Caribbean Studies

In the popular imagination, the Caribbean has long occupied a place of distinction, reaching as far back in history as the fateful arrival of Columbus to the shores of today’s Cuba and culminating in the emergence of lo real maravilloso americano and its magical-realist avatars. On one hand, the cultural identities of the Caribbean draw upon European colonial heritage (British, French, Dutch, Spanish) and, on the other, on African, Amerindian, and South Asian legacies, forging them through the complex processes of hybridization, creolization, and transculturation into something different, unique, and new.  Due to its inherent linguistic and cultural diversity and the overarching presence of Afro-descendant populations, the study of the Hispanic Caribbean (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic) in the Department hinges on the principles of interdisciplinarity. In their courses and research, the faculty engaged in the study of Caribbean literature, art, film, and history highlight the experiences of survival and resistance that characterized Atlantic slavery and (post)colonialism while, at the same time, exploring issues such as gender, race and ethnicity, exile, migration, revolutionary movements, spirituality, diasporic connections, exploitative tourism, and environmental degradation. By integrating their interdisciplinary research into teaching, faculty also provide their students with critical frameworks and counternarratives necessary to offer a diversity of perspective and to address the pervasive stereotypes attributed to the region by popular culture, which tend to revolve around pirates, tropical beaches, zombies, and vodou rituals. Whether you are interested in diasporic connections between Havana and Miami or San Juan and New York, or in the counterpoints between santería and vodou, or you wish to explore the watershed moments in Caribbean history, such as the Haitian and Cuban revolutions, courses focused on the Caribbean will equip you not only with the profound knowledge about these fascinating topics but will also provide you with a strong foundation in critical thinking and cross-disciplinary approaches.

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