Introduction to Chicana/o Studies

Catalog description

This is an introductory interdisciplinary course designed to introduce students to research and publications in related disciplines and familiarizes them with the interdisciplinary aspects of Chicana/o studies. The course is a survey of diverse historical experiences, cultural factors, and ethnic/racial paradigms, including indigenousness, gender, sexuality, language, and borders, that help shape Chicana/o identities, with an emphasis on critical reading and writing skills. The course will provide students with a comprehensive examination of Mexican, Chicana/o, and Latina/o development in the United States. Through critical reading and thinking, textual analysis, and coherent, persuasive writing and communication skills, students will gain a clear understanding of some of the central developments of Chicana/o history and culture. This course will also provide an overview of the formations, definitions, and transformations of Chicana/o peoples by critically analyzing gender roles, the borderlands, Chicana feminism, the arts, immigration, tradition, and identity of Chicano people.