<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=Windows-1252">
</head>
<body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 14px; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">
<div>
<div>Hi, Matt:</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Oh, we are in crisis, but I believe we are adapting to some harsh realities as best we can, without losing our perspective, purpose or good humor. My response is to channel Celestina/Trotacoventos, peddling human interest stories, cultural connections
and language and critical thinking skills from house to house. I even invoke her “Albricias” and “Paz sea en esta casa" when the spirit moves me.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Students who are passionate about reading, and reading closely, are few, and that is why, like Sharon, I sneak (or shamelessly insert) literature and culture in every single class at every level. In the intermediate and advanced courses, I routinely refer
students to the telenovelas and reality shows as modern expressions of some aspects of the Baroque, and for confirmation that human nature has not changed much since the beginning of time. And, as we teachers-turned entertainers (not a new concept), presiding
over a particularly “visual” generation, I follow up with a song performances and selected scenes via you tube or other legal sources, followed by thematic and technical dissection. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>A related response is dramatic readings, or imaginative re-rendering of scenes assigned to groups. In my SPA 301 (Readings and Culture - taught completely in Spanish), we just completed Juan Manuel’s story about el mancebo moro and la mujer brava. One
group had to improvise a scene involving the couple 10 years after the night of the long knife. They chose to present the mozo as someone who had deteriorated into a traumatized psychopath terrorizing his family via mantras like “soy el rey de este castillo
and “dame agua para las manos. ” This lead to further discussions on intimations of masculinity, fear and violence as motivators, medieval women versus their modern counterparts, and the relationship between means and ends. The approaches also works for
pieces by Cervantes, Calderón, Lope, Zayas, the <i>Celestina</i> or the <i>Lazarillo
</i>in the advanced courses, even if they are taught as a survey. Last semester when I organized a multilingual Read-in of the
<i>Quijote </i>in our Main library, my advanced students, and even some graduates, made the event quite memorable. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>So, yes, the struggle continues. We are idealists tilting at windmills in a world of iron, but the situation is not all hopeless. Nor are we alone in this new reality. Here is a link that may interest some of you.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><a href="http://chronicle.com/article/Flagging-Disciplines-Reclaim/235253/?key=c8wMJvSe75tX7DvVnrc4Y9nv6VdI8sb7g_YUXBGssfRRM2FnZTF2bWlLSnRaWmMxT0twTFBHOFVMLTRYYk1LY0JnVWI1dlA2N3Nv">http://chronicle.com/article/Flagging-Disciplines-Reclaim/235253/?key=c8wMJvSe75tX7DvVnrc4Y9nv6VdI8sb7g_YUXBGssfRRM2FnZTF2bWlLSnRaWmMxT0twTFBHOFVMLTRYYk1LY0JnVWI1dlA2N3Nv</a></div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Ez.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" color="#970c09"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px;"><b>_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/</b></span></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px;" color="#970c09"><b>Dr. Ezra Engling</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" color="#970c09"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px;"><b>Professor of Spanish/Academic Advisor</b></span></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px;" color="#970c09"><b>Department of Languages, Cultures & Humanities</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px;" color="#970c09"><b>Eastern Kentucky University</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" color="#970c09"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px;"><b>Case Annex 351/521 Lancaster Avenue</b></span></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px;" color="#970c09"><b>Richmond, KY 40475-3102</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" color="#970c09"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px;"><b>Phone: (859) 622-1467/Fax</b></span></font><b style="font-size: 10px; color: rgb(151, 12, 9); font-family: Verdana;">: (859) 622-3066</b></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px;" color="#970c09"><b>Email: ezra.engling@eku.edu</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px; " color="#970c09"><b>_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/</b></font></div>
<div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana" style="font-size: 10px; " color="#970c09"><b><br>
</b></font></div>
</div>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<span id="OLK_SRC_BODY_SECTION">
<div style="font-family:Calibri; font-size:11pt; text-align:left; color:black; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; PADDING-LEFT: 0in; PADDING-RIGHT: 0in; BORDER-TOP: #b5c4df 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; PADDING-TOP: 3pt">
<span style="font-weight:bold">From: </span>Comedias <<a href="mailto:comedias-bounces@comedias.org">comedias-bounces@comedias.org</a>> on behalf of "<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>" <<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>><br>
<span style="font-weight:bold">Reply-To: </span>"<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>" <<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>><br>
<span style="font-weight:bold">Date: </span>Monday, February 8, 2016 at 1:32 PM<br>
<span style="font-weight:bold">To: </span>"<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>" <<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>><br>
<span style="font-weight:bold">Subject: </span>Re: [Comedias] "Crisis in the Humanities" and the Comedia<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div dir="auto">
<div>Dear Matt,</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>One reason why I became so interested in the Chamizal was the idea that performing theater was a great way to reach students. On my first visit to the Siglo de Oro, I had a midshipman who was from El Paso sit with me and the play was El caballero de Olmedo.
