DRAFT
The Politics of Development in Chile
Latin American Studies 160
Summer 2017
Tiffany Linton Page
[email protected]
Course Dates:​ Students arrive in Chile May 28th and depart July 8th
Class Meetings:​ Hours and days will vary depending on planned activities, class will meet
approximately 15-hours per week
Course Location:​ Chile (Santiago, Concepción, and Valparaiso)
Course Description
At various points in Chile’s history, the country has been considered exceptional in one way
or another. “Chilean exceptionalism” was a term dubbed to describe Chile’s early
establishment of a limited democracy post-independence. In the second half of the 20​th
century, Chile stood out as exceptional again when it attempted to transition the country to
socialism via the existing democratic political institutions rather than via armed conflict as
was prevalent in the region at the time. The military dictator who destroyed this political
project subsequently implemented neoliberal policies and Chile has since been touted as a
neoliberal success. Yet, there has been a backlash to this neoliberal model, most notably
from the massive student movement that emerged in 2011. In another exceptional moment
in Chile’s history, the student movement managed to transform the country’s political
agenda. The current President has pledged to dismantle the neoliberal educational system
constructed under the dictatorship, and has promised free higher education. In this course,
we are going to study the political history of this exceptional country, with a focus on the
social and economic policies pursued in different periods and how those corresponded to
different ideas about development. We will think of development broadly to include the
political, economic and social dimensions of development, and we will examine the politics
of development as it has played out in Chile. The location of the course will give us the
opportunity to visit relevant historical sites and museums, as well as to speak with people
who have been involved in this political history.
Learning Objectives
Content Objectives
1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the political dynamics of various
periods in Chile’s history, including how earlier events shaped subsequent social,
political, economic and cultural institutions and dynamics.
2. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the history of the expansion and
contraction of Chile’s democratic institutions, the dynamics and challenges of
1
DRAFT
3.
4.
5.
6.
transitions to democracy after periods of repressive dictatorship, as well as the
nature of the political system today and the on-going struggles around Chile’s
democracy.
Students will identify and analyze the social change that has occurred over time,
as well as the forces and actors that have driven this change.
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the economic model in different
periods of Chile’s history, and how it impacted different groups in different ways.
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how external forces have shaped
Chilean politics, and the model of development pursued in different periods of
the country’s history.
Students will be able to have an informed and articulate discussion and analysis
of current events in Chile.
Skill-building Objectives
7. Students will strengthen analytical skills by analyzing material both verbally and
in writing.
8. Students will strengthen critical reading and writing skills.
Course Requirements & Grade Breakdown
Participation
Students are expected to attend every class having completed the assigned readings.
Students should be prepared to share their thoughts on the readings, post discussion
questions on the bcourses discussion board the night before class, and participate in any
in-class activities.
Reflection Papers
Students will write two reflection papers. These papers will be about 5-7 pages long
(double-spaced). The first paper will be due June 14​th​ (midway through the third week of
the course). You will be asked to compare and contrast the political and economic
projects of the Popular Front governments and the Popular Unity government. The
second paper will be due June 29th (midway through the fifth week of the course). You
will be asked to​ ​explore how the legacies of the period of dictatorship (cultural,
economic and political) continue to shape Chilean society, politics and the approach to
development today.
In-Class Exam
There will be one in-class written exam at the end of the course that will challenge you
to synthesize all the information from the course, to evaluate in what ways and to what
extent the ideas offered by social movement activists today offer a distinct development
path, and to assess to what extent the present moment is a turning point in Chilean
politics with regard to the development model pursued.
Grade Breakdown
Participation
15%
2
DRAFT
Reflection Papers (2) 50%
Exam
35%
Honor Code
​
The student community at UC Berkeley has adopted the following Honor Code:​ ​“As a
member of the UC Berkeley community, I act with honesty, integrity, and respect for
others.” The expectation is that you will adhere to this code.
Plagiarism or cheating on the exam will result in a ​failing grade for the course and will be
reported to the University Center for Student Conduct. Plagiarism involves taking the
work and/or ideas of others and claiming that they are your own. Plagiarism includes
such practices as cutting and pasting sentences from other sources (that are not put in
quotation marks followed by the citation of the source), presenting an idea you took
from a source as your own idea, and submitting a paper that was not 100% written by
you. For additional information on plagiarism and how to avoid it:
http://gsi.berkeley.edu/teachingguide/misconduct/prevent-plag.html.
Office Hours
Office hours are by appointment.
Bcourses
You should regularly check the bcourse site for this class. On bcourses, you will find the
syllabus, as well as a week-by-week breakdown of what will be covered and the readings
and assignments due. You should check the module for each day’s activities. I will also
send out announcements to the class via bcourses. Be sure that your bcourse settings
are such that you receive email notifications when there is activity on bcourses.
Course Materials
In addition to the readings posted on our bcourses site, the following books are required:
1. Pavilack, Jody. 2011. ​Mining for the Nation: The Politics of Chile's Coal Communities
from the Popular Front to the Cold War​. University Park: The Pennsylvania State
University Press.
