World Lang & Lit: Spanish (WLS)

WLS 101 -  Elementary Spanish I  
Credits: 4  

An introduction to spoken and written Spanish emphasizing cultural perspectives. Linguistic emphasis is on basic grammar, vocabulary, and the development of reading, conversation, and writing skills while learning about the cultures of Spain and Spanish America.

Note(s): Four hours of class per week. Presupposes no previous study of Spanish. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 102 -  Elementary Spanish II  
Credits: 3  

Continuation of WLS 101. Further development of basic grammar, reading, conversation, and writing skills while focusing on cultural materials from Spain and Spanish America.

Prerequisites: Open only to students who have completed WLS 101 or have taken the language placement test and placed in this level.   
Note(s): Three hours of class per week. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 103 -  Alternative Second Semester Spanish  
Credits: 3  

An introduction and review of elementary spoken and written Spanish emphasizing cultural perspectives. Linguistic emphasis is on grammar, vocabulary, and the development of reading, conversation, and writing skills while learning about the cultures of Spain and Spanish America.

Prerequisites: Open to students who have completed WLS 101. For students who have completed one or two years of pre-college Spanish, and who have not placed in WLS 203 or above.   
Note(s): Three hours of class. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 203 -  Intermediate Spanish  
Credits: 4  

Continuing intensive study of the structures of the Spanish language. Extensive practice in conversation and writing. Vocabulary building through the reading of appropriate texts in the literature and culture.

Prerequisites: WLS 103.   
Note(s): Four hours of class. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 206 -  Communicating in Spanish I  
Credits: 3  

Study and practice of interpersonal communication in Spanish. Students learn additional vocabulary, integrate new grammar structures, refine and strengthen already-acquired skills, learn idiomatic phrases, and increase speaking fluency. Students also learn basic compositional strategies, using connecting words properly and incorporating a more judicious choice of vocabulary.

Prerequisites: WLS 203.   
Note(s): Students cannot enroll in WLS 206 after completing WLS 208. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 208 -  Communicating in Spanish II  
Credits: 4  

Advanced study and practice of communicating in Spanish. Students will build advanced skills to understand, interpret, analyze, and present information and ideas in Spanish, with a particular focus on writing. Students review grammar, idioms, and vocabulary, and engage in intensive practice in writing short essays.

Prerequisites: WLS 206 or permission of instructor.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 211 -  Survey of Spanish Literature  
Credits: 4  

An overview of Spanish literature and culture from the early modern period to the present. The course introduces major literary and cultural movements in Spain within their social and historical contexts and examines the role of cultural production in Spain’s changing social and political landscape. The primary objectives of this course include developing skills in literary and visual analysis and formulating arguments with effective textual evidence in Spanish.

Prerequisites: WLS 208 or WLS 221 or permission of instructor.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language and Humanities requirements; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Language Study requirements.  
WLS 212 -  Spanish-American Literature and Culture  
Credits: 4  

An overview of Spanish-American literature and other cultural expressions from pre-independence to the present.  The course introduces main literary genres, movements, and authors as well as the study of cultural practices in the region through music, visual art, journalism, and other forms of media.  The course's main objectives are to increase students' ability to read critically, appreciate and analyze literary Spanish, and understand the cultural diversity of Spanish-America.

Prerequisites: WLS 208 or WLS 221 or permission of instructor.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language and Humanities requirements; Fulfills Global Cultural Perspectives and Language Study requirements.  
WLS 220 -  Language Across the Curriculum  
Credits: 1  

A course designed for students who want to use their foreign languages skills in any course taught in English at the college.

Prerequisites: WLS 206.   
Note(s): Does not fulfill the Foreign Language or Language Study requirement or count toward the Spanish minor. Only one Languages Across the Curriculum course WLS 220 or WLS 340 will count towards the Spanish major and cannot be repeated for credit towards the major. Must be taken S/U.  
WLS 221 -  Spanish for Heritage Speakers  
Credits: 4  

Heritage speakers of Spanish improve their normative use of the language, focusing on common grammatical errors and instances of English interference. The major focus of this course is writing in Spanish; therefore, students review grammar, idioms, and vocabulary through writing-intensive activities. Students also develop linguistic accuracy in conversational Spanish through practice in real-life situations.

Note(s): This course is equivalent to WLS 208 Communicating in Spanish II, and therefore counts toward the major requirement. WLS 221 is open only to heritage speakers. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry, Language Study, and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 231 -  Word of Mouth: Literature and Food  
Credits: 3  

A study of cooking, food, eating, and writing by Latin American women as counternarratives to traditional interpretations of culture, history, society, and politics. Students examine how language is used to talk about food and the ways in which cooking and writing express social and cultural developments.

