LAS 302/LAS 603: The Most Beautiful Land: Travels through Cuba
As the largest island of the Antilles, Cuba has long captivated the attention of explorers seeking conquest and wealth, religious conversion and scientific knowledge, and other encounters with the island’s diverse landscape, wildlife, and people. From Christopher Columbus onwards, many travelers and explorers have come to Cuba to unlock the island’s mysteries, traversing its coasts, its jungle, as well as Havana and other cities.
This course examines the experiences of foreign and domestic travelers over the course of the last five centuries in Cuba. Students will look carefully at the shared assumptions of travelers and compare their modes of social inquiry, scientific investigation, and the ways in which they reflect about the island and its various realities. In pursuing a better understanding of the genre of travel writing and its literary and historical significance, the course draws upon a variety first-person accounts about the island that Columbus called, right after disembarking in its shores, “The most beautiful land human eyes have ever seen.”
Please Note:
This course meets per a normal schedule but also involves travel during spring break.
This course will have a required course fee, but that varies by instructor, destination(s), and year. Please contact the instructor regarding questions about the course fee.
Travel details will be specified by the instructor.
All travel courses have limited capacity. Interested students should contact the instructor as soon as possible.
Contact:
If you are interested in this course, please contact Lillian Manzor: lmanzor@miami.edu.
Reminder: All Travel courses are subject to change, and may not be offered each Spring semester. Please contact the instructor with questions.
