As the last week of classes is upon us, it continues to baffle my mind of where the time has gone. It seems as though the more I approach the end of my degree, the faster the terms go by – not that I’m complaining, you know what they say, time flies when you’re having fun. Although I wouldn’t necessarily classify this class as “fun,” I would say it was incredibly engaging, thought-provoking, and opened my eyes to a new form of literature I hadn’t explored before. I am grateful for stepping out of my comfort zone and exploring a new form of writing, and different ways of analyzing underlying themes present throughout the novels.
As Jon first introduced the overarching theme of “play” during our first class, it made me question how all of these Latin American stories will have aspects of play within them. However, after reading quite a few, I became increasingly aware and able to point out themes in the books that weren’t always obvious. Much of the themes present within the various books also included violence, race, gender, inequality, and as Jon mentions in the lecture – time, temporality and technology. The themes present also play into much of the patterns of commonality that a lot of us have identified throughout our weekly blog posts, or in various class discussions.
As I have mentioned in many of my blog posts, much of these books are a raw depiction of life, and the human psyche. They represent the suffering, desire to love and be loved, the beautiful inner-workings of life itself and what it means to have consciousness. I thought it was interesting when Jon mentioned the stories as being “threads connecting past to present” and that “history catches up to us in one way or another that we cannot escape our past – or put enough distance between then and now.” The stories we read and pass on to younger generations do bring us closer to a past we may not know personally, but one that can bring awareness to other’s hardships. And much of learning about history is so that we can become increasingly aware of the world around us, the experiences others have had, the suffering a lot of the world has endured, and how we can learn from this and try our best to do something meaningful with the little time that we have on this Earth.
I think personally, that is one of the biggest takeaways from this course. Through Latin American literature, the stories we explored gave me a greater perspective on the world around us.
So, perhaps my last question for the course is: How did this class change your perspective on the world around us? Do you feel like the readings have made you more appreciative of life and all the emotions that come along with it?
Hey, great post! Interesting observation to bring it back to the concept of “play”. There were so many readings that were very heavy in their context both emotionally and mentally so it’s interesting how there was still that aspect of whimsical fun throughout the readings. To answer your question, I feel like this has also altered how I look at the hardships in my own life. This term’s readings have taken me out of my Western bubble and made me think about the differences between the troubles we read about in Western literature versus literature from Latin America.
Hi, I share with you so many emotions about the term wrapping up! To answer your question, I definitely think that this course has made me more appreciative of all the emotions that come along with life. After reading so many different stories, with different characters and places, I have gotten to appreciate different emotions about life through this way. It has made me acknowledge many things that I knew were there, but did not have the words to properly portray them. Now I do and I think this is definitely one of the things I love the most about this course. Hope you have a great summer and good luck on your finals!!
Hi Gillian, great blog post! I resonate with you when you said that the more we read, the more the themes of these novels don’t seem too obvious. To answer your question, I definitely feel like I became more aware of the struggles and hardships in the different realities beyond my own. I also learned to branch out of usual books or genres I would voluntarily pick up.
HI! I really appreciated reading your post. You really wrapped the whole thing up quite beautifully. I agree that these stories gave us a greater perspective on the world, and how short it really is. I feel like these stories have made me feel more appreciative of life, as well the importance of community and family – a theme that was prevalent through many of the books.
Hi there,
I think the literature didn’t change my perspective in the world but it would give me more context in questioning certain topics when they arise. But the readings did make me appreciative of life in general because the literature of region makes you feel more connected to the world, or at least for myself.
I think I gained a bit more perspective more than anything.
Hi Gillian! I totally agree with you. This is definitely one of the most thought-provoking and engaging classes I’ve been in at UBC! I feel like almost every Spanish class I’ve taken so far has been really engaging because it is a language learning course, but since this is a literature course, it has been super engaging in a completely different way. This class was unique in the sense that aside from my IR courses, this class has pushed me to approach literature in a different way; it pushed me to analyze patterns, repetition, and reading between the lines of what the author is trying to convey. Normally that is put in front of me in the form of an Abstract, but this is different. I also think that it has changed my perception on family and memory. I was consistently reminded throughout the course of how many different ways there are to portray memory and loss in the lens of family–super insightful stuff!
Wonderful blogpost. I really enjoyed reading your thoughtful reflections. To answer your question, the books have definitely made me more appreciative of life and the world. Specifically, reading a lot about slavery and civil wars made me appreciate the life that I have right now. Also, the theme of cyclical nature of time in One Hundred Years of Solitude helped me learn how precious time is.
– Daniel C
Hi!
I like your point on play throughout the works. I think you’re right that it allows for new themes to be found but I also appreciate the optimism of analysis through the lens of play. Usually, changes in time for example might be described as distortions or subversions, which have decidedly negative and borderline unnatural connotations. Play’s optimism allows the fantastical in magical realism to seem almost entirely possible. This also answers your question. I think that the themes from this course will remind me to look at the unconventional or unexpected in life through a lens of optimism rather than distrust.
Kara 🙂
Hi Gillian
I think you make a good point about become more aware of the world around us and how their stories can still be very relevant today. To answer your discussion question, in reading some of these stories I’ve been able to in a way vicariously try to understand some of the authors very different experiences of the world and how its shaped them. I think they’ve definitely made more appreciative of life as I don’t face any of the same type of hardships we read about.