Winter Quarter 2026
- For day, time, room, and instructor information, see our:
Spanish Schedule, Portuguese Schedule or Schedule Builder - For all courses not described here, please see:
Spanish Catalog Descriptions , Portuguese Catalog Descriptions
Lower Division Spanish Language Courses
SPA 001 — Elementary Spanish
SPA 001V — Elementary Spanish (Online)
SPA 001Y — Elementary Spanish (Hybrid)
SPA 002 — Elementary Spanish
SPA 002V — Elementary Spanish (Online)
SPA 002Y — Elementary Spanish (Hybrid)
SPA 003 — Elementary Spanish
SPA 003V — Elementary Spanish (Online)
SPA 003Y — Elementary Spanish (Hybrid)
SPA 021 — Intermediate Spanish I (Hybrid)
SPA 021V — Intermediate Spanish I (Online)
SPA 022Y — Intermediate Spanish I (Hybrid)
SPA 023 — Spanish Composition I
SPA 024 — Spanish Composition II
SPA 032 — Spanish for Native Speakers II
Upper Division Spanish Course Descriptions
- SPA 100 — Principles of Hispanic Literature & Criticism
Leopoldo Bernucci The purpose of this course is to teach students how to critically read and analyze literary texts of different genres in Spanish. The course serves as an introduction and foundation for many other courses offered in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Among the genres studied are various categories of cultural and literary production, including narrative, poetry, drama, and essays. Issues of style, form, and language will be studied, all of which contribute to the aesthetic or artistic value of a literary work and can also be used to implement rhetorical strategies.
Prerequisite(s): SPA 024 or SPA 024S or SPA 033 or SPA 033V.
- SPA 111N — The Structure of Spanish: Sounds & Words
Travis Bradley - Course Description: Linguistic description of the sound patterns of Spanish and how those sounds can be used to form larger units, such as morphemes and words. Theoretical and practical comparisons with English and with other Romance languages. (Former SPA 132.)
Prerequisite(s): SPA 024 or SPA 033 or SPA 033V; or consent of instructor. LIN 001 recommended. - SPA 117 — Spanish for Bilinguals
Angelica Gonzalez Bastidas - Designed for students interested in teaching Spanish to native speakers. Focus on cultural diversity of the Spanish speaking population in the United States; applied language teaching methodologies in the context of teaching Spanish to native speakers at different levels.
Prerequisite: SPA 024 or SPA 033 or SPA 033V; or Consent of Instructor. LIN 001 recommended. - SPA 130 — Survey of Spanish Literature to 1700
Daniela Gutierrez-Flores - Course Description: Survey of Spanish literature (narrative, poetry and drama) to 1700, Emphasis on the multicultural birth of the Spanish culture, the formation and growth of the Spanish language and letters through its written records and the literature of the early period.
Prerequisite(s): SPA 100 or SPA 100S or SPA 141 or SPA 141S or SPA 168 or SPA 170 or SPA 170S. - SPA 150N — Survey of Latin American Literature to 1900
Leopoldo Bernucci The primary objective of the course is to equip students with a comprehensive understanding of Hispanic American literary production spanning from 1492 to 1898. This includes an exploration of the themes,styles, and cultural contexts within which these works were created.Another objective of this course is to provide students with insight into the cultural and historical backdrop of the time periods studied.Understanding the broader context is essential for interpreting the texts and appreciating their beauty and significance. One of the key learning goals is for students to be able to differentiate between the literary influences and characteristics of various periods, such as Renaissance,Baroque, Neoclassical, Romantic, and Modernist. This involves identifying the literary techniques and analyzing topics that define each era.
- SPA 155 — Mexican Novel
Emily Vazquez Enriquez - Course Description: Evolution of the Mexican novel from the 19th century to the present. Emphasis on the narrative of the Revolution and significant contemporary works.
Prerequisite(s): SPA 100 or SPA 100S or SPA 141 or SPA 141S or SPA 168 or SPA 170 or SPA 170S. - SPA 163 — Caribbean Culture
Charlie Hankin The point of arrival of European colonizers in the New World and later understood as part of the US’s “sphere of influence,” the Caribbean continues to represent a place of contested identities and political power. This course examines Caribbean culture through poems, music, films, short stories, and novels to study how culture allows us to imagine alternative, dissident narratives. We seek to answer questions such as: What is the Caribbean? Why is it important for understanding the modern world? In what ways does the Caribbean function as a mirror for the United States? To what extent does it invite us to rethink our understanding of race and gender? How is Caribbean identity produced in culture? Topics examined: imperialism, colonialism, slavery, religion, rhythm, language, transculturation, race, and gender.
Prerequisite(s): SPA 024 or SPA 024S or SPA 033 or SPA 033V; or consent of Instructor.
