INQ-271 | Testimonial Literature

Full Title: Testimonial Literature and Film

Topic Description:

During the period of military governments in Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua in the 1970’s to the 1990’s, testimonial literature became a vehicle of expression for the oppressed, marginalized, and “disappeared”. The literature and films we study in this course question the official historical accounts to give form to a collective memory to confront the unsettling aspects of a traumatic experience. We will analyze and write about texts drawn from different genres: poetry and narrative. We will take into consideration the specific social, political, and philosophical ideas that shaped testimonial literature and film during the 1980’s. Liberation Theology and Marxism are among the philosophical ideas that students can extract from the readings and films we will study. Testimonial literature and film also questions the notion of nation, identity, imperialism, and capitalism in Central America during the 1980’s as a way to include the marginalized sectors of society in the political, social, and cultural project.

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: September 2010