This course considers films spanning the entire career of pioneering Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel (1900–1983), from his silent surrealist classic of 1929, Un perro andaluz, to his last film, Ese oscuro objeto del deseo (1977). We pay special attention to his Mexican period, in exile, and the films he made in, and about, Spain, including his work in documentary. It explores Buñuel’s early friendship with painter Salvador Dalí and poet Federico García Lorca, surrealist aesthetics, the influence of Freud’s ideas on dreams and sexuality, and the director’s corrosive criticism of bourgeois society and the Catholic church. We will focus on historical contexts and relevant film criticism.
About This Course on OpenCourseWare
The instructor of this course, Elizabeth Garrels, is a Professor Emeritus at MIT. She retired in 2014 after 35 years at the Institute. Professor Garrels taught this course for over 15 years, and it evolved over this time period. Normally, a course on OCW represents the version of a course taught during a specific semester and year. However, for this course we hope to represent the evolution of the course during the main years it was taught. The materials you see here are not from a particular iteration of the course, but are drawn from all of the years the course was taught.

This collection uses primary sources to explore the Spanish-American War. Digital Public Library of America Primary Source Sets are designed to help students develop their critical thinking skills and draw diverse material from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. Each set includes an overview, ten to fifteen primary sources, links to related resources, and a teaching guide. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee.

Francisco de Goya, Third of May, 1808, 1814, oil on canvas, 266 x 345.1 cm (Museo del Prado. Madrid). Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.

Proposal for an activity on Spanish personalities of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Antoni Gaudí, Church of the Sagrada Família or Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família Basilica, 1882- (consecrated 2010, but still under construction), Barcelona, Spain. Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.

A satiric portrait of Venezuelan-born general Narciso Lopez, leader of an 1850 expedition to liberate Cuba from Spanish rule. Lopez's army of American volunteers captured the Cuban coastal town of Cardenas in May 1850. After a brief occupation Lopez's forces were driven out by Spanish troops, and fled to Key West. Lopez is shown fleeing to the left, holding a sword and a bag marked $50,000 (an exaggerated reference to the small sum of money taken by his men from the Cardenas customhouse). A milestone points "To Cardenas Custom House" in the distance, where a battle rages. Lopez says: "Well! we have not Revolutionized Cuba, but then we have Got what we came for, my Comrades came for Glory, I came for Cash, I've got the Cash, they've got the Glory, & I suppose we're all satisifed. I'm O-P-H [?] for the United States again. Cant Live under a Military Despotism." Weitenkampf dates the print tentatively 1851, the year of Lopez's second Cuban expedition. Specific reference here to the Cardenas affair of the preceding year, however, is persuasive evidence for an 1850 date.|Pubd. & for sale by John L. Magee 34 Mott St. N.Y.|Title appears as it is written on the item.|Weitenkampf, p. 103.|Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)|Published in: American political prints, 1766-1876 / Bernard F. Reilly. Boston : G.K. Hall, 1991, entry 1850-10.

This kit provides the materials and background information needed to engage students in a dynamic and constructive process of learning how global media perspectives differ based on country of production, media source, target audience, and political and social context. There are five lessons representing important issues and media documents from: Africa (news and documentary film clips about the food crisis), Latin America (editorial cartoons about immigration), Europe (news and documentary film clips about Islam and cultural identity), India (magazine covers about India's rise in the global economy), and Southeast Asia (websites concerning Islamic majorities and minorities).

Francisco de Goya y Lucientes, Saturn Devouring One Of His Sons, 1821-1823, 143.5 x 81.4 cm (Prado, Madrid) Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. One of the"Black Paintings" that Goya painted on the walls of his house outside Madrid, this image was originally located on the lower floor of the house known as "la Quinta del Sordo." Goya painted on the walls using several materials including oil paint. The "Black Paintings" had suffered significant damage and loss in their original location and when they were removed from the walls and transferred to canvas by Baron Émile d'Erlanger shortly after he aquired the house in 1873. Please note that Saturn is also known as Cronus or Kronus.

Francisco Goya, The Family of Charles IV, c. 1800, Prado Museum, 280 cm x 336 cm (Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid) Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.

