ARTH 4520 - Topics in Brazilian Art
Spring 2010 - T,H, - 9:10AM-10:30AM
Elena Shromberg

This class will investigate Brazilian artistic production from the 1600s to the present. The course is oriented around the role of different institutions such as the church, slavery, the art academy, the state, and museums/galleries in the construction of a national identity within Brazilian Art. Throughout the course students will be introduced to a historically and culturally diverse body of visual materials, including engraving, photography, architecture, painting, film and video. Course assignments are geared to teaching students the skills necessary to critically engage with and write about the visual material and its broader national and institutional context. No prior coursework is required however art history 2500 is recommended.


PTGSE - 3050 Film and Music Adaptation in Brazil

"Film is a form of writing that borrows from other forms of writing," noted Robert Stam. Brazilian cinema has produced many filmic adaptations of literature, and Brazilian music has been inspired by literary works and history as well. This course will offer an examination of Brazilian films and music that have been adapted from literary works. We will also discuss techniques of literary adaptation. Students will be given opportunities to use and expand their speaking, reading and writing skills. Course taught in Portuguese. PTGSE 3050 is repeatable for credit.


PTGSE - 3580 Contemporary Issues

Introduction to historical, political, social, economic and cultural issues affecting Brazil today. The goal of the course is to use and expand the students' Portuguese language skills (speaking, comprehension, reading and writing) while discussing current affairs in Brazil. We will examine Brazilian news and images, mapping out trends and tendencies. Topics of discussion will be drawn from economy, business, politics, education, work, sports, art, and environmental issues, among others. Course taught in Portuguese. PTGSE 3580 is repeatable for credit.

But Carol is more than just a linguistics graduate student. She is an experienced field linguist in the process of documenting one of the world's rapidly vanishing languages. She works exclusively with a group of six monolingual individuals located in the indigenous area of the Omere River, in Rondonia State, Brazil, representing all that is left of an entire group of indigenous Indians. These individuals, ranging in age from early twenties to eighty years old, are the only remaining speakers of Akuntsú - a language previously unknown outside their small circle of six.
According to Carol, this group includes no children, so the six individuals represent the last of their people and the last that speak and understand their language. "When they are gone," states Carol, "their language will also be gone, as will the richness of their stories, their history and their cultural knowledge."

Before coming to Utah to study with Professor Campbell (who is now her advisor as she completes her Ph.D.) Carol completed both undergraduate and master's level studies at the University of Brasilia. While there she worked in the Laboratory of Indigenous Languages as an assistant research coordinator for Dr. Aryon Dall'Igna Rodrigues, considered by many to be one of the greatest Brazilian indigenous language specialists in the world. It was through her involvement at the University of Brasilia that she was nominated to work the General Coordination of Isolated Indians (CGII) of the National Foundation of Indians (FUNAI), a government organization charged with protecting indigenous peoples and cultures in Brazil.

Put simply, the work of linguists like Carol - and CAIL - is critical because it directly works to stem a loss of knowledge. Worldwide, 90 percent of human languages are threatened with rapid extinction, taking with them a wealth of cultural and language knowledge. It is a desire to stem this loss, particularly for one small group of indigenous Indians in a remote part of the Brazilian rainforest, that inspires Carol Aragon.
Carol's first job with the Akuntsú was to identify the language and compare it to other languages in Brazil to find commonalities. The first hurdle she faced was the geographic and social isolation of the group. In an effort to help protect them from outside influences and cultures, FUNAI built a house on the periphery of Akuntsú lands and prohibited anyone from using Akuntsú lands for their purposes. This meant that initially Carol had to stay at the FUNAI house, then walk each day from the house into the rainforest to where the Akuntsú lived - a walk of nearly an hour each way.

She began her first year collecting data and conducting a phonological analysis in order to describe the language. She did this by taking notes and using a tape recorder to capture the cadence and sounds of the language. She notes that the oldest member of the group, in his eighties, sings beautiful songs rich in the history and culture of his people. Carol recognized the importance - and beauty - of these songs, which will be lost when this individual dies, and even now she continues to work to preserve them on tape. She remained in Rondonia for two months that first year (2004), living in the FUNAI house and walking into the rainforest each day. Fieldwork was undertaken twice each year, to stay as long as possible each time with these monolingual Akuntsu people, learning their language and their culture in daily contact.

She now returns each year, and when the Akuntsú see her coming through the rainforest, they now greet her warmly. Carol's eyes light up when she states, "I'm part of their family now."

"These people understand their situation," Carol states. "They have no children and understand what will be lost when they are gone. They want to pass on their language to me because they have no other way to preserve it." She notes that they are always trying to help her understand their culture and history; they tell stories of how farmers and settlers killed their families, and they show her the scars they carry from bullet wounds incurred as settlers tried to take their lands. Carol notes that these six individuals are survivors, but that without preservation their language and culture will disappear entirely within a few years.

Because the Akuntsú now consider Carol part of their "family" she is allowed to actually camp near them when she visits; this means she no longer has to stay at the FUNAI house and walk an hour into the forest to join them. "It is somewhat unprecedented to get permission from the FUNAI to have this kind of intimate connection to an isolated indigenous group, but they understand my work and want to help me continue my research. So they give me permission go ahead and camp right near the Akuntsú." As her ability to communicate with them has increased, she has been so fully accepted by the group that she now hunts, fishes, and enjoys daily activities with them.

