Spanish and Portuguese Language and Literature Commons^™

Decades Of Don Quixote: Tracking Social Progression Through Marcela And Grisóstomo, Allison Jackson

Honors Theses

In this essay, I will track the evolution of academic opinions in the late 20th and early 21st century of two main components of the episode: Marcela’s character and what it says about Cervantes’ perception of women’s autonomy, as well as Grisóstomo’s death and the rejection of the notion of suicide by past academics. Marcela’s dramatic rejection of societal demands and Gristósomo’s tragic and confusing death are radically exciting since there is so much left to be assumed about the two main characters that is not explicitly written. The story relies on irony and subversion to enunciate a certain message; …

Understanding How Women Navigated The Fight For Equality During The Second Republic And Transition-Era Spain Through Feminist Literature, Amanda Jeanette Pagoaga

Honors Theses

This paper explores how women navigated the fight for equality during the Second Republic and Transition-era Spain through the lens of feminist literature. Specifically, comparing and analyzing two books, Doble esplendor by Constancia de la Mora (1939) and Crónica del desamor by Rosa Montero (1979). Both books feature women in their thirties who work and explore themes of marriage and romantic love, friendship as a space of freedom, motherhood, working women, and politics against the backdrop of the ever-changing sociopolitical situation in Spain. Through close analysis of these works, the author examines how these women navigate gender roles and societal …

Putting The Fun In Foreign Language: Defining And Justifying Leisure Language Learning And The Implications For Foreign Language Educators And Students, Graca Webster

Honors Theses

In a world where learning a foreign language has never been more accessible than it is right now, many people believe that the endeavor is beyond their capabilities and an unworthy use of their time. In Western civilizations, there has been a serious decrease in true hobby/leisure activities over the last 15 years. With technological innovations like social media that provide endless hours of scrolling, media streaming services such as Netflix, and even regular cable TV, we have access to endless entertainment that decreases the desire to have a hobby. In March 2020, worldwide lockdowns due to Covid-19 kept most …

¿Cómo Se Dice...? The Spanish Use Of Hispanic College Students, Christopher Castaneda

Honors Theses

The Spanish language is very prominent in the United States. Millions of Spanishspeakers live there, and the use of the language in their day to day lives has augmented the presence of it in an otherwise Anglophone country. However, there are certain factors that may influence how often Spanish speakers actually use their language in this country. This study sought to analyze two: the existing anti-Hispanic attitudes in the United States and the parental/caretaker level of education of Spanish-speaking people. This study aimed to conduct an analysis of college-aged Hispanic students in order to conclude the extent to which those …

The Life Of Una Estudiante Americana: Here Y Allí, Madeline Kastel

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to analyze the differences between studying Spanish at an American university, Western Michigan University, in Kalamazoo, Michigan to that of a study abroad program at La Universidad de Burgos, in Burgos, Spain in three main areas: teaching styles in classes, extracurricular activities and student experiences.

To begin this study, it is important to note the differences in demographics and available public transportation where each study took place: Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA and Burgos, Spain. In Kalamazoo, students have the option to use the city bus system, the Metro, for free, but tend to use their …

Crítica Social Y Esperanza Para Las Próximas Generaciones: Representaciones De Seropositivos En Todo Sobre Mi Madre (1999) Y Positivo (2016), Grace Heiting

Honors Theses

This thesis criticizes the progression of the HIV/AIDS pandemic from post-Franco Spain to contemporary Venezuela through the analysis of a domestic film from each country. From Spain, the comedy-drama film Todo sobre mi madre (1999) by Pedro Almodóvar is a reflection of an earlier stage of the epidemic, when the country was challenged to recreate its political and social identities. Almodóvar’s film highlights the struggles of the LGBTQ community to transgress stereotypes (not limited to HIV) and find hope in future generations to solve the lingering social inequalities. From Venezuela, the short film Positivo (2016) from De Tovar Films is …

Los Defectos De La Perfección: Un Análisis De Los Temas Recurrentes De Secretos, Traumas Intergeneracionales E Identidades Biculturales En Yo No Soy Tu Perfecta Hija Mexicana, Tiffany Vembenil

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the social critiques by author Erika L. Sánchez in her debut novel Yo no soy tu perfecta hija mexicana (2017). This is a fictional coming-of-age story of teen Julia Reyes, who is grieving the death of her “perfect” older sister. Sánchez explores intersectional feminism, describing Julia’s struggles with gender roles, power dynamics, race, and socioeconomic status.