The festival corresponded to our spring break. I haven't had the opportunity since 1984 to have a student there what with changing dates. However, the study of languages is now declining at my institution in favor of STEM majors. I was not replaced when I
retired. We had five professor lines in Peninsular literature. Now we have two. That should give you an idea of the shifting priorities. Any hires in Spanish are either linguists or Latin Americanists. I hired the last people in Peninsular lit in the year
2000 when I was still chair. Just last week I found a lonely note card that I had inadvertently left in a BAE edition of some Lope de Vega plays. I may be the only person left reading Lope and I'm retired! I used videos from Chamizal performances in the classroom
when I was teaching such as Sor Juana's loa to the Divino Narciso or El gran teatro del mundo. Students greatly appreciate literature when they encounter it. However, opportunities are now rare. The situation at my institution I can understand somewhat, yet
it isn't much different from other places as far as the literary aspects of our courses go and the lack of students interested in previous centuries. The ironic thing is that we have more access to texts and historical information on the Internet than ever
before, even videos! You don't have to trek off to the library to check editions! I still think we need to fight the good fight and keep literature wherever we can on the curriculum.</div>
<div>Hope this helps!</div>
<div>Sharon<br>
<br>
Sent from my iPad</div>
<div><br>
On Feb 2, 2016, at 10:53 PM, AHCT Listserv <<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org">comedias@comedias.org</a>> wrote:<br>
<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">Thanks so much for your input. Your comments are not that far off from the current situation at Trinity. I have jokingly referred to what I teach as "literature appreciation," since the students are not prepared for real literary study, nor are
they willing to do the necessary work. I guess my follow-up question would be, is this approach to Golden Age literature in general and the
<i>comedia </i>in particular fulfilling our college's roles (academic and cultural) as liberal arts institutions? Or are we short-changing the humanities by "sneaking" the content in at the margins of the students' pre-professional programs?
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Matt</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra"><br>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 1, 2016 at 11:23 AM, AHCT Listserv <span dir="ltr">
<<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org" target="_blank">comedias@comedias.org</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<div dir="ltr">
<div style="font-size:12pt;color:#000000;background-color:#ffffff;font-family:Calibri,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">
<p>Hi, Matt.</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p>I teach at a small (1400) liberal arts college and the vast majority of my upper-level Spanish students are majoring in some pre-professional program with Spanish as a second major. Since their objectives is primarily language proficiency, I'm compelled
to sneak <i>comedias</i> in around the edges. I've found that they react to them more positively if I approach them from a cultural artifact perspective rather than hope that they'll recognize their literary value. I asked a recent class to reimagine
<i>Fuenteovejuna</i> in terms of a contemporary situation that crosses multiple planes of society, to analyze the characterization of roles in the original text and think about how they would achieve similar effects in contemporary dialogue, and to think about
shared understandings of context and environment (embodied cognition-, phenomenology- and semiotics-"light"). They actually came up with some intriguing insights and came away with a much deeper appreciation of the original text than students in previous
years. I've found that students can still learn to value a text, but perhaps not in the way I did when I was an undergraduate. </p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p>I hope this applies to what you're exploring.</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p>Deb</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<div>
<div style="font-size:12pt;color:#000000;background-color:#ffffff;font-family:Calibri,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">
