Philosophy 419
Instructor: José J. Mendoza
Email: josejm@uw.edu
Office: Savery Hall 385
Office Hour: Monday: 2:20-4:20pm
Course Description
This course is designed to provide students with a general survey of Latin American philosophy, including some of its key texts and authors. This survey will range from Mesoamerican philosophy to the present. It will cover debates about whether there was an “indigenous” philosophy in Latin America prior to the European conquest. From there we will look at the debates over whether there is now an “authentic” Latin American philosophy and the course will conclude by looking at how Latin American philosophy can help guide our lives.
Required Texts
Miguel León-Portilla: Aztec Thought and Culture Links to an external site.
Gloria Anzaldúa: Borderlands/La Frontera The New Mestiza Links to an external site.
Carlos Alberto Sánchez: Blooming in the Ruins: How Mexican Philosophy Can Guide us toward the Good Life
Course Grading Scale
(roughly each 1% increment between grades is equivalent to 0.1)
A 95% = 4.0
B 85% = 3.0
C 75% = 2.0
D 65% = 1.0
At the end of the quarter we will convert your course grade from a percentage to the UW 4-point scale using this metric: 95% and up is 4.0; 94% is 3.9; 93% is 3.8; etc. Each 1% step is a 0.1 step on the UW 4-point scale. So an 86.1%, e.g., would give you a 3.1 on the UW scale. 85.5% rounds up to 86% (and thus 3.1), but 85.49% does not. At the bottom of the scale, however, 60% also rounds up to 0.7. See image below.
Assignment Guidelines for Undergraduates
1. Reading Quizzes (20% of course grade)
Each quiz will consist of about 5-20, mostly multiple-choice, questions. There is no time limit and the questions chronologically follow the reading. You are therefore strongly encouraged to take the quiz as you complete the readings. Quizzes will be available for only 10 days. So, do not fall too far behind and keep in mind there is no way to make up the quizzes once the quizzes are closed.
2. Two In Class Exams (45% of course grade, 22.5% each)
There will be two in-class exams (one on April 15 and another on May 6) consisting of multiple choice and short answer questions.
3. Class Presentation (5% of course grade)
Students will be asked to present on a chapter of Carlos Alberto Sánchez's Blooming in the Ruins.
4. Final Exam (30% of course grade)
This will take place in our classroom (ECE 025) on June 11th (Thursday of finals week) from 8:30-10:30am. It will be a comprehensive exam consisting of multiple choice and short answer questions.
Reading Schedule
Unit One (weeks 1-3): Aztec Thought and Culture
Week One
Required Readings:
Miguel León-Portilla: Aztec Thought and Culture
March 30th (Monday)
Prefaces (both)
Introduction: Philosophy and Culture in Ancient Mexico
April 1st (Wednesday)
Chapter 1: The Birth of Philosophy Among the Nahuas
Week Two
Required Readings:
Miguel León-Portilla: Aztec Thought and Culture
April 6th (Monday)
Chapter 2: The Pre-Columbian Concept of the Universe
Chapter 3: Metaphysical and Theological Ideas of the Nahuas
April 8th (Wednesday)
Chapter 4: The Approach to Man in Nahuatl Thought
Week Three
Required Readings:
Miguel León-Portilla: Aztec Thought and Culture
April 13th (Monday)
Chapter 5: Nauatl Man: Creator of a Way of Life
Conclusion
April 15th (Wednesday)
Exam #1
Unit Two (weeks 4-7): History of Philosophy in Latin America
Week Four
Required Readings:
April 20th (Monday)
"The Indian Problem: Conquest and the Valladolid Debate" by Alejandro Santana
April 22th (Wednesday)
"Iberian Scholasticism and Its Critics" by Susana Nuccetelli
Week Five
Required Readings:
April 27th (Monday)
"The Ideological Currents of the Epoch of Independence" by Luis Villoro
April 29th (Wednesday)
"The Emergence and Transformation of Positivism” by Meri L. Clark
Week Six
Required Readings:
May 4th (Monday)
"Mexican Philosophers of the Twentieth Century" by Fernando Salmerón
May 6th (Wednesday)
Exam #2
.
Unit Three (weeks 7-8): Latin American Philosophy and Identity
Week Seven
Required Readings:
Gloria Anzaldúa: Borderlands La Frontera: The New Mestiza
May 11th (Monday)
Chapter 1: The Homeland, Aztlán/El Otro México
Chapter 2: Movimientos de Rebeldia y Las Culturas que Traicionan
Chapter 3: Entering Into the Serpent
Chapter 4: La Herencia de Coatlicue/The Coatlicue State
Chapter 5: How to Tame a Wild Tongue
May 13th (Wednesday)
Chapter 6: Tlilli, Tlapalli: the Path of the Red and Black Ink
7: La Conciencia de Ia Mestiza: Towards a New Consciousness
Week Eight
Required Reading:
May 18th (Monday)
May 20th (Wednesday)
"Latinx Identity" by Andrea J. Pitts
Unit Four (weeks 9-10): Latin American Philosophy and the Good Life
Week Nine
Required Reading:
Carlos Alberto Sánchez: Blooming in the Ruins
May 25th (Monday)
Preface-Ch. 8
May 27th (Wednesday)
Chapters 9-14
Week Ten
Required Readings:
Carlos Alberto Sánchez: Blooming in the Ruins
June 1st (Monday)
Chapters 15-25
June 3rd (Wednesday)
Chapters 26-28
Final Exam
Finals Week
June 11th (Thursday): 8:30am