Sánchez employs imagery and irony to critique how the judging, silence, and secrecy that younger generations learn from their community permit predatory behavior, sexual assault, and victim-blaming. However, she also shows how keeping secrets can be a necessary evil to protect …

Inocencia Y Memoria: Reconciliando El Trauma De La Guerra Civil Española En “Aquel Abril” Y “La Lengua De Las Mariposas”, Catherine Seaman

Honors Theses

I will analyze the fictional short stories “Aquel abril” by Armando López Salinas (first written and published in 1955) and “La lengua de las mariposas” by Manuel Rivas from his collection ¿Qué me quieres, amor? (1995) in order to understand how individual reflection on the past helps us access a nation’s collective memory in order to process traumatic events and keep them from repeating. I discuss childhood innocence as a form of rebellion and free thought as power to combat violent and oppressive systems that create this trauma. The child protagonists of the two stories represent individual trajectories, but they …

Pendulums Of Personhood? Exploring The Multitudes Of Immigrant Womanhood In Spanish-Maghrebi Literature, Kaitlyn C. Sisco

Honors Theses

Often considered articulations of in-between-ness and bearers of fraught selfhoods, the work of Spanish-Maghrebi authors has been widely debated in literary fields, with academics arguing that it constitutes a largely homogenous set of texts about the standard immigrant experience. However, by placing these texts in a single category, such arguments end up erasing the immensely varied identities expressed and represented by Spanish-Maghrebi authors. This thesis seeks to address this issue by paying particular attention to how Spanish-Maghrebi authors negotiate different types of immigrant subjectivities in their writing. Specifically, I analyze the works of three contemporary Spanish-Maghrebi writers, Najat El Hachmi, …

Life, Strength, Woman: English Translation Of Julia De Burgos’S Poetry, Alexis Stoffers

Honors Theses

The purpose of this translation project is to make Puerto Rican feminist and political activist Julia de Burgos’s poetry available to a wider audience. Its feminist themes and exploration of powerful emotions are just as relevant today as they were in Burgos’s lifetime. Translating these poems to English in the twenty-first century means a whole new generation of developing women will have access to Burgos’s words. They will feel Burgos’s deep and intricate emotions and understand that it’s okay to struggle as long as they remain true to themselves. A detailed history of Burgos’s life accompanies the translated poems in …

The Effects Of Musical Experience And Aptitude On Phonological Skills In A Foreign Language, Joshua Shockley

Honors Theses

Music has been shown to have an important effect on L2 language acquisition. Recently, researchers have investigated how musical ability or experience can give an advantage to L2 learners attempting to acquire specific aspects of a second language in the beginning stages of language acquisition. This study investigates this connection between musicality and early L2 ability in Spanish through a series of tests including a musical aptitude test, two language aptitude tests, a Spanish receptive test, and a Spanish imitation test. Results revealed no significant correlations between musical ability or experience and language ability as tested by the aptitude, receptive, …

Yo Soy Rumano (I Am Romanian): An Autobiography Exploring The Effects Of Memory And Trauma On The Formation Of The Self, Andrei Bucaloiu

Honors Theses

I came to the United States from Romania with my parents when I was two years old. This moment of cultural, linguistic, and geographic separation occurred before I was able to consciously recall it, yet it constitutes a traumatic experience, in the Freudian and Lacanian sense, that defines my positionality and serves as a primary space in which I seek to develop who I am. However, regardless of how much I have developed my ability to communicate in English, it is not the language of my emotional affect. At the same time, profound expression in Romanian is not possible for …

