Mr. Volk

Rice 309, x8522

Office Hours: Monday 1-2 PM; Tuesday, 11-12 AM; Wednesday, 10-11 AM.

Email: Steven.Volk@oberlin.edu

     During the 1960s and 1970s, military dictatorships surged over the Americas, covering, at one point, every country in South America save Colombia and Venezuela. While military rulers were not an unusual occurrence in many Latin American countries, these regimes were in no sense “typical.” Indeed, they were striking for the nature of their political aims, for the economic policies they imposed, and for the sheer brutality of their methods. These were the regimes that gave rise to the term “dirty war” and introduced “disappear” into our grammar as a transitive verb. While one can certainly question the very notion of any war that is not “dirty” in some sense, examining these regimes forces us explore why states, all of which hold a theoretical monopoly on the sanctioned use of force, would choose to employ it massively against civil society and when lines are crossed between a “legitimate” exercise of force and its illegitimate and illegal use.

     Many Latin American regimes of the 1960s and 1970s could fit the model of what has been called the “bureaucratic-authoritarian” dictatorship, but here we will concentrate on the “Southern Cone” countries of South America, paying particular attention to Argentina and Chile, and also examining Brazil and Uruguay.

     This course will explore the questions that arise when one contemplates these “regimes of exception:” What brought about the continent-wide wave of military dictatorships? Was there a characteristic ideology, structure, support base, or methodology shared by these military regimes? How can we understand the harsh methods imposed by the military regimes and their civilian supporters? What leads governments to torture and murder their citizens, and what allows individuals to participate in that process? Does the concept of the “dirty” war have any significant meaning? Why did these military regimes finally give way to more democratic, civilian regimes? How do these new governments address the crimes of the past in the attempt to reconstruct civil society? How have private citizens, NGOs, and the international community addressed the historical legacy of violent states and dictators through an attempt to construct a more comprehensive international legal regime that can bring state torturers to justice?

     Classes will be held as lecture-discussions, with student participation actively encouraged. The course requires a significant amount of reading, and you are expected to keep up with the readings so as to be able to participate intelligently and energetically in class.

     As this period of Latin American history produced a tremendous artistic and literary outpouring, we will approach it through written texts (primary and secondary sources), film, drama, music, and art. I also strongly encourage you to follow breaking news from Latin America. The issue of the “dirty wars” is not old news in these countries or in the United States. General Pinochet’s arrest in London in 1998 and his extradition to Chile the following year has re-energized the attempt to bring him, his lieutenants, and U.S. officials to trial for crimes committed in the 1970s. This is an issue that has involved thousands, including myself. [See “Judgment Day in Chile,” NACLA Report on the Americas (July-August 2002)] Although the Chilean Supreme Court ruled in July 2002 that Pinochet was “unfit” to stand trial, various of his top lieutenants still face on-going prosecution. The fact that these issues, far from disappearing, have become a major motivating force behind the creation of the International Criminal Court gives us a clue as to the ultimate significance of the “dirty war” period to the history of these countries and the memories which remain.

Class Requirements

(1) As mentioned above, students are expected to keep up with the reading and to come to class prepared.

(2) You are required to complete four different projects over the course of the semester.

(a) Due September 19 at the beginning of class: A 4-5 page paper on the historical concept of human rights. (Individual project) (15% of grade);

(b) Due October 8 at the beginning of class: A 4-5 page paper discussing, in historical perspective, the nature of “exceptional” regimes, i.e., why states (which always have a theoretical monopoly on the use of violence) opt to employ it in an excessive manner. (Individual project) (20% of grade);

(c) Due November 19 at the beginning of class: A project which explores violence and the exceptional regime. This is a group project which will involve 3-4 people per group. The format of the project is open — it can be a written paper, a performance, a video, or any other media form. (Group project) (30% of grade);

(d) Due December 16 at 4:30 PM. A 7-10 page paper discussing any aspect of history and memory or the reconstitution of civil society in any country studied or as a general analysis of the Southern Cone. Extensions without penalty will be allowed until December 20 at 2:00 PM. (the time scheduled for a final exam in the course although there is no final exam). After that point, there will be no extensions allowed unless you request an official incomplete in the course. (Individual project) (35% of grade).