A satire on Taylor administration efforts to curtail American "filibusters," armed expeditions against Cuba for the purpose of freeing the island from Spanish rule. Specific reference here is to the Navy's blockade of one such expeditionary force, which assembled on Round Island under Colonel G. W. White in early September 1849. The many puzzling references in the dialogue and imagery here aside, it is clear that the artist is also poking fun at the expansionist dreams of Americans of the time who advocated annexation of Cuba, Canada, and even parts of South America. The artist is critical as well of the current Cuban regime. On the shore of Round Island, the would-be invaders sit at a long rustic banquet table. Nearby several youths play with marbles and hoops, while two boys and a man ride a seesaw. Beyond, two men fly star-shaped kites which read "Cuba" and "Canada." The table is set with food, apparently taken from two large baskets at right. Several of the banqueters toast, "The Queen of Slave Traders!" "The Republic of Sierra Madre!" and "Venezuela! St Domingo! and Yucatan!" A man at the head of the table, holding a "N.Y. Express Proclamation" (perhaps Zachary Taylor's 1848 proclamation denouncing the expedition) addresses them, "You should thank us ye Pirates and Robbers of Cuba for saving you from [Spanish governor of Cuba Federico] Roncali's Garrote." One of the diners protests, "We are no Pirates! we dont kidnap people from the United States nor from Africa" (a reference to the Cuban government's alleged abduction of Juan Francisco Garcia y Rey from New Orleans in July 1848 and to Cuba's slave trade). Offshore are several boats, including a U.S. naval frigate with the words "Nine Millions a year" emblazoned on its sail and a small sloop. A man in the sloop calls out to the frigate, "Help! Help! dont let Roncali trample on your laws." The man is former Havana jailer Juan Francisco Garcia y Rey, now held by the Spanish government for freeing Cuban revolutionaries. Garcia y Rey had appealed for help to the American government, on the basis of his illegal abduction by the Spanish consul. To his call comes the response, "We dont care for the laws we are reaping laurels. Mr. Rey." Others on deck on the American ship converse, saying, "This is as safe and more glorious than Tampico" and "La Cronica will let the Negroes loose upon those who escape from the proclamation."|Probably published in New York.|Title appears as it is written on the item.|Weitenkampf, p. 100.|Forms part of: American cartoon print filing series (Library of Congress)|Published in: American political prints, 1766-1876 / Bernard F. Reilly. Boston : G.K. Hall, 1991, entry 1849-5.

This course studies important twentieth century texts from Spain and Latin America. The readings include short stories, theatre, the novel and poetry. This subject is conducted in Spanish and all reading and writing for the course is also done in Spanish.

This course has several purposes. The major concern will be the examination of Spanish culture including Spain’s history, architecture, art, literature and film, to determine if there is a uniquely Spanish manner of seeing and understanding the world - one which emerges as clearly distinct from our own and that of other Western European nations.

An engaging secondary reading (1400 Lexile) about Mexico's role in the American Revolution.

A second-year intermediate course that includes vocabulary enhancement and limited review of selected points of grammar. Focuses on listening comprehension and speaking, with group activities, discussions and individual oral reports based on readings, films, music and art.

This role play begins with the premise that a monstrous crime was committed in the years after 1492, when perhaps as many as three million or more Taínos on the island of Hispaniola lost their lives. (Most scholars estimate the number of people on Hispaniola in 1492 at between one and three million; some estimates are lower and some much higher. By 1550, very few Taínos remained alive.)

Who — and/or what — was responsible for this slaughter? This is the question students confront here.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Climate change stands to have a tremendous impact on the world’s freshwater ecosystems. To understand how, researchers analyzed 15,289 functional genes related to nutrient cycling and stress processes gathered from biofilm microbes across mountainside streams in Norway, Spain, and China. With increasing elevation, microbial functional diversity tended to decline, and the composition of functional gene assemblages tended to differ more with greater elevational distances. These variations were more drastic as the environmental differences between the lowlands and the peaks increased. The best predictors of these variations appear to be climatic factors, such as temperature during the growing season. and winter precipitation. Including predictors at the local or landscape level could further refine the picture painted by these findings and help Eurasian countries anticipate significant alterations to their stream ecosystems amid a changing climate..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

The purpose of these PBL units is to provide advanced students of Spanish (generally 3rd and 4th year college students) a series of compelling problems from Spanish culture and society. Each unit introduces a problem that students must solve collaboratively in small teams (4-6) over the course of approximately four weeks, assuming 2-3 class meetings per week. The instructor coaches the teams as they seek to fill gaps in understanding, revise hypotheses to incorporate new knowledge, and craft solutions that recognize various perspectives on the problem. Each unit is based on particular objectives, but the skills and processes students will exercise are the same across all units: collaborative problem solving, self-directed research and synthesis of information, argumentation based on sound evidence, and communication in Spanish. 

The purpose of these PBL units is to provide advanced students of Spanish (generally 3rd and 4th year college students) a series of compelling problems from Spanish culture and society. Each unit introduces a problem that students must solve collaboratively in small teams (4-6) over the course of approximately four weeks, assuming 2-3 class meetings per week. The instructor coaches the teams as they seek to fill gaps in understanding, revise hypotheses to incorporate new knowledge, and craft solutions that recognize various perspectives on the problem. Each unit is based on particular objectives, but the skills and processes students will exercise are the same across all units: collaborative problem solving, self-directed research and synthesis of information, argumentation based on sound evidence, and communication in Spanish.