Maternidad En España: Una Investigación Sobre Cómo Las Mujeres Navegan Los Límites Patriarcales Para Ampliar Visiones Y Realidades De La Maternidad, Katerina Tanasijevic

Honors Theses

A través de una investigación de películas españolas, una obra de teatro y el activismo de salud pública, esta tesis disecciona la historia de la maternidad en España. Se enfoca en madres no tradicionales, que difieren de los ideales patriarcales y heteronormativos de lo que debe ser una madre débil, cómplice y en un nivel inferior a sus contrapartes masculinas. En un estudio de madres fuertes en películas que las compara con ejemplos de la actualidad, argumento que las madres no tradicionales en España experimentan momentos de autonomía, empoderamiento e independencia. Sin embargo, estos momentos existen y dependen de una …

Healthcare Access Barriers And Proposed Solutions For Limited English-Proficient (Lep) Latinx Patients In Southwest Michigan, Carmen Vinkemulder

Honors Theses

This research study explores the circumstances and experiences of LatinX patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) when seeking treatment in the healthcare system of Southwest Michigan, in addition to proposing solutions to better facilitate this population’s access. The terminology used in this research, LatinX, is an American English neologism used as a genderinclusive term used interchangeably with Latino/a and/or Hispanic. This research provides an overview of the current socio-political legislature and climate of the American healthcare system as it pertains to the LatinX population to spread awareness and identify the barriers existing in our current healthcare model. This study will …

La Reivindicación De La Cultura Judía En España A Través Del Turismo Sostenible, Hannah Weeks

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the Sustainable Development Goals created by the United Nations and the role that culture plays in the development of sustainable practices. Inspired by personal experiences, minority groups, primarily the Jewish population of Spain, require the implementation of sustainable tourism in order to have their legacies remembered in the present day, as well as their culture understood by travelers. In Seville, Spain, traditional tours do not emphasize the importance of the Jewish culture and its influence on the overall Spanish culture, depriving visitors of a complete overview of their destination’s development and accomplishments. Through the investigation of various …

Ecoturismo Y Empoderamiento: La Ecoinnovación De Las Mujeres Indígenas En América Latina, Kathleen Sinatra

Honors Theses

This thesis focuses on the role of indigenous women in relation to ecotourism efforts and ecoinnovation. Through an analysis of three case studies, I discuss the need to account for both indigenous people and gender when engaging in ecotourism efforts. I first engage in a literature review that develops the complex relationship between the identity factors of indigeneity and gender. I then look at a case study of the hotel Taselotzin in Cuetzalan del Progreso, Mexico in which a cooperative group of indigenous women founded a hotel. I then turn to the Kichwa community in Ecuador and the organization Amukishmi …

El Agroturismo: La Clave Para El Futuro Sostenible De España, Emma Mahony

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the possibilities of agritourism in the pursuit of sustainable tourism in Spain. It criticizes the dominant model of sun-and-beach tourism and endorses agritourism as a sustainable alternative. Agritourism is a field of rural tourism that encourages tourist engagement in agricultural activities as a means of diversifying the economy and fostering cultural competency. Through an analysis of case studies of farm stays, enotourism, olive oil tourism, and cheese tourism throughout Spain, this paper examines the social and economic benefits that agritourism extends to the provider, the tourist, the host community, and the environment. It concludes by emphasizing that, …

El Papel De La Educación En La Conservación Y El Ecoturismo En Costa Rica, Alice Sperry

Honors Theses

Costa Rica is a unique country that has some of the greatest biodiversity in the world. In order to protect this rich biodiversity, Costa Rica has developed a system of conservation and sustainability. Conservation and sustainability are two of the primary focuses of the country. Another focus of the country, since it was formed, is education. Therefore, the country has combined the importance of education and sustainability to offer environmental education programs for future generations. There are a variety of programs for a wide range of ages, children and adults. Some local people need these programs in order to get …

