Study Guide Signature Assignment Spanish:
Introduction: There are two primary reasons to learn a language: 1) to get a bird’s eye view of your own language there is no better way than to stand outside your own language and look back on it from the perspective of another language. More about this during the course. 2) Secondly there is no better way to become acquainted with people and culture than to learn the language that they live in every day. It is no exaggeration to say that culture is embedded in a language and that every language reflects the culture that it comes from. In fact, culture and language are intertwined and fused. Your signature paper for this course has to do with the cultures of Latin America. There are good reasons that so many people in the USA learn Spanish. They are our closest neighbors. We have a common, intertwined history going back to the British defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, and Spanish actually has more native speakers than English does. We need to know and respect our neighbors to the south, many of whom are become our next door neighbors right here in the U.S.A. Your assignment:
I deliberately used the plural above, I said cultures not culture of Latin America. Each country has its own culture that has been shaped by history. You are going to investigate the history and culture of one Latin American country. I will assign each student in the class the country that they must investigate. Although the Signature Assignment is due at the end of the course, it will involve a great deal of research. You need to get started as early as possible on your research. Frequently consult the Rubric for the Signature Assignment and ask yourself if you are within the guidelines listed there. You may email me with any questions that you may have. Here are the specifics:
1. Start learning general facts about the Spanish-Speaking country which I assign you.
2. Study the history of the “conquista,” the beginning of the Spanish colonization of that country. When did the first Spaniards arrive?
How many came? What were they like? What was there material culture (guns, boats, food, clothing, etc.)?
3. Investigate the nature of the tribes that lived in that country before the arrival of the Spanish. What were their religious practices, their material culture, political structure, etc.?
4. How did the First Peoples and the Spanish interact with each other over time?
5. How did Roman Catholicism spread through the country and impact the people?
6. What was the nature of the culture that developed from this mixture?
7. When did the first Protestant missionaries arrive in the country? What difficulties did they face? How did they do missions? What has been the result of their labors up until now?
8. How do Protestants and Catholics get along now?
9. What is the nature of the continuing tribal languages and cultures (if any) within the country?
10. How well has the country developed economically and culturally? What are some of the political challenges it currently faces?