Over the latter half of the twentieth century, cities across Latin America experienced massive, accelerated urbanisation. Much of this unprecedented growth occurred in self-built informal settlements constructed on land occupied by the newly industrialised workforce. Often condemned as spaces of violence, poverty, and dangerous alterity, the expanding urban margins were also frequently romanticised as spaces of opportunity and popular empowerment. Indeed, ever since their emergence, such spaces have attracted artists and writers who seek to use their work to bring ignored and disparaged city residents to public attention, and shape the public perception of informal spaces. More than this, however, artists invariably contribute to the imaginary construction of the city space and, by extension, shape the lives of city residents. Thus, in this module, students will analyse a diverse range of literary and cinematic texts and artistic works to explore the ways in which economic and spatial marginalisation in Latin American cities intersect with racial, sexual, political and class differences, and understand some of the ways in which artists and marginalised people shape the imagined and material reality of the wider city.

The module aims to:

enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of processes of 20th Century urbanisation in Latin America;
	explore the ways in which writers, filmmakers, and artists critically engage with and represent marginal city spaces and their residents;
	enhance students’ knowledge of some of the ways in which artists and marginalised citizens interact to sculpt and shape both the material and imagined reality of Latin American cities;
	introduce students to theories of urban space and marginality, and enhance students’ understanding of how these are relevant to artistic texts and can be utilised in their interpretation;
	cultivate skills and aptitudes of close (con)textual analysis in oral presentations and in written work;
	enhance students’ independent research skills by focussing on an individual writing exercise supported by structured tutorials.
Upon completion of the module, students will be able to:

demonstrate advanced knowledge of the rapid urbanisation of Latin American cities, including understanding of both the stimulus for this growth and its consequences;
	critically examine a range of literary and cinematic texts and works of visual art which imaginatively explore, represent, and construct marginal city spaces and their residents;
	demonstrate knowledge of a wide range of theories of urban space and marginality and their relevance to artistic texts;
	engage in close reading and critical analysis of primary and secondary sources (including materials written in academic and regional forms of Spanish) which address these themes;
	be able to formulate their own research question and select appropriate primary texts in their responses;
	enhance their ability to plan, research and write an article-length essay through supported tutorials focussed on self-guided knowledge production.
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