PRT120 Portuguese for Spanish Speakers: Introductory Language Course
Introduction to the Portuguese language for speakers of Spanish (and possibly of other Romance languages, such as Italian, French or Rumanian). Overview of basic grammatical structures, development of vocabulary and oral and written expression.
PRT219 Academic Portuguese: Introductory Course for Students Who Have Had Previous Contact with the Language
This course is designed to meet the needs of students who have had exposure to spoken Portuguese in an informal context, but little to no exposure to written Portuguese. The students’ ability to speak and understand Portuguese may range from basic to relatively high fluency, but they cannot write and/or read Portuguese. The course reviews English/ Portuguese spelling differences; written and spoken registers of Portuguese, and basic aspects of the grammatical system. The course aims at (1) providing students with the essential understanding of Portuguese grammatical system; (2) building their vocabulary; and (3) training them to express themselves formally in both spoken and written Portuguese.
PRT423 Portuguese for Professionals: Advanced Language Course Dealing with Use of Language in the Workplace
The course will help students to develop language on a range of topics from financial, legal, medical to educational. It will also provide students with the awareness of Lusopone cultures and improve cross-cultural competence.
PRT358 Portuguese Studies – Introduction to Luso-African Studies
I Introduction to African expressions in literature, arts, media and cultural manifestations emphasizing its social and geopolitical aspects, recognizing, valuing, and redefining the meaning and specificities of African cultural practices in the Lusophone world, which includes African countries with Portuguese as their official language (Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and São Tomé and Principe) as well as Brazil. During this course, we will read, discuss and compare recent theoretical works in literature, anthropology, film and cultural studies approaches to nationalism, culture, diaspora, postcolonialism, hybridization, underdevelopment and globalization. (Pre-requisite: PRT258 or Permission of Instructor; taught in English)
PRT355 Topics in Brazilian Culture: Brazilian Cinema
Brazilian films analyzed under cinematography aesthetic and rhetoric. This survey course will focus on cinema and film criticism in their historical, geopolitical, and socio-economic contexts since early cinema to contemporary film production. The cinema of Brazil, as well as those of other Latin American countries such as Argentina and Mexico, experienced profound transformations in their production each time a new government came into power. Salles Gomes, the famous Brazilian critic, pointed out that Brazilian cinema has taken varied trajectories in dealing with its underdevelopment. In the last 50 years, Brazilian filmmakers have continually struggled against political and economic difficulties and have been negatively affected by censorship, lack of access to foundation and government grants, and uninterested audiences who are consumed by Hollywood films and mass television. (Pre-requisite: PRT258 or Permission of Instructor; taught in English)
