Modern Languages and Cultures – Portuguese Immersion

Beginning Portuguese I introduces the Portuguese language and culture to beginners, and builds the foundation skills in speaking, listening, reading, writing and culture. Part of the SILP/World languages program. Based on Brazilian Portuguese, along with study of all Lusophone countries. Students must take placement exam if this is their first RIT class in Portuguese and they have some prior study of Portuguese. Seminar (Fall).

Beginning Portuguese II continues the first-year study of Portuguese language and culture, including work in the present tense, the past tenses, and introducing the subjunctive mood, continuing to build the foundation skills in speaking, listening, reading, writing and culture. Based on Brazilian Portuguese, along with study of all Lusophone countries. Part of the SILP/World languages program. Consult program coordinator if this is your first RIT Portuguese course. Students must take the placement exam if this is their first RIT Portuguese class and they have some prior study of Portuguese. (Prerequisites: Minimum score of 1 on RIT Language Placement Exam or MLPO-201 or equivalent course.) Seminar (Spring).

Intermediate Portuguese I is the first course in the second year of Portuguese language study. Course content concentrates on intensive grammar review, situation dialogues, conversation, and cultural readings, and includes work in all five skills (speaking, listening, reading, writing, culture). Part of the SILP/World languages program: consult the program coordinator if this is your first RIT Portuguese course. Students must take the placement exam if this is their first RIT Portuguese class, and they have some prior study of Portuguese. (Prerequisites: Minimum score of 2 on RIT Language Placement Exam or MLPO-202 or MLPO-202T or equivalent course.) Seminar (Fall).

Intermediate Portuguese II is the second course in the second year of Portuguese language study. Course content concentrates on intensive grammar review, situation dialogues, letter writing (business and personal), compositions, oral presentations, and cultural readings. Includes work in all five skills (speaking, listening, reading, writing, culture). Part of the SILP/World languages program: consult the program coordinator if this is your first RIT Portuguese course. Students must take the placement exam if this is their first RIT Portuguese class, and they have some prior study of Portuguese. (Prerequisites: Minimum score of 3 on RIT Language Placement Exam or MLPO-301 or equivalent course.) Seminar (Spring).

This is the first course of the advanced (third) year of Portuguese language and culture study. The course content is based on the first six films and the first two chapters of the textbook Cinema For Portuguese Conversation (Bonnie Wasserman, Focus Publishing, 2009). Course work covers the cultural themes, readings, grammar study, vocabulary, conversation and composition topics included in the book and the films. Practice in all five skills: speaking, listening, reading, writing, culture. Part of the SILP/World languages program. Consult program coordinator if this is your first RIT Portuguese course. Students must take the placement exam if this is their first RIT Portuguese class, and they have some prior study of Portuguese. (Prerequisites: Minimum score of 4 on RIT Language Placement Exam or MLPO-302 or equivalent course.) Seminar (Fall).

This is the second course of the advanced (third) year of Portuguese language and culture study. The course content is based on the last eight films and the last three chapters of the textbook Cinema for Portuguese Conversation (Bonnie Wasserman, Focus Publishing, 2009). Course work covers the cultural themes, readings, grammar study, vocabulary, conversation and composition topics included in the book and the films. Practice in all five skills: speaking, listening, reading, writing, culture. Part of the SILP/World languages program. Consult program coordinator if this is your first RIT Portuguese course. Students must take the placement exam if this is their first RIT Portuguese class, and they have some prior study of Portuguese. (Prerequisites: Minimum score of 4 on RIT Language Placement Exam or MLPO-401 or equivalent course.) Seminar (Spring).

What does it mean to be a region forged and defined by conquest? “Latin America” is a construct—a term referring to a vast region of the western hemisphere colonized by speakers of Latin-derived languages (including Spanish, Portuguese, and French). In this context, culture is political and politics are cultural. Throughout what is now called Latin America and the Caribbean, the cultural practices of Indigenous and African peoples became the justification for the imposition of European rule, territorial expansion, enslavement, the extraction of labor and natural resources, Christian evangelization, and the racialized legal frameworks that facilitated it all. This course traces these historical processes and examines present-day legacies of colonialism, including ethnic inequalities, colorism, economic vulnerability, patriarchal relations, and social unrest. We consider, as well, the agency of people of Indigenous and African descent as they pursued survival with tactics ranging from acquiescence and strategic passing to creative blending to outright defiance, resistance, and rebellion. Throughout, we look at how art, music, dance, literature, and religion have engaged critically with the forces of fascism, revolution, socialism, dictatorship, neo-imperialism, and globalization. Lecture 3 (Spring).