SPAN 232 Readings: Twentieth and Twenty-First Century

Short Fictions

Prof. Ángel Díaz Miranda Hollins University

diazam@hollins.edu Spring 2020
Turner C-31 W 1-3:30pm and by appointment

The aim of this course is to present a panoramic view of modern and contemporary short stories,
fictionalized accounts, and short chronicles in Latin America and investigate its historical,
political, and cultural contexts. By moving from 2oth century masters of the craft towards
authors who are currently engaged in the genre we will explore the innovative aesthetic ways in
which they present their writing.

Grade Scale

A = 93-100 B+ = 87-89 C+ = 77-79 D+ = 67-69

A-= 90-92 B = 83-86 C = 73-76 D = 63-69

B- = 80-82 C- = 70-72 F = 0-62

Texts:​ Almada, Selva.​ ​Chicas Muertas​. Random House, 2015.

García Márquez, Gabriel. ​Crónica de una muerte anunciada​. Barcelona: Vintage

Español (versión 2003), 1981.

Course Components

Attendance, Word Bank, and Active Class Participation 5%

Quizzes 15% Presentación 15%

Exámenes 45% Examen Final 20%

Attendance and Engaged Class Participation (5%)

Informed class participation, based on the readings and films, is fundamental to achieve a high
mark in the course. The development of an engaging class discussion resides in the commitment
of the students to critically examine and comment all the work assigned.

Quizzes (15%)

The ​three quizzes ​will assess your reading comprehension of the assigned text and your ability
to think critically about its contents.

Oral Presentation (15%)

Students will prepare presentations based on two of the pre-selected readings. The student will
need to schedule a meeting with the professor during office hours to discuss strategies to
enhance fellow students’ learning and engagement. Students may use as many resources as they
wish in order to comment and analyze the short story.

Important Course Policies

Policy on plagiarism

DO NOT​:
• use material created by another student at Hollins University or anywhere else and pass it off
as your own (with or without their consent).
• use paper-writing services or companies which offers written papers for a fee.
• translate (with or without translation software) texts from other languages and submit them as
your own work.
Plagiarism is an extremely serious academic offense​.

If you have any questions or doubts about how to document the sources of your ideas, please
consult your professor.

Honor Code
Students, by their continued attendance to class, pledge to adhere to the provisions of the Honor
Code. All work for this course, including exams, essays, written homework and any other
assignments, is governed by the Honor Code.

Attendance
1. Students are required to attend all classes. You are allowed a maximum of two unexcused
absences, which you should reserve for short illnesses and emergencies. Unexcused absences
beyond these limits will result in the lowering of your final course grade by one letter grade.
2. Some excused absences are permitted. Your absence on religious holidays will be excused if
you inform the instructor in advance. Your absence may be excused if you suffer a serious

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medical emergency, provided you obtain written confirmation from a doctor or dean. Your
absence may also be excused in other extraordinary circumstances, provided you obtain a letter
from the dean.
3. You also have one personal day. You are not allowed to use it during quizzes or exams. Your
personal day will not exempt you from submitting your work on time.

Students with Disabilities

All students with need for accommodations should make this request as soon as possible by
contacting Disability Services​. Appropriate documents should be presented within one (1) week
of the beginning of the course.

Responsibility for Materials

All the assigned readings should be thoroughly read and understood even if not
covered in class. ​You may decide to use and discuss these materials in a response paper or in
your essay. The professor reserves the right to assign the materials that were not covered either
in the form of oral presentations, class discussions, quizzes and/or exams. The professor is
accessible to answer any and all questions regarding not only the readings but also any issues
that may arise during the semester. Needless to say, ​all the readings in the syllabus, as
well as those assigned during class time or as homework, are the sole
responsibility of the student​.

Syllabus

February

Thursday 6 - Course Presentation

Cuentos fantásticos

Tuesday 11 - “Viaje a la semilla” Alejo Carpentier | Add to vocabulary bank (Google Classroom)

¿Cómo funciona el tiempo en el cuento?

¿Cuál es el “viaje” que hace el personaje de Marcial?
¿Por qué el título es importante?

Thursday 13 - “Una flor amarilla” Julio Cortázar | Add to vocabulary bank (Google Classroom)

¿Quiénes son el borracho y Luc? ¿Cómo se relacionan los personajes?

¿Qué es un “avatar”?
¿Qué quiere olvidar el borracho?
¿Somos inmortales? ¿Cómo se entera y luego lo explica el borracho?

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Tuesday 18 - “El aleph” Jorge Luis Borges | Add to vocabulary bank (Google Classroom)

¿Qué es el “aleph”?

Thursday 20 - ​Quiz 1 ¿Cómo se relacionan los cuentos que hemos leído hasta ahora?

El gótico femenino

Tuesday 25 - “Árboles petrificados” Amparo Dávila | Add to bank

Explica el título del cuento

¿Cómo va cambiando la voz en la narración?

Thursday​ ​27 - “El huésped” Amparo Dávila | Add to bank

¿Qué o quién es “el huésped”?

¿Por qué le produce tanto miedo a la narradora?

March

Tuesday 3 - “Novia de azúcar” y “Rosas Negras” Ana García Bergua | Add to bank

¿Qué es un altar de muertos?

¿Por qué la autora insiste en mencionar comida en estos cuentos?

Ficción como crónica de la violencia

Thursday 5 - ​Quiz 2 ¿Cómo se entiende o se explica la muerte en los cuentos de la sección

pasada?​ | UTEP Conference

​ abriel García Márquez | Add to bank

Tuesday 10 - ​Crónica de una muerte anunciada G

​ abriel García Márquez | Add to bank

Thursday 12 - ​Crónica de una muerte anunciada G

​ abriel García Márquez

Tuesday 17 - ​Crónica de una muerte anunciada G

​ epaso
Thursday 19 -​ R

Tuesday 24 - ​SPRING BREAK

Thursday 26 - ​SPRING BREAK

Tuesday 31 - ​Examen 1

April

Contacto mnemónico

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Thursday 2 - “Ciudad desconocida” Arelis Uribe | Add to bank

¿Cómo es la relación de las primas?

¿Cuál es “la ciudad desconocida” y qué simboliza?

Tuesday 7 -​ ​“El boxeador polaco” Eduardo Halfon​ | Add to bank

Explique la anécdota del número de teléfono.

¿Cómo es la relación del narrador con su abuelo? ¿Se guardan secretos?

Neogótico

Thursday 9 - ​Quiz 3 Explique la relación entre memoria y ficción en los cuentos estudiados.

Tuesday 14 - “La casa de Adela” Mariana Enríquez | Add to bank

¿Qué significa la mutilación de la niña?

¿Por qué van a la casa?

¿Nueva violencia?

Thursday 16 - “Fin de curso” Mariana Enríquez | Add to bank | Schedule your meeting with Díaz

Post your own questions about this story to classroom

Tuesday 21 - ​Chicas muertas ​Selva Almada

​ elva Almada
Thursday 23 - ​Chicas muertas S

​ elva Almada | ​Repaso

Tuesday 28​ - ​Chicas muertas S

Thursday 30 -​ ​Examen 2

May

Tuesday 5 - ​Presentaciones

Thursday 7 -​ ​Presentaciones

Tuesday​ ​12 - Clase Final

EXAMEN FINAL (TAKE HOME)

SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE