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| Maria DiFrancesco thanks students after the lecture. Photo by Johnna Guillerman |
By Johnna Guillerman
As a crowd filed into the basement of Northrup Hall last night, students, faculty and members of the community could be heard speaking in mixed Spanish and English. They were discussing a film, “The Skin I Live In”, the subject of the second lecture in the Álvarez Seminar.
Maria DiFrancesco, a professor at Ithaca College, did a presentation about the gender and sexuality issues in the film. She opened her slideshow with a diagram of a stick figure explaining the differences between gender, sex and attraction. After the lecture, audience members asked questions about issues of queerness and transphobia in the film.
Kendall Hayes, a junior Spanish and Chinese double major, appreciated DiFrancesco’s commentary. “I thought Dr. DiFrancesco proposed a really passionate analysis of the movie. Her comments about the inherent sexuality and gender of objects is something I registered but never analyzed.”
Maria DiFrancesco, a professor at Ithaca College, did a presentation about the gender and sexuality issues in the film. She opened her slideshow with a diagram of a stick figure explaining the differences between gender, sex and attraction. After the lecture, audience members asked questions about issues of queerness and transphobia in the film.
Kendall Hayes, a junior Spanish and Chinese double major, appreciated DiFrancesco’s commentary. “I thought Dr. DiFrancesco proposed a really passionate analysis of the movie. Her comments about the inherent sexuality and gender of objects is something I registered but never analyzed.”
Passionate is the right word to describe of the lecture of DiFrancesco and first speaker of the series, James Fernández, a professor at New York University. He spoke on Feb. 1 about early Spanish immigrants to the United States. While his presentation included pictures and research about 20th century immigrants from Spain, the questions from the audience brought the discussion back to present-day issues with immigration.
“I believe we can, through our discussions, address what is going on right now," said Debra Ochoa, a professor specializing in contemporary Spanish culture, who organized this year's Álvarez Seminar. "He [Fernandez] reminds us that the immigrants that came from Spain in 1868 to 1945, they too were victims of empire. That’s a common reason why immigrants continue to leave their home countries today.”
The Álvarez Seminar began in 2010, and each year a different professor in the MAS program (Mexico, the Americas, and Spain) is responsible for organizing the series.
Ochoa said her intention of organizing this year's seminar was to discuss cultural aspects of Spain while connecting to current social issues. “I wanted to have a focus on film, but also immigration," she said. "We’re fortunate that we have this opportunity to explore topics that many universities are not necessarily covering.”
Two more lectures in the series will take place throughout February.
“I believe we can, through our discussions, address what is going on right now," said Debra Ochoa, a professor specializing in contemporary Spanish culture, who organized this year's Álvarez Seminar. "He [Fernandez] reminds us that the immigrants that came from Spain in 1868 to 1945, they too were victims of empire. That’s a common reason why immigrants continue to leave their home countries today.”
The Álvarez Seminar began in 2010, and each year a different professor in the MAS program (Mexico, the Americas, and Spain) is responsible for organizing the series.
Ochoa said her intention of organizing this year's seminar was to discuss cultural aspects of Spain while connecting to current social issues. “I wanted to have a focus on film, but also immigration," she said. "We’re fortunate that we have this opportunity to explore topics that many universities are not necessarily covering.”
Two more lectures in the series will take place throughout February.
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