subsequently develop an argument that draws explicitly on assigned readings, video and online screenings, podcasts, handouts, one-page reactions, and in-class discussions.
Module I: Race and Ethnicity
If race can be described as "the story we tell," (Race: The Power of an Illusion part II), what is "the story" of race told in the two videos Brazil in Black and White and Mirrors of the Heart?
Module II: Religion, Faith, and Belief Systems
Develop an argument that critically explains the significance of ONE of the following major trends in religion in modern Latin America:
Module III: Gender and Sexuality
In the chapter "In Women's Hands," Peter Winn argues that the mythical ideals and harsh realities of marianismo and machismo are changing in modern Latin America. Drawing from the Chilean arpilleristas and on Manuel Puig's novel Kiss of the Spider Woman, identify and explain the nature of challenge to traditional roles of sex, gender, and sexuality in Latin America in the recent past.
Part II: Bonus Identifications (2% each)
You will be asked to define briefly three terms drawn from key vocabulary raised in Modules I-III.
STUDY HINT: Plan on using the entire class period for the examination. If you finish early, review your essays with an eye towards expanding and deepening your major arguments.
REVIEW SESSION: Friday, November 19, 9:00-10:30am in Taliaferro 2103.