May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Three topics are offered in Fall 2020. Section A1: Spanish Picaresque Novel. Development of the Spanish picaresque in relation to social and historical context. Special attention to its place in the evolution of the modern novel. Close study of Lazarillo de Tormes, works by Aleman, Cervantes, Quevedo, Lopez de Ubeda. Section B1: New Approaches to Latin American Literary & Cinema Studies. Techno-scientific innovation and environmental degradation has brought about the discredit of the belief in universal humanity. This seminar investigates the posthuman predicament (and related fields, like New Materialism and Biopolitics) through a set of Latin American literary and cinematic works. Section C1: Literary Theory from Structuralism to Post-colonialism. Survey of important theoretical works and trends from structuralism through post-colonial theory. Theoretical essays are read in tandem with literary works.