Prerequisites: WLS 208.   
Note(s): Fulfills Humanities requirement OR Foreign language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry requirement.  
WLS 263 -  Special Topics in Spanish  
Credits: 3  

Literary or cultural study at an introductory or intermediate level of an author, genre, period, or topic. Course varies from year to year depending on instructor teaching.

Prerequisites: WLS 208. May be repeated for credit.   
Note(s): Fulfills humanistic inquiry.  
WLS 271 -  Spanish Language and Literature Discussion  
Credits: 1  

A discussion group about an author, a period, a genre, a topic, a translation, or a research project in conjunction with another course.

Prerequisites: WLS 208 or permission of the department.   
Note(s): Can be repeated for credit. Fulfills Global Cultural Perspectives requirement.  
WLS 272 -  Spanish Language and Literature Discussion  
Credits: 1  

A discussion group about an author, a period, a genre, a topic, a translation, or a research project in conjunction with another course.

Prerequisites: WLS 208 or permission of the department. Can be repeated for credit.   
Note(s): Fulfills global cultural perspective.  
WLS 301 -  Business Spanish  
Credits: 4  

An introduction to business institutions in the Hispanic world. The course focuses on economic geography, correspondence, and government requirements for business, as well as vocabulary used in banking, advertising, stock market, insurance, communications, and export and import. Primarily for students majoring in Spanish and business.

Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Global Cultural Perspectives requirement.  
WLS 304 -  Advanced Conversation and Composition  
Credits: 4  

Intensive practice of oral and written Spanish to increase active vocabulary and fluency in spoken Spanish and to develop further and refine writing skills.

Prerequisites: WLS 208 or permission of instructor.   
Note(s): Four hours of class. Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry requirement.  
WLS 313 -  Literature of the Golden Age  
Credits: 3  

A study of the novel, drama, and poetry, centering on the picaresque novel, Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina, Calderón de la Barca, Góngora, and Quevedo.

Prerequisites: WLS 211. (Offered every third year.   
Note(s): Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry requirement.  
WLS 317 -  Spanish Literature of the Twentieth Century  
Credits: 3  

A study of the drama, novel, and poetry of the Generation of '98, as well as selected novels and dramas since the Civil War.

Prerequisites: WLS 211. (Offered every third year.   
Note(s): Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry requirement.  
WLS 319 -  Contemporary Spanish-American Fiction  
Credits: 3  

A study of specific topics in Spanish-American fictional prose. Approaches may include a focus on an author, a literary movement, a specific historical period, or literary representations of social or political issues.

Prerequisites: WLS 212.   
Note(s): Offered every third year. Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 321 -  Spanish-American and Latino Performance Arts  
Credits: 3  

A study of the development and current practices of Spanish-American and Latinx performance art. The course examines how social and political issues inform the aesthetic and creative performance process. Through theater, performance art, and theoretical texts students engage in the analysis of culture as lived experience and its representation in literature.

Prerequisites: WLS 212.   
Note(s): Offered every third year. Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 323 -  Spanish in the Media  
Credits: 4  

A study of the Spanish-speaking world within its contemporary cultural context, especially as manifested in the media (newspapers, magazines, radio, television). This course is designed to give students a more complex understanding of Hispanic cultures. We will study such topics as political, social, and economic trends in the Spanish-speaking world, the relationship between language and society, and dialect as an expression of culture.

Prerequisites: WLS 208.   
Note(s): Fulfills Global Cultural Perspectives requirement  
WLS 324A -  Spanish Film  
Credits: 4  
WLS 324B -  Spanish-American/Latino Film  
Credits: 4  

A study of films produced and directed by Spanish, Spanish-American, and Latino filmmakers. Students will learn about film theory and cinematographic techniques, and will analyze the specific social, cultural, and historical thematic of the films. In readings and discussions, students will address cultural differences, gender studies, and aesthetic concepts.

Prerequisites: WLS 212.   
Note(s): The course will be offered on a bi-yearly, alternating basis. Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 325 -  Advanced Studies: Environmental Perspectives  
Credits: 3  

Focused study of a single dimension of the relationship between culture and the environment in the Spanish-speaking world. The theoretical approaches, forms, social and cultural perspectives, periods, and geographies will vary each semester.

Prerequisites: WLS 211 or WLS 212.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language OR Humanities requirement.  
WLS 327 -  Health Humanities  
Credits: 3  

An exploration of essential concepts in health humanities that pays particular attention to how the field has evolved, and continues to do so, in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Spain. Through novels, short stories, and films, students will examine topics such as the representation of disease and illness in the media, the possibilities of thinking about the body as a discursive space, and the social and scientific construction of disability, aging, gender, race, sexuality, and sexual identity.

