MEXICO SINCE 1810 - Fall 2016
HIST4190- Wooten Hall 312 – Mondays 6:30 to 9:20 pm
Dr. Sandra Mendiola
E-mail:
OFFICE HOURS: Wooten Hall 263: Wednesday 11:45am to 1:45pmor by appointment
Course Description
In this course, we will studymodern Mexican history from independence to the present. We will begin the semester by studying Mexico’s colonial background; we will conclude it by exploring the main challenges that Mexico experiences in the twenty first century. The topics that we will cover include:the independence wars, nation-building, the Porfiriato, the Mexican Revolution, the post-revolutionary state, migration andUS-Mexican relations.In addition to reading and analyzing primary sources, we will read diverse works written by historians and other scholars. At the end of the semester, you will have a good understanding of the different approaches and methods historians have used to study Mexico.
Required Readings
This is a reading intensive course and your informed participation is extremely important. You must read the materials assigned for each session before the class meets. Be prepared to discuss them.Take notes while you read and prepare comments for participation.
Required Books:
Wasserman, Mark, Everyday Life and Politics in Nineteenth Century Mexico: Men, Women, and War(Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2000).
Boyer Christopher, Political Landscapes: Forest, Conservation, and Politics in Mexico (Durham: Duke University Press, 2015).
Cohen, Deborah,Braceros: Migrant Citizens and Transnational Subjects in the Postwar United States and Mexico (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2011).
McCormick, Gladys, The Logic of Compromise in Mexico: How the Countryside was Key to the Emergence of Authoritarianism (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2016).
Articles and Chapters (in Blackboard)
Archer, Christon I. “Death’s Patriots-Celebration, Denunciation and Memories of Mexico’s Independence Heroes: Miguel Hidalgo, José María Morelos, and Agustín de Iturbide,” in Lyman Johnson, Body Politics: Death, Dismemberment, and Memory in Latin America (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2004): pp. 63-104
Aviña, Alexander, ““We have returned to Porfirian Times:” Neo-Populism, Counterinsurgency, and the Dirty War in Guerrero, Mexico 1969-1976” in María L.O. Muñoz, & Amelia Kiddle (eds.), Populism in 20th Century Mexico: The Presidencies of Lázaro Cardenas and Luis Echeverría, 2011, (pp. 106-121).
Boardman, Andrea, “The U.S. Mexican War and the Beginnings of American Tourism in Mexico”in Dina Berger and Andrew Grant Wood, Holiday in Mexico: Critical Reflections on Tourism and Tourist Encounters, Duke Univ Press, 2010.
Bueno, Christina “Teotihuacán: Showcase for the Centennial” in Holiday in Mexico, pp. 54-76
Herrera Calderón, Fernando “From Books to Bullets: Youth Radicalism and Guerrillas in Guadalajara” in Adela Cedillo and Fernando Herrera (eds.), Challenging Authoritarianism in Mexico, pp. 105-128.
Pensado“Student Politics in Mexico at the Wake of the Cuban Revolution,” in Robert Clarke et. al., eds., New World Coming: The Sixties and the Shaping of Global Consciousness, 2009.
****You will find additional readings in BLACKBOARD*******
Course Objectives
In this course, you will gain an understanding ofmodern Mexican history from the time ofthe wars of independence to the present. You will learn how to read and interpret primary sources and how to think as a historian. Finally, you will improve your analytical, discussion, and writing skills.
Course Grade
I will calculate your grade as follows: A=90 to 100; B= 80 to 89; C=70 to 79; D=60-69; F=59 and below.
Book Quizzes20%
Participation15%
Research Proposal and Paper25%
Mid-term Exam 20%
Final Exam20%
Assignments
Quizzes (20%): You will take three book quizzes. See class schedule for specific dates.
Participation (15%): I will evaluate participation through class discussions and pop quizzes. Your informed participation in every session is extremely important.
Exams: You will synthesize and analyze material from assigned readings, lectures, and discussions.
