Week of September 3: (Both class sections) Juan Flores

Hi everyone,

First a few housekeeping things before we get to the assignment itself.

• You might find it helpful to subscribe to new posts for this site: use the e-mail sign-up form on the main page.
• If you’re new to the class, welcome! Be sure to carefully review class policies on the syllabus, especially absences and screens in the classroom (they’re not allowed at all).
• Also see the introductory post for some reading questions for Juan Flores’s essay

For Tuesday 9/3: we’ll continue/finish our review of Juan Flores’s essay “The Structuring of Puerto Rican Identity” from his book Divided Borders: Essays on Puerto Rican Identity.

• Review the key points of the Juan Flores essay that we covered Thursday: the points he makes here are key to the course.
  • What’s the relationship Flores poses between Caribbean communities in New York City and how does he see this as an alternative model to the Melting Pot Theory?

Think about the questions above as you read and take notes on them.

Highlights from 8/27 and 8/29 classes

• Reviewed syllabus and course policies
• Started Juan Flores’s essay “The Structuring of Puerto Rican Identity”

For Thursday 9/5 CUNY classes follow a MONDAY SCHEDULE (PDF) so we don’t meet. Whatever you normally do at school on a Monday, do that. Whatever you normally do in the outside world where it’s a Thursday, do Thursday stuff. Clear as mud, right? Welcome to CUNY!

What’s Next?

If you want a sneak peek of what’s next, we’ll have two separate readings: 1) an interview with poet Pedro Pietri, and 2) Excerpts from Pietri’s book Puerto Rican Obituary. Both PDF files are posted on the Readings page. Details and questions follow in next week’s update.

Welcome to Fall 2019! (BOTH class sections): Week of August 27

Hi everyone,

First a few housekeeping things before we get to the assignment itself.

• You might find it helpful to subscribe to new posts for this site: use the e-mail sign-up form on the main page.
• Make a plan for getting the assigned books for the course. If you’re planning on ordering them online, then get them now so you’ll have them when needed. Also note that the campus bookstore returns unsold copies about halfway through the semester.
• If you missed the first class (or lost your copy–it happens!) grab a copy of the syllabus

For Thursday 8/29, read Juan Flores’s “The Structuring of Puerto Rican Identity in the US”, from his book Divided Borders. The PDF is on the Readings page. (Password hint: what year is it?).

Also watch this Youtube video of poet Tato Laviera reading his classic poem AmeRican, which Flores references on the last page. (The audio quality isn’t great, so you’ll have to listen carefully.)

Also listen to Felipe Luciano read his poem “Jibaro, My Pretty Nigger”.

Things to think about while reading/ watching:

• How does Flores’s essay begin to define Nuyorican identity and carve out a specific space in the city landscape?
• What’s the language used in the poems and who might it appeal to?
• What are the four points of contact or “four moments” that Flores identifies in his essay?
• How do these “moments” explain how we interact with the urban space?
• Do you notice any similarities or connections with your own family’s experience or those of friends?