El Neocolonialismo: La Influencia Imperialista Del Turismo En Honduras, Kelsey Brodie

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the role of neocolonialism and imperialist forces in the development of Honduras throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. The United States was responsible for a series of coup d’états throughout the 20th century, paving the way for conformation to western and American ideals. These included several in Honduras, opening the doors to the banana farming industry which took control of the nation for decades. Later, the Honduran economy saw a shift from agriculture to tourism to comply with the new ideals of imperialist nations. While tourism continues to be a growing part of the economy, it has …

Learn, Try, Repeat: Experiential Learning In Adult Second Language Acquisition Of Spanish In Higher Education, Veronica Miller

Honors Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to synthesize research of experiential learning for adult Spanish learners in higher education to identify important takeaways and propose draft curriculum to improve acquisition for learners through experience-based and hands-on practices. Hopefully, this will aid in understanding, identify gaps in existing research, and better inform lesson-planning for instructors. My research does not include any comparison to other languages or other levels of education. I approach the issue through exploratory and descriptive research through open-source data retrieval by information obtained from governmental and nongovernmental resources.

Ganar Local: La Política Cantera Del Athletic Club Y La Construcción De Lo Vasco, Sam Orenstein

Honors Theses

El Athletic Club de Bilbao es un club único en el fútbol español debido a su política cantera. Esta política declara que para jugar por el Athletic Club, hay que ser vasco. Este concepto, que cuestiona quién es vasco, cómo se expresa, y cómo contamos la identidad nacional, es un pilar central de esta tesis. Esta tesis analiza la cantera en su habilidad de definir qué es ser vasco, lo cual tiene implicaciones más anchas para el fútbol y nacionalismo en España. Sugiero que la cantera es un agente activo en la construcción de una definición de ser vasco que …

El Mar Y La Gente: Hacia Una Contextualización De Lo Indígena En El Botón De Nácar, Jonathan Braden Taylor

Honors Theses

El presente trabajo analiza las ramificaciones ontológicas, epistemológicas, y políticas del botón de nácar, un documental hecho en 2015 por el cineasta Patricio Guzmán. El siguiente análisis busca poner esta obra cinemática en el contexto de la formulación y el desarrollo del estado-nación chileno, lo cual ha ocurrido a expensas de las personas indígenas de la zona. Se observa que se emplea significación verdaderamente descolonizada en representaciones y discusiones de espacios acuáticos, lo cual engendra avances teóricos que utilizo para contextualizar el filme. Se sostiene que los efectos políticos de dicha significación descolonizada se ponen en marcha productivamente cuando son …

Comunidad Y Contagio: La Narrativa Del Brote De Covid-19 En España, Samantha Lee

Honors Theses

La pandemia global de COVID-19 inició inesperadamente el enero del año 2020. Mientras que el nuevo coronavirus impactó a personas de todo el mundo, hay una narrativa particular del brote que se ha ocurrido en España. Las consecuencias corpóreas del virus han tenido mayores impactos en el tejido social, económico, político y cultural de España. Por resultado, hay una narrativa del brote que es específica a los valores, experiencias, suposiciones y creencias de personas en España. Esta historia de la pandémica se ha escrito a través de las redes sociales, así como los funcionarios de salud pública, profesionales medicales, autoridades …

International News From Differing National Perspectives: Spanish-Speaking Newspaper Coverage Of The 2019 Venezuelan Presidential Crisis Protests, Lauren Lalonde

Honors Theses

On January 23, 2019, the streets of Venezuela became flooded with protests in response to the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, announcing his claim to the Venezuelan presidency. The protests were largely in support of his announcement, though some supported Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela since 2013. This day marked the beginning of the Venezuelan presidential crisis, which left Venezuela, and the world, debating the legitimacy of each leader. This investigation focuses on how Spanish-language news sources from three different countries reported on the protests surrounding the Venezuelan presidential crisis on January 23, 2019, and how the …

La Sensibilidad De La Lente Crítica: Las Dinámicas De Poder Y Los Papeles De Género En El Cine Mexicano Contemporáneo, China Campagnuolo

