Imagining Brazilian Cities

Catalog description

This course traces the transformation of Brazilian cities, as represented in literature and the arts, from the modernization projects of the late 19th century through the exponential growth of urban areas in recent decades. Studying these urban transformations will provide students with insight into how contemporary Brazil developed into an urban nation with seventeen of its cities featuring populations of one million or more. This class focuses primarily on artistic representations of the global metropolises of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, the modernist capital of Brasília, and the northeastern city of Recife. Readings will highlight the diverse experiences and expressions of urban life in essays, poems, short stories, and avant-garde novels. Music, film, and photography will complement students¿ literary tour of an urban Brazil. Critical readings from urban studies, architecture, anthropology, history, and other interdisciplinary fields will allow us to further explore the question of the city in Brazil. This course will be conducted in Portuguese. Students must be able to complete the readings, informal and formal written assignments, and in-class discussion and activities in Portuguese.