The field of modern Iberian studies has finally taken the "imperial turn"-defined by Antoinette Burton as the "accelerated attention to the impact of histories of imperialism on metropolitan societies"-forcing a reckoning with the legacies of Spain's colonial past and its continued impact on the present. The "long" nineteenth century was a critical moment in the history of colonialism in the Iberian world: in the face of colonial loss in the Americas, the problem of slavery (and the slave trade) became a major subject of debate among not only politicians and social reformers, but also literary writers of the period. We will examine the nature of this debate through the study of diverse forms of Iberian cultural production, including abolitionist literature (narrative, theater, and poetry), the political essay, and periodical publications, as well as analyzing the controversies surrounding monuments to slave traders and colonizers, constructed in the nineteenth century. Authors to be considered include the theologian José Blanco White, playwright María Rosa Gálvez, poet Carolina Coronado, Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda, popular novelist Ayguals de Izco (also the translator of Uncle Tom's Cabin into Spanish), the social reformer Concepción Arenal, women's magazine editor Faustina Sáez de Melgar, and the realist novelist Benito Pérez Galdós, among others. The analysis of primary sources will be supplemented by historical, critical, and theoretical readings in gender, postcolonial and critical race studies. Students will be expected to maintain a weekly log of their reflections on the readings and to engage actively in class discussions. A final paper and a mock conference talk will also be required.
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