- SPA 168 — Introduction to Latinx Culture
Emily Vazquez Enriquez - Course Description: Introduction to histories and cultures of Latinx (Mexican American, Puerto Rican, Salvadoran American, Ecuadorian American, etc.) populations of the US. Multiple genres of cultural production and representation, with a focus on cultural diversity and regional difference. Introduction to critical analysis across multiple genres of cultural production (literature, visual culture, media culture, etc.).
Prerequisite(s): SPA 024 or SPA 024S or SPA 033 or SPA 033V; or consent of instructor. - SPA 171 — Music from Latin America
Charlie Hankin What is music for? Is it primarily entertainment? Can it change society or promote social justice? How does popular music shape identity and contest gender roles and racial hierarchies? Considering genres such as reggaeton, salsa, cumbia, narcocorridos, and samba, this course traces the ways music has shaped ideas about nation and region in Latin America and the Caribbean. We will explore how popular music disrupts distinctions between “high” and “low” culture and forges new communities. Through local and hemispheric perspectives, we will analyze rhythms and lyrics on their own as well as representations of popular music in other media(novels, short stories, poetry, and cinema). Receive Music or Spanish credit.
Taught in English or Spanish, depending on students’ preference. No prereqs and no previous musical experience necessary!
- SPA 175 — The Art of Literary Translation: A Workshop
Michael Lazzara Love language? Fascinated by the art of words? This hands-on translation workshop invites you to explore how meaning, rhythm, and culture travel—or get lost—across languages. You’ll experiment with translating Spanish-language literary texts (mostly from Latin America) into English, debate what can and can’t be translated, and learn from philosophers, poets, and fellow translators. Working in small groups, you’ll polish your craft through collaborative projects, peer feedback, and a collective final translation. Expect lively discussions, creative breakthroughs, and a bilingual space where ideas flow freely. Perfect for lovers of literature eager to engage deeply with words and worlds.
Prerequisite(s): SPA 024 or SPA 024S or SPA 033 or SPA 033V.
Portuguese Courses
- POR 002 — Elementary Portuguese
Benjamin Chaffin - Course Description: Continuation of POR 001 in the areas of grammar and development of all basic language skills in cultural context with special emphasis on communication.
Prerequisite(s): POR 001.
Spanish Graduate Course Descriptions
- SPA 207 — Spanish Language History
Travis Bradley - SPA 278— New Trends in Latin American Fiction
Diana Aramburu Gender Violence, Victimhood, and Feminist Resistance in Contemporary Luso-Hispanic Fiction
Tuesdays, 4:10-7:00, Sproul 622
On November 25, 2019, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, women from all parts of Chile gathered in Santiago’s Plaza de Armas, organized and choreographed by the feminist collective LASTESIS, to sing what has since become a feminist global anthem, Un violador en tu camino. Blindfolded with their fists in the air, protestors signaled the State’s failure to protect women against rape and other forms of gender-based violence. The chant and choreographed dance were quickly adapted, translated, and performed in cities worldwide to emphasize the State’s complicity in the crimes of rape and femicide. Basing their lyrics and performance on theories by Rita Segato and Silvia Federici, Un violador en tu camino sends a clear and unequivocal message—the patriarchal State does not protect woman, but rather threatens and victimizes them by actively facilitating and condoning gendered violence.
This course will use the 2019 global feminist performance piece as a springboard to study both fictional and real representations of gender violence, victimhood, and resistance alongside relevant theory on feminicide, violence against women, rape culture, and feminist resistance networks. We will examine how literature, personal testimonies, documentaries, movies, art, photography, and social media have created new and alternate spaces to investigate and denounce the crises of feminicide and gender violence in Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean. One of the main goals of the course is to understand what are the effective mediums that not only give visibility to these human rights issues, but through which key social and political issues, especially those pertaining to violence against women, are explored in Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean. Pertinent theoretical implications and the social and political factors that contributed to the development of contemporary feminist resistance movements will also be examined.
Language: Course is taught in Spanish.- SPA 259 — Cervantes
Daniela Gutierrez-Flores SPA 259 Cervantes and THE Novel
Wednesdays, 4:10-7:00, Sproul 622
This course explores Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote de la Mancha, often regarded by literary critics as the first modern novel. We will examine how Cervantes innovated literary form to capture the religious, political, and cultural complexities of 17th-century Spain. Through close reading of the text, we will consider how the novel portrays a world in crisis and what insights it offers for understanding the challenges of today. Our approach will be informed by contextualization within the social, cultural, and intellectual history of early modern Spain, as well as by a set of critical and theoretical approaches to the novel.
Among the questions we will explore are: How can literature from the past help us make sense of contemporary issues? What spaces of social mobility and conflict does the novel reveal? How can modern critical concepts—such as sovereignty, feminism, psychoanalysis, Islamophobia/antisemitism—be applied to early modern cultural texts, and how might they need to be adapted? Does Don Quixote matter today?
Don Quixote is one of the most fascinating, funny, and entertaining novels ever written, the type of text that stays with you for a long time. This class is your chance to read a good chunk of it in community, just as Cervantes’s readers would have done!