SPAN 607 Melodrama! or the Mode of Excess in the Span-Speaking World
Melodrama is commonly criticized as a clichéd, excessive form of storytelling, ripe with virtuous victims and leering villains. But what if it is much more, as recent scholarship suggests? This seminar develops a historical and theoretical framework for studying melodrama as a pervasive narrative mode in Latin America. We will start from its origins in nineteenth century literary traditions and trace its conventions to the present, as they vary in different national cultures and media across the Spanish-speaking world. Our focus will be on developing a set of theoretical principles that we can then test historically and in diverse cultural contexts. We will ask ourselves, among other questions: in what ways does melodrama appear in literature, periodicals, and films? What aesthetic and cultural roles does it play? What are its formulae? Is melodrama indeed excessive? in opposition to what norm? What melodramatic themes cross national borders, time, media? What relations can we establish between melodrama and multiple socio-historical contexts? Does melodrama offer political stances vis-à-vis social realities?
Cross Listed Courses
SPAN 407 & SPAN 607