(3) These projects are due on the day and at the time assigned in the syllabus. Assignments turned in late without prior authorization will be marked down one gradestep for each day that it is late. For example, a paper that is due on October 8 but turned in on October 9 will be marked down one grade-step (e.g., from a B+ to a B).

(4) Please note that you must use computers responsibly. Computers, particularly those on a network, are always crashing. You must be responsible for saving to disk frequently so that when the computer crashes, you will have only lost the last paragraph. You must also save copies of your papers (or your computer files) until the end of the course in case there is any problem verifying that you did turn in your work.

Books Recommended for Purchase

     Robert Barros, Constitutionalism and Dictatorship : Pinochet, the Junta, and the 1980 Constitution (New York: Cambridge University Press), 2002.

     Ariel Dorfman, Death and the Maiden (New York: Penguin USA), 1994.

     Priscilla B. Hayner, Unspeakable Truths : Confronting State Terror and Atrocity
(Routledge), 2002.

     Eduardo Galeano, Days and Nights of Love and War (New York: New York University Press), 2000.

     Maria José Moyano, Argentina's Lost Patrol: Armed Struggle 1969-1979 (New Haven: Yale University Press), 1995.

     Alicia Partnoy, The Little School: Tales of Disappearance & Survival in Argentina (Cleis Press), 1998.

     Diana Taylor, Disappearing Acts : Spectacles of Gender and Nationalism in Argentina's “Dirty War” (Durham: Duke University Press), 1997.

     Peter Winn, Weavers of Revolution: The Yarur Workers and Chile's Road to Socialism (New York: Oxford University Press), 1989.

Syllabus

NOTE: Course materials will be available in a variety of formats:

     — All the books recommended for purchase are also available on reserve in Mudd. You can also request library copies of them via Ohio Link.

     — Many of the articles which have been copied are available in hard copy on reserve in Mudd and on-line via the ERes system.

     — Those articles noted as “JSTOR” are only available by the internet. They are a part of a full-text archive of scholarly journals. The easiest way to access these journals is via the on-line copy of this syllabus -- they are linked directly to the article in question.

Sept. 3-5: Introduction - Confronting “radical evil” and the historical notion of human rights

Reading: Tina Rosenberg, “The Good Sailor,” Children of Cain: Violence and the Violent in Latin America (New York: Penguin, 1992), pp. 79-141. (On regular reserve and ERes)

Hannah Arendt, “The Perplexities of the Rights of Man,” and “Ideology and Terror: A Novel Form of Government,” in The Origins of Totalitarianism (Cleveland and NY: World Publishing Company, 1958), pp. 290-302 and 460-479 (Regular reserve and ERes).

Sept. 10-12: Introducing the “Exceptional Regime”: Theory and Practice

Reading:   Robert Barros, Constitutionalism and Dictatorship : Pinochet, the Junta, and the 1980 Constitution (New York: Cambridge University Press), 2002. Introduction and Chapter 1 (pp. 1-35).

Peter Winn, Weavers of Revolution: The Yarur Workers and Chile’s Road to Socialism (New York: Oxford University Press), 1989. Chapters 3-17 (pp. 53-245).

SEPTEMBER 19: FIRST PAPER DUE AT BEGINNING OF CLASS

Sept. 24-26: Cultures of Fear

Reading: Nancy Caro Hollander, Love in a Time of Hate: Liberation Psychology in Latin America (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press), Chs. 3-4 (pp. 79 -143). (Regular reserve and ERes).

