Summary of the class so far...

Upon reading the course description for the class I didn't quite know what I was getting myself into. I was pleasantly surprised on the first day of class when we watched Orfeo Negro one of my favorite movies that I've only seen because my father took me to see a reshowing of it. Ever since I have learned a lot in this course about the people of the culture and why said culture has endured. Moreover I have gained much from the discussions of the readings and videos including different interpretations and symbols that I completely missed the first time around. In the future I would like to have more of these discussions because I feel they have sort of petered out through the weeks. Anyway back to what I enjoyed about the class, among the reading I relished the legends and the pongo's dream the most. It was like brain candy allowing my mind to wander into a long ago land full of whimsy and creativity. In the spectrum of reality I really liked reading Eva Peron's "My Message" even though at the time I found it contradictory and repetitive. Now I see that its more about the ideas she presented and what she meant to the people that made her great whether or not she made conflicting comments. I found some of the readings challenging and anger-inducing but I would rather that over some easy boring piece that elicits no reaction inside me. Its makes writing a blog easier. Lastly I find it much easier to understand the readings and the authors point of view once given context and more information about their lives. Perhaps before asked to the reading we could be given a briefing that would enable us to critique more fully. All in all I enjoy this course.