Honors Theses

This project explores the socio-cultural evolution of gender dynamics through the analysis of four contemporary Mexican films: Amores perros (2000) directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, Y tu mamá también (2001) directed by Alfonso Cuarón, Las elegidas (2015) directed by David Pablos, and Roma (2018) also directed by Cuarón. These directors are part ofMexico’s cinematic “New Wave,” a modern resurgence of Mexican film that depicts a realistic side of the nation’s political, social, and economic issues. In the opening chapter, I analyzeAmores perros and Y tu mamá también, two earlier films of the “New Wave.” These movies areheavily focused on toxic …

Interpreting Efforts In Mississippi Schools: Does Spanish Dialect Diversity Hinder Communication?, Walker Fortenberry

Honors Theses

This work examines the different Spanish dialects spoken by interpreters and their clients in public schools in Mississippi and whether dialectal mismatches hinder communication between interlocutors. To do this, I conducted a brief interview and survey of several interpreters for the Tupelo Public School District. The interview and survey assessed the interpreters’ personal use of Spanish dialects as well as their ability to identify certain dialects and opinions as to the relevance of dialects in their work. I found that interpreters, though aware of dialectal differences among Spanish speakers, were generally not able to identify specific dialects. Furthermore, I found …

Immigrants: A Threat To The Economy Or Cultural Identity? A Case Study Of Haitian And Venezuelan Immigrants In Chile, Erin Geist

Honors Theses

Historically, countries often faced the difficult task of favoring one immigrant group over another. Typically, this is in response to their inability to support those immigrants due to an unstable economy. However, some scholars argue that during times of economic prosperity, excluding immigrants may be the result of the group’s incapacity to assimilate to the nation’s “cultural identity”. Since Chile’s conception as a nation and as one of the most prosperous Latin American countries, they have received notably minuscule immigration rates. As a result, Chileans prides themselves as a relatively homogeneous country. Consequently, in 2018, President Sebastián Piñera differentiated visas …

Daniel's Journey In First Grade / El Viaje De Daniel En Primer Grado, Hannah Gallagher

Honors Theses

After growing up in a city where I was privileged to observe a combination of cultures, I felt especially drawn to how children grow up in these environments, especially as it pertains to education. With this in mind, my thesis easily became a place for me to write and illustrate a bilingual children’s picture book. This picture book is for children between the ages of five and eight years old and is written in the English and Spanish languages. I have focused the book specifically on circumstances that immigrant children from Central or South America might encounter, as they adjust …

Comunidad, Antigüedad Y Solidaridad Ser Gay En El Tardofranquismo 1969-1978, Andrew Healy

Honors Theses

En una época de represión e intolerancia en España, los homosexuales todavía existían, pero en una manera clandestina. Esta tesis explora cómo esta comunidad clandestina se expresaba durante el tardofranquismo en los años 1969-1978. Con discusiones de los valores del régimen, las representaciones del hombre en relaciones sexuales y sitios históricos que preservan el legado del franquismo, esta tesis ilumina la historia de un grupo oprimido en España.

A través del uso de diferentes fuentes académicas, incluso documentales, películas y artículos, esta tesis discute cómo los homosexuales se comportaban en el franquismo, y su tratamiento bajo un régimen opresivo. Unos …

Propaganda Y Progreso: El Rol Paradójico De La Magia En La España Premoderna, Alexander K. Rhodes

Honors Theses

La magia tiene varios roles diferentes en la literatura española premoderna. A causa de las connotaciones pecaminosas de la magia, frecuentemente se usa para discriminar contra un grupo subalterno, como en la obra de teatro El niño inocente de La Guardia de Lope de Vega. Se ve que esta forma de discriminación difunde y apoya la anxiety of sameness definida por Christina Lee. La anxiety of sameness es el temor de los nobles de ser infiltrados por los no nobles, incluyendo a los judíos, los moriscos y los de la clase baja. Pero, como se ve en esta tesis, la …