Prerequisites: WLS 211, WLS 212, or permission of instructor.  
WLS 328 -  Advanced Studies: Speculative Fiction  
Credits: 3  

A study of a selected aspect of speculative fiction in the Spanish-speaking world. Offerings can focus on genres such as science fiction, fantasy, and horror, across different time periods, geographies, and forms.

Prerequisites: WLS 211 or WLS 212.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language OR Humanities requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement.  
WLS 330 -  Spanish-American Thought  
Credits: 3  

Students examine the construction of cultural identity as proposed by Spanish-American intellectuals in essays about ethnicity, nationality, and politics. The texts may address topics and concepts such as nation building, "cosmic race," "mestizaje," transculturation, cultural hybridity, civilization/barbarism, and cultural imperialism.

Prerequisites: WLS 212.   
Note(s): Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 331 -  Tales of the Wondrous Lands: The Hispanic Transatlantic World  
Credits: 3  

An exploration of the Hispanic world from Christopher Columbus's first voyage to the birth of independent nations in the Americas. Students will examine the complexities and contradictions of more than 300 years of artistic masterpieces, ambitious scientific expeditions, and regular exchanges that covered the immense area from Spain, through the Americas, to the Philippines. The material studied includes first-hand accounts of events that would have long-lasting repercussions, like the Conquest, but also more contemporary art, fiction, and films that reexamine the legacy of an era that shaped the Spanish-speaking countries as we know them.

Prerequisites: WLS 212. (Offered in alternate years.   
Note(s): Fulfills Humanities OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Global Cultural Perspectives requirements.  
WLS 334 -  Cervantes  
Credits: 3  

A study of the prose, drama, and poetry of Miguel de Cervantes in the light of the social and intellectual currents of early seventeenth-century Spain. Particular attention will be paid to Don Quijote.

Prerequisites: WLS 211.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language OR Humanities requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry requirement.  
WLS 340 -  Advanced Languages Across the Curriculum  
Credits: 2  

Students apply and develop their Spanish language skills in conjunction with any course taught in English at the college. Students will read, report, discuss and write about sophisticated materials in the disciplines, and learn how to translate them to and from English.

Prerequisites: WLS 208.   
Note(s): Does not fulfill the language study general curriculum requirement. Only one Languages Across the Curriculum course will count towards the Spanish major and cannot be repeated for credit towards the major.  
WLS 341 -  Advanced Spanish Grammar Workshop  
Credits: 1  

Students will concentrate on increasing their linguistic accuracy by focusing on some of the most difficult grammatical structures for non-native speakers. Designed for students who are enrolled in 200- and 300-level literature and culture and civilization courses who continue to need focused attention on linguistic accuracy.

Note(s): Does not fulfill the Foreign Language requirement.  
WLS 351 -  Studies in Spanish for Specific Purposes  
Credits: 3  

A study of Spanish that connects cultural competence with practical skills for professional usage. Offerings focus on areas such as science, health, journalism, business, arts, (law, social work), translation, and interpretation, among others.

Prerequisites: WLS 208. ((Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Language Study requirement).  
WLS 363 -  Special Studies in Spanish  
Credits: 3  

Advanced literary or cultural study in an author, a genre, a period, or a topic.

Prerequisites: Permission of instructor.   
Note(s): Fulfills Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Humanistic Inquiry and Language Study requirements.  
WLS 371 -  Independent Study in Spanish  
Credits: 1-4  

Individual study projects under the guidance of the department.

WLS 374 -  Thesis  
Credits: 3  

An extended research project culminating in a paper based on readings and extensive individual conferences.

Prerequisites: WLS 376, senior standing, permission of instructor, and 3.5 GPA in the major.   
Note(s): Required of all majors who wish to be considered for departmental honors.  
WLS 376 -  Senior Seminar  
Credits: 3  

A detailed study of an author, period, or theme pertinent to the understanding of Spanish and Spanish-American literature and culture. In this capstone course, Spanish majors will conduct in-depth research on a topic of their choosing associated with the course, leading to a final research project that can take various formats (essay, presentation, poster, video-essay, creative writing, etc.). Through this project, students will demonstrate an understanding of their topic and its relationship to the field of Hispanic Studies, relevant issues in the Spanish-speaking world, and the broader concept of a liberal arts education. The final project for this course is designed to highlight students’ creativity and integrate theoretical approaches and concepts from previous coursework with students’ individual research topics by requiring that they produce an original and rigorous analysis of cultural production.

Note(s): Only open to Spanish majors. Fulfills Cultural Diversity OR Foreign Language requirement; fulfills Global Cultural Perspectives and Senior Experience Coda requirements.