AFR 221 - Introduction to Caribbean Studies

Looking out from a Caribbean center provides a different view of the world. In this course, we complexify the Caribbean beyond sun, sea, and sand. First, we accept Caribbean scholars’ invitation to study the region across colonial and linguistic borders that erase pre-colonial/pre-Columbian history and re-center Europe. In exploring the region comparatively through time, we recognize the space as the laboratory of modernity, consequently re-situation the Caribbean within the larger story of humanity and contemporary geopolitics. Accordingly, we will engage in discussions about history vs. prehistory, colonization, racial capitalism, race, gender, and slavery, rebellions and revolutions, emancipation and independence, anti-colonial, labor and feminist movements, colorism/shadism, neoliberalism, sovereignty and postcolonialism. This course is multi-disciplinary. It covers the fields of Archaeology, Cultural Anthropology, History, Cultural Studies, Caribbean Studies, Gender Studies, Africana Studies, International Politics, and Political Science. As such, we will examine the different methodologies employed in scholarly research on the region. In addition to academic works, we will watch documentaries about politics and cultural production in the region, read first-account papers and speeches from key thinkers, listen to music, view artwork, and even cook some staples meals from the Caribbean.

Satisfies Africana Studies major requirement.
Satisfies History major and minor requirement.
Satisfies Historical Thought Ways of Knowing requirement.
Satisfies Cultural Diversity requirement.