Power, Inequality, and the State in Latin America

The state is the world’s predominant political institution and the primary institution through which people to relate to each other. In Latin America, societal relationships are defined by extreme discrepancies in power and economic well-being. In this discussion-based course, we analyze three episodes of Latin American state formation to illustrate how modern inequities are not necessarily a given: (1) the transition from indigenous empires to colonial states in the sixteenth century, (2) the formation of nation-states in the nineteenth century, and (3) the challenge posed by rogue states in the twentieth century. We will draw on primary and secondary sources to provide examples from Mexico, the Caribbean, and South America.