As one of Spain’s most charismatic writers, Federico García Lorca (1898 – 1936) provides a captivating window onto a singularly dynamic moment in Spanish cultural history, one that is characterized by the rise of the avant-garde and the founding of the Second Republic (1931-1939). During his short-lived career, eclipsed tragically by the forces of fascism at the start of the Spanish Civil War (1936), this uniquely imaginative poet, playwright, musician, artist, and theater director left his indelible imprint on the course of modern Spanish culture.  Lorca’s initial accomplishments as playwright-poet and ethnomusicologist include his Romancero gitano (Gypsy Balladry) and his efforts to promote flamenco.  While living at the Residencia de estudiantes, a hotbed for of artistic and literary creativity and innovation, Lorca came under the influence of such avant-garde figures as Luis Buñuel, Salvador Dalí and others residing there. The emergence of liberal democracy during the Spanish Second Republic provided a fertile context for Lorca’s newly empowered creative impulses and for his resolve as a public intellectual, with many of his most memorable accomplishments corresponding to this period: his «trilogía de la tierra española», Bodas de sangre, Yerma, and La casa de Bernarda Alba; his avant-garde poetry and theater, Poeta en Nueva York and El público; and his work as founder and director of «La Barraca», Spain’s first itinerant university theater troupe.  Woven into the fabric of these contributions is a complex interplay of concerns that include, for instance: the relationship between tradition and modernity; the interconnectedness of music, poetry and drama; the social and political relevance of art and artists, particularly with regard to traditionally marginalized communities and individuals; humanity’s ongoing struggle for individual fulfillment and social justice.

These are some of the focal points of a semester-long inquiry that is organized according to the following thematic units:

• I: Lorca ante la tradición lírica
• II: Lorca ante la tradición dramática
• III: Lorca y las vanguardias históricas

We aim to foster the following skills

• Greater self-awareness as readers
  
  • an enhanced appreciation for poetry and drama and a keen understanding of their crucial importance within the public sphere;
  • a clear understanding of the different tools of critical analysis that may be mobilized for plumbing the deeper meaning of art, especially in relation to its historical context;
  • an enhanced understanding of how highly regarded writers and artists help to redefine national cultural traditions and our sense of our collective identity as a society;
  • a greater sense of how aesthetic taste is generational and how art can be understood to reflect the different ideologies come to dominate at distinct moments of history. 
    
• Enhanced sensitivity to a diverse range of expressions
  
  Through regular written and oral exercises and through a student-centered approach to learning, we seek to foster a greater proficiency in both oral and written Spanish.
  
• Enhanced awareness of different strategies of argumentation
  
  We aim to empower our students to express themselves more persuasively Spanish in both their writing and speaking.

We aim to develope our students’ knowledge in the following areas

• Federico García Lorca significance as poet, playwright and public intellectual;
• The avant-garde, a preeminent 20th century literary and artistic movement;
• The enduring value of Spanish cultural traditions.
• The interrelatedness of politics and poetics in the early 20th century, a period of extraordinary cultural productivity and ideological ferment

All discussion and assignments are conducted exclusively in Spanish.

RESUMEN ESQUEMÁTICO

CATEGORÍA	PORCENTAJE
El análisis de síntesis final	30%
Exámenes parciales en clase (3)	35%
Presentaciones orales	15%
Ejercicios escritos – Moodle	10%
Asistencia, puntualidad, preparación y participación activa en clase	10%

TRABAJO DE SÍNTESIS FINAL (30%)

• El trabajo final facilitará la consolidación de conocimientos y destrezas analíticas. Se centrará en alguna problemática global en la producción artística e intelectual de Federico García Lorca. Servirá así para integrar las diferentes obras y los diversos temas y estilos estudiados a lo largo del cuatrimestre en una reflexión culminante personal y sintética.
• Los factores que influyen en la evaluación de este ejercicio son:
  • la diversidad y amplitud de la materia tratada;
  • la precisión en el análisis textual;
  • la inclusión de conexiones pertinentes con el contexto histórico;
  • la aplicación oportuna de teoremas básicos introducidos a lo largo del cuatrimestre;
  • la calidad de la prosa.

EXÁMENES PARCIALES (35%)

• El programa está organizado en tres bloques temáticos: Lorca ante la tradición lírica; Lorca ante la tradición dramática; Lorca y las vanuardias. Cada una de estas unidades terminará con un análisis escrito en clase, a modo de examen parcial.
• Rubric for grading expository writing

PRESENTACIONES ORALES (15%)

• Cada estudiante tendrá dos oportunidades de dirigir la discusión en clase. Las presentaciones se organizarán en equipo. Las presentaciones serán precedidas por la recitación, si es un poema, o la lectura dramatizada del fragmento teatral a analizar.
• Una semana después de la presentación oral entregarás en Moodle una reflexión posterior escrita, según las instrucciones en la guía.
• Guidelines for the presentations
• Rubric for assessing the presentations

• Support for presentations:
  
  The Wesleyan Presentation Studio offers guidance for design, strategy, and rehearsal of presentations, posters, and speeches. Make a free one-on-one appointment with a Studio Mentor, available to help with any stage in your development process, by visiting www.wesleyan.edu/presentationstudio or through your WesPortal by following the link under Academics. The online scheduler will show you all available appointments. The Studio recommends 30 minute appointments for rehearsals and minor questions and 60 minute appointments for brainstorming sessions or more involved support. Visit the website for questions or to find an extensive resource page of tips and suggestions!

EJERCICIOS ESCRITOS – MOODLE (10%).

