Popular Culture in Argentina

This course will examine Argentine Culture, Literature, and History through the lens of popular culture. The focus will be on cultural identitity, Nation Building , and social and political conflicts and class struggle. We will examine issues such as democracy, myths, public festivals, religion, sports, music, food, fashion, print media, television and film, paying particular attention to the art and politics that havve influenced (and continue to influence) the lives of ordinaty people in Argentina. We will discuss how popular culture contributes to a multi-faceted and continuously evolving sense of national identity. We will cover a wide range of topics from the myths of Eva Perón and Che Guevara to soccer and Maradona´s "hand of God"; from Tango to Rock and Roll. We will explore popular iconography related to figures such as the singer Gilda and the popular folk saint Gauchito Gil, as well as issues relating to politics and the media (movies, comics, and TV shows). Course materials will include Kiss of the Spider Woman by Manuel Puig, Santa Evita by Tomás Eloy Martínez, shorts stories by Cortázar, Perlongher, and Borges, comics such as Héctor Oesterheld The Eternaut, Quino´s Mafalda, and Maitena Burundarena´s famous comic strip Maitena, Women on the Edge, videos, songs, and excerpts from movies and TV shows. Books, articles, and media files will be ready for easy online access. (1 unit)

This course is cross-listed with Literature.*