Description:

Crítica de la razón latinoamericana (Critique of Latin American Reason), by Santiago Castro-Gómez, was published in 1996 and stands as one of the most important philosophical texts to have come out of Latin America in the last twenty–five years. As a critique of the foundational schools of thought in Latin American philosophical and critical history, the author analyzes Latin American modern and postmodern positions on the normative status of modernity, identity, colonial history and heritage, also showing how these have intersected with popular culture. While these themes span the South-American continent, they also implicate broader and protracted global processes — including the legacy of colonialism — that make the book widely relevant and timely. The work underscore the significance of the transition from schools of utopianism and philosophy of history, philosophies of emancipation and liberation, to critical ontologies of the present. As a contribution to contemporary Latin American critical theory, the work is also distinctive for the attention it gives to Mexican thinkers who contributed to the field in the first half of the 20th century.

Faculty Participants:

Santiago Castro-Gómez, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana
Eduardo Mendieta, Pennsylvania  State University
Linda Martín Alcoff, Hunter College and City University of New York Graduate Center
Rocío Zambrana, Emory University
María del Roasario Acosta López, Univsersity of California – Riverside
Barnor Hesse, Northwestern University
Jimmy Casas Klausen, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro

Reading Group Information

We invite faculty and graduate students to participate in a reading group in advance of the October 29 and 30 workshop. A copy of the book chapters and manuscript will be available to participants. If you would like to participate, please contact Siobhan LaGro at ctcprojects@northwestern.edu.