Paul G. Buchanan, “The Varied Faces of Domination: State Terror, Economic Policy, and Social Rupture during the Argentine ‘Proceso,’ 1976-81,” American Journal of Political Science 31:2 (May 1987): 336-382. [JSTOR]

Optional: David Pion-Berlin and George A. Lopez, “Of Victims and Executioners: Argentine State Terror, 1975-1979,” International Studies Quarterly 35:1 (March 1991): 63-86. [JSTOR]

Oct. 1-3: Torture Reading: Alicia Partnoy, The Little School: Tales of Disappearance and Survival in Argentina (Cleis Press), 1998. Diane Taylor, Disappearing Acts. Spectacles of Gender and Nationalism in Argentina’s “Dirty War” (Durham: Duke University Press, 1997), Preface, Chs. 1, (pp. 1-27), 4-5 (pp. 91-138).

OCTOBER 8: SECOND PAPER DUE AT BEGINNING OF CLASS

Oct. 8-11 Reading Violence: Approaches to the Literature of the Dirty War

Reading: Taylor, Disappearing Acts, Ch. 6 (pp. 139-182).

Eduardo Galeano, Days and Nights of Love and War (New York: New York University Press), 2000.

Optional: Nancy Saporta Sternbach, “Re-membering the Dead: Latin American Women’s ‘Testimonial’ Discourse,” Latin American Perspectives 18:3 (Summer 1991): 91-102. [JSTOR]

Oct. 15-17 The Exceptional State and the Law

Reading: Barros, Constitutionalism and Dictatorship, Chapters 2-4 (pp. 36-166).

Oct. 21-25 Fall Break

Oct. 29-31 Gender and the Dirty War

Reading: Taylor, Disappearing Acts, Ch. 2-3 (pp. 29-89), 7-8 (pp. 183-254).

Nov. 5-7: Resistance

Reading: Philip Oxhorn, “The Popular Sector Response to an Authoritarian Regime,” Latin American Perspectives, Issue 67 (Winter 1991), pp. 66-91. [JSTOR]

Brian Loveman, “Military Dictatorship and Political Opposition in Chile, 1973-1986,” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs (1986), pp. 1-38. [JSTOR]

Optional: Rosa M. Canadell and John F. Uggen, “Chilean Women’s Organizations: Their Potential for Change,” Latin American Perspectives 20:4 (Autumn 1993): 43-60. [JSTOR]

Nov. 12-14: Out of the Exceptional State

Reading: David Pion-Berlin, “The Fall of Military Rule in Argentina: 1976-1983,” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 27:2 (Summer 1985): 55-76. [JSTOR]

Barros, Constitutionalism and Dictatorship, Chapters 6-7 (pp. 217-307).

Optional: Brian Loveman, “¿Misión Cumplida? Civil Military Relations and the Chilean Political Transition,” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 33:3 (Autumn, 1991), pp. 35-74. [JSTOR]

NOVEMBER 19: THIRD ASSIGNMENT (GROUP PROJECT) DUE AT BEGINNING OF CLASS. PLEASE NOTE: YOU MUST ADVISE ME BY NOVEMBER 12 IF YOU PLAN TO PRESENT YOUR PROJECT IN CLASS.

Nov. 19-21: The Aftermath, I: Forgetting Reading: Ariel Dorfman, Death and the Maiden (New York: Penguin), 1994.

Nov. 26: The Aftermath, II: Remembering

Reading: Elizabeth Jelin, “The Politics of Memory: The Human Rights Movements and the Construction of Democracy in Argentina,” Latin American Perspectives 21:2 (Spring, 1994), pp. 38-58. [JSTOR]

Patricio Guzmán, “Obstinate Memory” [1997] - to be shown in class.

Dec. 3-5, 10-12: The Aftermath, III: Seeking Justice

Reading: Priscilla B. Hayner, Unspeakable Truths : Confronting State Terror and Atrocity (Routledge), June 1, 2002. [Entire book except for chapters 5, 14, 15].

DECEMBER 16: FINAL PROJECT DUE BY 4:30 PM. You may request an extension without penalty until December 20 at 2:00 PM. (the time scheduled for a final exam in this course, although there will be no final exam). No extensions after that time unless you have requested an official incomplete.