Carol notes her work is not just that of documenting this endangered language, but is also very much a humanitarian effort. "These amazing individuals don't have any way to explain to the rest of humanity who they are, what they feel, and what's happened to them. I feel a tremendous honor to be able to help them with this important and essentially human need to be remembered and understood." Carol is now trying to teach some of the Akuntsú language to others at the FUNAI so others can help them. Carol is also quick to note that the Akuntsú don't have any need for "modern society." "They are so very happy," she notes. "They enjoy their lives and laugh all the time."

Professor Campbell says that Carol's work with the Akuntsú language is unique: "She is gathering the only information we will ever have on this language, spoken by only six individuals. Her research highlights graphically the importance of documenting endangered languages so that irretrievable scientific knowledge is not lost forever."

But for Carol, it's also personal: "I really want to explain what it is to be Akuntsú, something they would never have been able to explain for themselves. I feel a tremendous responsibility to be their voice."

But Carol is more than just a linguistics graduate student. She is an experienced field linguist in the process of documenting one of the world's rapidly vanishing languages. She works exclusively with a group of six monolingual individuals located in the indigenous area of the Omere River, in Rondonia State, Brazil, representing all that is left of an entire group of indigenous Indians. These individuals, ranging in age from early twenties to eighty years old, are the only remaining speakers of Akuntsú - a language previously unknown outside their small circle of six.
According to Carol, this group includes no children, so the six individuals represent the last of their people and the last that speak and understand their language. "When they are gone," states Carol, "their language will also be gone, as will the richness of their stories, their history and their cultural knowledge."

Before coming to Utah to study with Professor Campbell (who is now her advisor as she completes her Ph.D.) Carol completed both undergraduate and master's level studies at the University of Brasilia. While there she worked in the Laboratory of Indigenous Languages as an assistant research coordinator for Dr. Aryon Dall'Igna Rodrigues, considered by many to be one of the greatest Brazilian indigenous language specialists in the world. It was through her involvement at the University of Brasilia that she was nominated to work the General Coordination of Isolated Indians (CGII) of the National Foundation of Indians (FUNAI), a government organization charged with protecting indigenous peoples and cultures in Brazil.

Put simply, the work of linguists like Carol - and CAIL - is critical because it directly works to stem a loss of knowledge. Worldwide, 90 percent of human languages are threatened with rapid extinction, taking with them a wealth of cultural and language knowledge. It is a desire to stem this loss, particularly for one small group of indigenous Indians in a remote part of the Brazilian rainforest, that inspires Carol Aragon.
Carol's first job with the Akuntsú was to identify the language and compare it to other languages in Brazil to find commonalities. The first hurdle she faced was the geographic and social isolation of the group. In an effort to help protect them from outside influences and cultures, FUNAI built a house on the periphery of Akuntsú lands and prohibited anyone from using Akuntsú lands for their purposes. This meant that initially Carol had to stay at the FUNAI house, then walk each day from the house into the rainforest to where the Akuntsú lived - a walk of nearly an hour each way.

She began her first year collecting data and conducting a phonological analysis in order to describe the language. She did this by taking notes and using a tape recorder to capture the cadence and sounds of the language. She notes that the oldest member of the group, in his eighties, sings beautiful songs rich in the history and culture of his people. Carol recognized the importance - and beauty - of these songs, which will be lost when this individual dies, and even now she continues to work to preserve them on tape. She remained in Rondonia for two months that first year (2004), living in the FUNAI house and walking into the rainforest each day. Fieldwork was undertaken twice each year, to stay as long as possible each time with these monolingual Akuntsu people, learning their language and their culture in daily contact.

She now returns each year, and when the Akuntsú see her coming through the rainforest, they now greet her warmly. Carol's eyes light up when she states, "I'm part of their family now."

"These people understand their situation," Carol states. "They have no children and understand what will be lost when they are gone. They want to pass on their language to me because they have no other way to preserve it." She notes that they are always trying to help her understand their culture and history; they tell stories of how farmers and settlers killed their families, and they show her the scars they carry from bullet wounds incurred as settlers tried to take their lands. Carol notes that these six individuals are survivors, but that without preservation their language and culture will disappear entirely within a few years.

Because the Akuntsú now consider Carol part of their "family" she is allowed to actually camp near them when she visits; this means she no longer has to stay at the FUNAI house and walk an hour into the forest to join them. "It is somewhat unprecedented to get permission from the FUNAI to have this kind of intimate connection to an isolated indigenous group, but they understand my work and want to help me continue my research. So they give me permission go ahead and camp right near the Akuntsú." As her ability to communicate with them has increased, she has been so fully accepted by the group that she now hunts, fishes, and enjoys daily activities with them.

Carol notes her work is not just that of documenting this endangered language, but is also very much a humanitarian effort. "These amazing individuals don't have any way to explain to the rest of humanity who they are, what they feel, and what's happened to them. I feel a tremendous honor to be able to help them with this important and essentially human need to be remembered and understood." Carol is now trying to teach some of the Akuntsú language to others at the FUNAI so others can help them. Carol is also quick to note that the Akuntsú don't have any need for "modern society." "They are so very happy," she notes. "They enjoy their lives and laugh all the time."

Professor Campbell says that Carol's work with the Akuntsú language is unique: "She is gathering the only information we will ever have on this language, spoken by only six individuals. Her research highlights graphically the importance of documenting endangered languages so that irretrievable scientific knowledge is not lost forever."

But for Carol, it's also personal: "I really want to explain what it is to be Akuntsú, something they would never have been able to explain for themselves. I feel a tremendous responsibility to be their voice."