Introduction to Caribbean Studies

The Caribbean is a geographical and multilinguistic space where the blending of the Indigenous People of the Americas with more recent arrivals—the colonial heritage (British, French, Dutch, Spanish) and the African and South Asian legacies—created unique, hybridized and, in short, creolized societies. Marked by the doctrine of discovery, the genocide of indigenous people, settler colonialism, slavery and the making of the post-colonial state, the Caribbean challenges the dichotomy of local versus global. It is a place where foundational violenceshifted the geography of reason. This course will provide an overview of the social, cultural, political, and economic history of the Caribbean from 1492 to the present. The course will combine a variety of disciplines such as anthropology, art, economics, literature, music and political sciences. It will emphasizetransdisciplinary approaches to historical events and contemporary issues that have shaped the Caribbean as a way to reflect on racial capitalism, domination and freedom.

Offer as needed

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