• Antes de cada clase se montará en Moodle un foro (u otro ejercicio parecido) centrado en algún aspecto concreto de la materia asignada. Expondrás en este foro tu primera reacción al tema. Al mismo tiempo, ofrecerás una reacción personal al comentario de otra/o compañera/o. Las contribuciones serán breves, un párrafo aproximadamente. Las ideas planteadas en Moodle podrán formar la base de tus contribuciones a la discusión en clase.
• El plazo inapelable para completar estos ejercicios es 2 horas antes de iniciar la clase. Dada la naturaleza de estos ejercicios –la elaboración preliminar de ideas a compartir en clase– el plazo es improrrogable (late submissions to the Moodle forums will not be accepted).
• En la evaluación de estos ejercicios se valora sobre todo el esfuerzo sincero por hacer una contribución sincera y concienzuda a la experiencia de aprendizaje colectivo.
• La plantilla de evaluación (grading rubric) para los ejercicios en Moodle.
• Given the open format of these exercises, principles of tolerance, respect and decorum will be applied in evaluating the appropriateness of all entries.

ASISTENCIA Y PARTICIPACIÓN (10%)

Los estudiantes serán evaluados de forma continua en relación a los siguientes puntos:

• Asistencia rigurosa a clase. (Las faltas ocasionadas por cuestiones de salud serán justificadas solo tienen que justificarse con un sencillo correo electrónico enviado al profesor.)
• Puntualidad en la llegada a clase y en la entrega de trabajos.
• Preparación meticulosa de las lecturas antes de clase.
• Tu participación activa en clase señalará tu preparación previa y tu la curiosidad e interés académico e intelectual.  La enseñanza se concibe en esta clase como una experiencia colectiva. Tu preparación reflejará por tanto tu deseo de apoyar la experiencia educativa de los demás.
• La plantilla de evaluación (grading rubric) para la asistencia, puntualidad, preparación y participación.

MISCELANEA

• Protocolos en el aula
  • Utilizar el servicio (restroom) antes de clase. Las entradas y salidas de clase durante nuestros coloquios distraen e interrumpe.
  • No traer bebidas ni comida
• Dispositivos electrónicos (Electronic devices)
  • The use of the electronic devices in the classroom, as elsewhere, can be productive as well as distractive. Studies have determined that such distractive use as instant messaging and browsing the web is detrimental to students’ learning experience. Those studies have also shown that students tend to underestimate the negative effect of such distractions on their learning. It shall be understood that students may bring computers into the classroom for the sole productive purpose of consulting material related to the lesson or for taking notes. As mentioned below (see “Wesleyan Honor Code”), any distractive use will be treated as a violation of the Honor Code and subject to Student Judicial Board consideration. Distractive usage includes all forms of instant messaging (e.g., email, Facebook, Twitter, text messaging) or browsing Internet sites that are not related to the lesson.

Textos disponibles en Broad St. Books

• Federico García Lorca:
  • Poema del Cante Jondo / Romancero gitano (Cátedra)
  • La zapatera prodigiosa (Cátedra)
  • Amor de Don Perlimplín con Belisa en su jardín (Creative Space)
  • Bodas de sangre (Cátedra)
  • Yerma (Cátedra)
  • La Casa de Bernarda Alba (Cátedra)
  • Poeta en Nueva York (Cátedra)
  • El público (Cátedra)
• Miguel de Cervantes, Entremeses (European Masterpieces)
• Pedro Calderón de la Barca, El gran teatro del mundo (auto sacramental) (Cátedra)

Los materiales asequibles a través de nuestro programa en línea incluyen lecturas (en pdf), videos, audios y guías ilustradas.

The pledge is an affirmation of each student’s agreement to adhere to the standards of academic integrity set by Wesleyan’s Honor Code.  In order to promote constant awareness of the Honor Code, professors are encouraged to ask students to sign the pledge when submitting any academic exercise for evaluation.

Your signature and pledge will appear on all work, quizzes, and exams submitted for evaluation as your guarantee that:

• you have received no help of any kind from anyone (this refers especially to compositions);
• you have only used a bilingual dictionary or one of the Spanish dictionaries mentioned above;
• you have not used any type of translator such as those available on the Internet. 
• you have not used any electronic (AI) type of program for organizing your ideas or producing your prose.
• In order to promote academic integrity all papers will be filtered through the online detection service TurnItIn.

The pledges read as follows:

• For papers and similar written work. In accordance with the Honor Code, I affirm that this work is my own and all content taken from other sources has been properly acknowledged.
• For tests and other academic exercises: In accordance with the Honor Code, I affirm that this work has been completed without improper assistance.

Regarding computers and as mentioned above, the productive use of a laptop in the classroom is treated in this class as falling within the jurisdiction of the Wesleyan Honor Code. For the benefit of a rewarding learning experience, the distractive use of laptops in class is strictly forbidden.

All students are strongly advised to read carefully the section concerning the Wesleyan Honor Code and Code of Non-Academic Conduct in the Faculty and Student Advising Handbook.

Wesleyan University is committed to ensuring that all qualified students with disabilities are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from its programs and services. To receive accommodations, a student must have a documented disability as defined by the ADA. Since accommodations may require early planning and generally are not provided retroactively, please contact Accessibility Services as soon as possible.If you have a disability, or think that you might have a disability, please contact Accessibility Services in order to arrange an appointment to discuss your needs and the process for requesting accommodations. Accessibility Services is located in North College, rooms 021/022, or can be reached by email (accessibility@wesleyan.edu) or phone (860-685-5581).