The Conquest
Fall 1999, Course Description
Simultaneously taught at three universities in Brazil, Peru, and the
United States,
this course analyzes the politics of performance in the conquest of the
Americas. From the time of the European "discovery" through the
establishment of European colonial authority, we witness a radical change
in social epistemology, as one cultural order came to partially eclipse
another. Performance was instrumental to both indigenous and European
colonial epistemology, and was a primary means through which both cultures
maintained or contested social authority. We analyze the profound changes
wrought o n these performance cultures in their encounter with the other,
and examine how performance was strategically altered and used by various
social groups in order to achieve their ends. Through a careful review of
primary readings and critical texts, we wil l gain an appreciation of the
complex function of performance in the political drama of new world
conquest and colonization. Throughout, we remain attentive to the fact
that the meanings of new world performance are relative and contextual,
derived from t he different cultural, social, and ideological frames of
reference which are brought to bear on the material.
The course begins with an introduction to SPECTACLE IN ITS PRE-COLUMBIAN
CONTEXTS, in which we approach the meaning and power of performance from
the vantage of pre-Columbian American cultures. Our first unit examines
PRE-CONQUEST PERFORMANCE as a complex mode of social behavior central to
the production and maintenance of social, political, and cosmic order.
Unit 2 explores THE POLITICS AND POETICS OF ENCOUNTER, in which we
approach the colonial encounter itself as a foundational performative
moment. We compare how performance was differently apprehended by the
European and Native American communities, reflecting distinct systems of
signification and religious belief. Unit 3 examines the THEATRE OF
CONQUEST, asking how theatre was used in the military an d spiritual
conquest of the Americas. Finally, Unit 4 explores the THEATRICALITY AND
COLONIAL AUTHORITY, analyzing the role of theatre and theatricality in the
maintenance of European colonial authority and power.
This is the first course to be taught under the auspices of the new
Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics. As such, the course is
being taught simultaneously at NYU, at the University of Rio de Janeiro,
and at the Pontífica Universidad Católica del Peru in Lima. Each course
follows a similarly structured syllabus, and shares key an essential
reading list. However, each will have a different emphasis: NYU will focus
on Mexico, UNI-RIO on Brazil, and the PUCP on Peru. The three courses will
be c oordinated through this shared website, which houses course readings,
translation software, and other material related to the course. In
addition, students from all three countries are expected to participate in
an ongoing discussion list, collaborations with students from the other
institutions, and weekly live-chat sessions with instructors and students.
For each unit of the course, we have organized one interactive web-based
event.
If you are not a student registered for this course, but would like more
information, please contact us.
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