Research Paper (25%). You will write a final research paper (7-10 pages, plus bibliography and an optional title page) on a topic that falls into the time frame of this course (approximately 1821 to the present). A research proposal of your paper is due on October 10(5%). The proposal includes your topic, a complex historical question, and a bibliography. You are required to useat least one primary source and at least three scholarly/academic secondary sources. I do not accept encyclopedias, Wikipedia, textbooks, and popular magazines as sources. You can only use assigned readings (books or articles) in addition to the above requirements. Your paper must be original and you cannot submit a paper that you wrote for another course. You must cite and quote your sources according to the Chicago Style guidelines.Be extremely careful with all your written assignments. Give credit to ideas that are not yours. Plagiarism will result in failure of the assignment or/and course. You must submit an electronic copy of your writing assignments to turnitin in Blackboard Learn as well as a hardcopy to me.The final research paper is due on November 21.You will find handouts for specific instructions in Blackboard.
Course Policies
Attendance and Punctuality: I expect you to attend all class sessions. I will deduct 5% from the final grade course for each absence over two absences. Two tardies will be treated as one absence.
Late work: For every day your writing assignments are late, I will deductpoints from your research proposal grade and from your final paper grade. I will only allow you to take make-up exams and quizzes under extraordinary circumstances. You need to talk with me in advance to discuss specific circumstances that prevent you from taking the scheduled examinations. I will not make written comments on late work.
Class etiquette: Show respect for your classmates and professor. Avoid using your cell phone, do not engage in side conversations while others are participating, and don’t do homework during our class-sessions.
Disabilities Accommodations
If you need accommodations, you must register with the Office of Dissability Accomodation (ODA), (940-565-4323). Bring your letter of accommodation to me within the first weeks of the semester.
Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity is defined in the UNT Policy on Student Standards for Academic Integrity. Any suspected case of Academic Dishonesty will be handled in accordance with the University Policy and procedures. Possible academic penalties range from a verbal or written admonition to a grade of “F” in the course. Further sanctions may apply to incidents involving major violations. You will find the policy and procedures at Academic dishonesty includes: cheating, plagiarism, forgery, fabrication, facilitating dishonesty, and sabotage.
Class Schedule
Note: The professor reserves the right to make changes to the course schedule with appropriate advance notice.You are responsible to check your UNT email at least three times per week.
August 29 Introduction: The Colonial Background
Wasserman, Everyday Life and Politics (introduction)
September 5:No class: Labor Day- University closed
Monday Sept 12:The Meanings of Freedom: Independencewars 1810-1821
Read: José María Morelos, Sentiments of the Nationand
Archer, Christon I. “Death’s Patriots-Celebration”
Monday Sept 19:Political Troubles and Loss of Territory
Read:Wasserman, Everyday Life and Politics (Part I) and Boardman, “The U.S. Mexican War and the Beginnings of American Tourism in Mexico”
Monday Sept 26Civil Wars
Read: Wasserman, Everyday Life and Politics (Part II)
Monday Oct 3Library Training: Class meets in Willis Library
Monday Oct 10The Porfiriato
Read: Bueno, Christina “Teotihuacán: Showcase for the Centennial” and
Wasserman Everyday Life and Politics (Part III)
RESEARCH PROPOSAL DUE
Monday Oct 17MID-TERM EXAM DUE
The Mexican Revolution of 1910
Read: Francisco I Madero’s Plan de San Luis Potosí
Emiliano Zapata’s Plan de Ayala
Monday Oct 24:The Rise of Authoritarianism
Read: Gladys McCormick, The Logic of Compromise
Reading Quiz
Monday Oct 31:Everyday life in Mexico
Sam Quinones, “Telenovela” in True Tales from Another Mexico
Monday Nov 7:Mexican Labor in the USA
Read: Deborah Cohen, Braceros
Reading QUIZ
Monday Nov 14:Protest in the long 1960s
Read: Pensado“Student Politics in Mexico”
Monday Nov 21:Dirty War
Read: Alex Aviña, “We have returned to Porfirian Times”
and Fernando Herrera Calderón, “From Books to Bullets”
Final Paper Due
Monday Nov 28:The Neoliberal Turn
Read: Mendiola, “Food Gentrification in Downtown” and
Judith Adler, selected chapters in Mexican Lives
Monday Dec 5:Mexico’s Environment: Past and Present
Read: Boyer, Political Landscapes
Reading Quiz
FINAL EXAM: DECEMBER 12 due at 9:30 pm in my office
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