HIS 160 - Latin America Before Independence

1. Discuss the geography and peoples of Latin America within a historical and global context.
2. Analyze the major indigenous civilizations of Latin America, their contributions to world history, and fundamental importance to contemporary societies.
3. Describe the background, events, impact, and formations resulting from European invasions, conquests and colonialism, principally Spanish and Portuguese.
4. Discuss the complexities of race, ethnicity, and class in forming the people of Latin America and their socio-political relationships in the colonial period.
5. Examine the background to independence from indigenous struggles to Criollo nationalism.

1. Intensive Writing and Critical Inquiry
   1. Producing written discourse in more than one assignment through papers, reports, quizzes, tests, etc., which includes a minimum word standard of 3000 words.
   2. Written assignments emphasize critical inquiry which includes the gathering, interpreting, and evaluating of evidence.
   3. Includes a formal out of class paper of at least 1,500 words which requires critical inquiry and where the writer develops and supports a main idea.  
   4. Explicit writing instruction with timely feedback to help students improve their writing and critical inquiry skills is part of the course’s content.
   5. The evaluation of written assignments must include the overall quality of written work and critical inquiry, as measured by a rubric
   6. At least 50% of the student’s grade must be based on the written work and critical inquiry assignments.

1. Theory and Geography
   1. Theoretical approaches
   2. Geographic regions and features of Latin America
2. Indigenous Latin America
   1. Civilizations to 1492
   2. Mesoamerica and the Caribbean
   3. South America
3.    European Background
   1. Spain in the Middle Ages
   2. Catholic sovereigns:  Isabel and Fernando
   3. Portugal
   4. Europe in the early Modern Period
4. Colonial Economy and Society
   1. Explorations and conquests
   2. Genocide and Indian resistances
   3. Economic foundations of colonialism
   4. Colonial social and administrative system under Spain
   5. Colonial Brazil
5. Resistance and Movements for Independence in Spanish America
   1. Bourbon reforms
   2. Criollo culture, the enlightenment, and United States independence
   3. Indigenous resistance and insurrections
   4. Wars for independence