Power and society of Latin America

geography

elective monographs
general courses

The course aims to discuss the most important phenomena related to the issue of power and social processes in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean in a historical and contemporary perspective.

As part of the classes, regular meetings with diplomats and practitioners dealing with issues related to Latin America and the Caribbean will be organized (some meetings will be in English - at least passive knowledge of the language is required).

Detailed issues discussed during the classes:

1. Introduction to the subject: "Latin America" ​​or "Latin America"? Power and society in Latin America in the light of theoretical concepts of power, rule and leadership

2. Latin American society and culture before the conquest and the influence of the conquest on the relations between society and power

3. Migration to Latin America and internal migrations

3.1. The case of Argentina

3.2. The case of Venezuela

3.3 Central American Study

4. Slavery, race and ethnicity as social phenomena. Historical context and present day.

5. The outline of the (under) development of Latin America and social processes.

6. Selected political problems of the region

6.1 Authoritarian Governments

6.2 Military dictatorships

6.3 Democratization processes, illiberal democracy

7. Contemporary image of Latin American societies

7.1. Class-layer structure

7.2. Social inequalities and economic stratification

7.3. Education level and access to education

7.4. The problem of social exclusion

8. Organized crime and the structure of power

8.1 The case of Colombia

8.2 The case of Mexico

8.3 The case of El Salvador

9. Contemporary social movements. Wave of social protests (causes, actors, power relations)

10. Contemporary faces of political power

10.1 The case of Cuba

10.2. The case of Venezuela

10.3. The case of Brazil

10.4. The case of Nicaragua

11. The role of civil society in Latin America

12. Contemporary political problems and power-society relations. Election panorama and perspectives

Obligatory reading:

Aguirre Rojas, Carlos Antonio. 2008. Ameryka Łacińska na rozdrożu. Ruchy społeczne i śmierć nowoczesnej polityki. Wydawnictwo Książka i Prasa. Warszawa.

Albala, Adrián. 2018. Civil Society and Political Representation in Latin America (2010-2015). Towards a Divorce Between Social Movements and Political Parties? Springer International Publishing. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-67801-6

Dembicz, Andrzej. 2006. Ameryka – Ameryka Łacińska. Próba porządkowania pojęć. w: Filozofia poznawania Ameryki. CESLA. Warszawa, s. 15-36.

Eakin, Marshall C. 2009. Historia Ameryki Łacińskiej. Wyd. UJ, Kraków (wybrane rozdziały).

Gocłowska-Bolek, Joanna (red.). 2019. Panorama wyborcza Ameryki Łacińskiej w 2019 roku. Nowe wyzwania, stare problemy? OAP UW. Warszawa. http://oapuw.pl/panorama-wyborcza-ameryki-lacinskiej-w-2019-roku-nowe-wyzwania-stare-problemy-08-2019/

Hummel, Agata, Wądołowska, Anna, Płachtański, Piotr. 2009. Nierówności społeczne w ameryce Łacińskiej. w: Gawrycki, Marcin (red.). Dzieje kultury latynoamerykańskiej. PWN. Warszawa, s. 209-222.

Łaciński, Piotr. 2009. Elity latynoamerykańskie. w: Gawrycki, Marcin (red.). Dzieje kultury latynoamerykańskiej. PWN. Warszawa, s. 313-324.

Rovira Kaltwasser, Cristóbal. 2018. Political Elites in Latin America. w: Best, Heinrich, Higley, John (eds.). The Palgrave Handbooks of Political Elites. Palgrave-Macmillan, s. 255-271.

Further reading:

Alvarez, Sonia; Dagnino, Evelina and Escobar, Arturo (Eds.) 1998. Culture of Politics, Politics of Cultures: Re‐visioning Latin American Social Movements. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

della Porta, Donatella, Diani, Mario. 2006. Social Movements: An Introduction. 2nd ed. Malden MA.

Derwich, Karol, Kania, Marta. 2012. Ruchy społeczne i etniczne w Ameryce Łacińskiej. Wyd. UJ. Kraków (wybrane rozdziały).

Farmer, Paul. 2005. Pathologies of Power. Health, Human Rights, and the New War on the Poor. University of California Press. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California.

Gawrycki, Marcin (red.). Dzieje kultury latynoamerykańskiej. PWN. Warszawa (wybrane rozdziały).

Knopek, Jacek, Drgas, Michał (red). 2012. Społeczne problemy Ameryki Łacińskiej. Wyd. Adam Marszałek. Toruń.

Krauze, Enrique. 2011. Władza i obłęd. Najnowsza historia Wenezueli. Wyd. Akademickie Dialog. Warszawa.

Krzywicka, Katarzyna, J. Kaczyńska (red.). 2010. Oblicza Ameryki Łacińskiej, Wydawnictwo UMCS. Lublin.

Kurowski, Karol. 2013. Samoorganizacja w wielkomiejskim slumsie. Przykład Limy. Wyd. UW. Warszawa.

McAdam, Doug, McCarthy, John, Zald, Mayer (eds.) 1996. Comparative Perspectives on Social Movements: Political Opportunities, Mobilizing Structures, and Cultural Framings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Oikonomakis, Leonidas. 2019. Political strategies and social movements in Latin America: the Zapatistas and Bolivian Cocaleros. Palgrave, Macmillan.

Petras, James. 2011. Social Movements in Latin America. Neoliberalism and Popular Resistance. Palgrave, Macmillan.

Rohter, Larry. 2012. Brazil on the Rise. The Story of a Country Transformed. Palgrave, Macmillan.

Rousseau, Stéphanie and Morales, Anahi. 2017. Indigenous Women’s Movements in Latin America Gender and Ethnicity in Peru, Mexico, and Bolivia. Palgrave, Macmillan.

Roseberry, William, Gudmundson, Lowell, Kutschbasch, Mario (eds.). 1995. Coffee, Society and Power in Latin America. Johns Hopkins University Press.

Sierra Caballero, Francisco and Gravante, Tommaso (eds). 2018. Networks, Movements and Technopolitics in Latin America Critical Analysis and Current Challenges. Palgrave, Macmillan.

Tillman, Ellen. 2018. War and Society in Latin America. w: Muehlbauer, Matthew S., Ubrich, David J. (eds.). The Routledge History of Global War and Society. Part 1. Routledge.

Journals (selected articles):

Latin American Politics and Society, Cambridge University Press. ISSN: 1531-426X (Print), 1548-2456 (Online).

Ameryka Łacińska, Uniwersytet Warszawski. ISSN: 1506-8900 (Print), 2081-1152 (Online).

Attendance is obligatory (2 absences are allowed).

Form of credit: essay (written essay on the topic designated by the lecturer + multimedia presentaion) (20 points)

You can receive an additional 2 points for activity during classes.

An additional 2 points can be obtained for the presentation during the classes.

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