<div style="font-size:12pt;color:#000000;background-color:#ffffff;font-family:Calibri,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">
Deborah A. Dougherty, Ph.D.</div>
<div style="font-size:12pt;color:#000000;background-color:#ffffff;font-family:Calibri,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">
Chair, Department of Modern Languages<br>
<div>Professor of Spanish<br>
</div>
<div>Alma College<br>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br>
<br>
<div style="color:rgb(0,0,0)">
<hr style="display:inline-block;width:98%">
<div dir="ltr"><font face="Calibri,sans-serif" color="#000000" style="font-size:11pt"><b>From:</b> Comedias <<a href="mailto:comedias-bounces@comedias.org" target="_blank">comedias-bounces@comedias.org</a>> on behalf of AHCT Listserv <<a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org" target="_blank">comedias@comedias.org</a>><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Thursday, January 28, 2016 9:21 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:comedias@comedias.org" target="_blank">comedias@comedias.org</a><br>
<b>Subject:</b> [Comedias] "Crisis in the Humanities" and the Comedia</font>
<div> </div>
</div>
<div>
<div class="h5">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">There has been considerable discussion the past few years about the "crisis in the humanities": lower interest and lower enrollments in humanities courses due to the perception that philosophy, literature, and art history will be of little or
no use in one's career. I have heard a few anecdotes about positions that are filled with Latin Americanists when the
<i>comediante</i> leaves, about Golden Age courses being taught by adjuncts or professors who specialize in other areas of Spanish-language literature or culture, about Golden Age courses being taught less frequently or cancelled altogether, declining enrollments
causing departments to reconfigure their needs, etc. I would very much appreciate receiving other data (including anecdotes) to determine whether there is a crisis in Golden Age studies, especially in the
<i>comedia, </i>for any reason (economic, political, curricular, etc.). If you would like to share, you may send your information to the entire list by responding directly to this message, or you may send it directly to me at
<a href="mailto:mstroud@trinity.edu" target="_blank">mstroud@trinity.edu</a> (especially if would prefer not to have your name made public). Any kind of relevant information (even that which refutes the notion of the crisis in the humanities) will be most appreciated.
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Matt . <br clear="all">
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
<div>
<div dir="ltr">Matthew D. Stroud, Ph.D.
<div>Professor of Spanish</div>
<div>Department of Modern Languages and Literatures</div>
<div>Trinity University</div>
<div>San Antonio, TX 78212</div>
<div><a href="tel:%28210%29%20999-7549" value="+12109997549" target="_blank">(210) 999-7549</a></div>
<div><a href="mailto:mstroud@trinity.edu" target="_blank">mstroud@trinity.edu</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br>
_______________________________________________<br>
Comedias mailing list<br>
<a href="mailto:Comedias@comedias.org">Comedias@comedias.org</a><br>
<a href="http://mail.comedias.org/mailman/listinfo/comedias_comedias.org" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">http://mail.comedias.org/mailman/listinfo/comedias_comedias.org</a><br>
<br>
</blockquote>
</div>
<br>
<br clear="all">
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
<div class="gmail_signature">
<div dir="ltr">Matthew D. Stroud, Ph.D.
<div>Professor of Spanish</div>
<div>Department of Modern Languages and Literatures</div>
<div>Trinity University</div>
<div>San Antonio, TX 78212</div>
<div>(210) 999-7549</div>
<div><a href="mailto:mstroud@trinity.edu" target="_blank">mstroud@trinity.edu</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br>
<span>Comedias mailing list</span><br>
<span><a href="mailto:Comedias@comedias.org">Comedias@comedias.org</a></span><br>
<span><a href="http://mail.comedias.org/mailman/listinfo/comedias_comedias.org">http://mail.comedias.org/mailman/listinfo/comedias_comedias.org</a></span><br>
</div>
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
</span>
</body>
</html>