2. Spooner, Mary Helen. 1999. ​Soldiers in a Narrow Land​. University of California Press.
Recommended Reading for fun (optional):
Allende, Isabel. 2007. ​Inés of My Soul​. Harper Perennial. (Also available as an audiobook –
you could listen to it on flight to Chile!). This novel describes the colonial period in Chile.
3
DRAFT
Course Schedule
Labor Mobilization in the Mining Sector, the Political Incorporation of Workers, the
Formation of Leftist Political Parties, and the Rise of the Popular Front Governments
We will spend the first couple of days in Santiago, visiting a number of sites and museums
to learn about Chile’s colonial and post-independence history. We will then travel to
Concepcíon to examine labor mobilization at the end of the 19​th​ century and early 20​th
century. We will learn about the development of class-consciousness among mine workers
in the coal industry, and their mobilization to demand changes in the terms of their
employment and working conditions. We will visit Lota, a former coal mining community,
and take a tour of the mine and the grounds of the estate of the former mine owner. We
will read a famous short story by a Chilean author written in the early 20​th​ century about life
in the coalmining town, and watch a movie –filmed in Lota – based on this short story. In
addition, we will learn about the deepening of democracy during the early 20​th​ century as
we read an historical account of labor mobilization in the coal mines, the formation of
Leftist political parties, and the first time in Chile’s history that some working class Chileans
were able to attain positions in government. We will examine the social, political and
economic dynamics that led to the formation of the Popular Front, the political and
economic project of these governments, and the demise of the Popular Front with the
onset of the Cold War. During this week, we will also have the opportunity to learn more
broadly about the history of politics in Concepcion – historically considered the bastion of
the Left in Chile – from faculty in the Sociology Department at the University of Concepcion.
Readings:
Lillo, Baldomero. 1904. “Devil’s Pitt” In ​SubTerra​.
Pavilack, Jody. 2011. ​Mining for the Nation: The Politics of Chile's Coal Communities from
the Popular Front to the Cold War​. University Park: The Pennsylvania State University Press,
excerpt TBD.
Popular Unity and the Peaceful Road to Socialism
We will spend this week in Valparaiso where we will learn about politics in the 1960s and
early 1970s. We will examine the social and economic policies put in place by the center
Christian Democratic government of Eduardo Frei (1964-1970), why this party was unable
to win the 1970 election, and the historic win of the Popular Unity Coalition’s candidate
Salvador Allende in the 1970 election. The Popular Unity program involved transitioning the
country to socialism via the democratic system, and was referred to as the “peaceful road
to socialism.” We will examine the political program of the Popular Unity government, their
understanding of development and how to pursue it, the social and economic programs
established, efforts by the opposition to create instability and oust Allende from power, and
how the larger context of the Cold War and U.S. involvement in the region shaped politics
during this period. We will have the opportunity to hear firsthand experiences during this
4
DRAFT
period from people who were involved in the Popular Unity government, as well as watch a
film with footage and interviews from this period.
Readings:
Cockcroft, James D. (Ed.) ​Chile's Voice of Democracy: Salvador Allende Reader​. New
York: Ocean Press, Appendix (The Popular Unity Program), Chapter 3 (Victory Speech to
the People of Santiago, September 5, 1970) , and Chapter 4 (Inaugural Address
November 5, 1970) .
Vergara, Angela. 2008. ​Copper Workers, International Business, and Domestic Politics in
Cold War Chile​. University Park: The Pennsylvania State University Press, pgs. 155-177.
Paley, Julia. 2001. ​Marketing Democracy: Power and Social Movements in Post-Dictatorship
Chile​. Berkeley: University of California Press, pgs 39-82.
The Military Dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet and the Neoliberal Transformation of Chile
We will learn about the military coup of 1973, the human rights abuses under the
dictatorship, the internal workings and politics of the military government, and what
eventually brought Pinochet's reign to an end. You will read a book written by a journalist
who provides a compelling account of the internal workings of this nearly seventeen-year
period in Chile's history. Before returning to Santiago, we will have a guest speaker in
Valaparaiso who will talk about political organizing during the dictatorship, as well as more
generally about what life was like during those years. In Santiago, we will visit the human
rights museum, as well as a former site of torture that is now a human rights memorial. We
will also watch films about the repression under the dictatorship and efforts to hold
Pinochet accountable for the human rights abuses under his regime, as well as what
brought an end to the dictatorship. We will also read about the neoliberal transformation
implemented during this period. We will consider the social and economic policies
implemented (and how they differed from the social and economic policies in the previous
period), the actors involved, the social impact (including the "neoliberal cultural
revolution," as well as increasing poverty and inequality), and the macroeconomic impact
(which has garnered much positive attention).
Week 3 Readings:
Spooner, Mary Helen. 1994. ​Soldiers in a Narrow Land​. University of California Press.
Week 4 Readings:
Martínez, Javier and Alvaro Díaz. 1996. ​Chile: The Great Transformation​. Geneva: The
United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, pgs. 41-100.
Solimano, Andrés. 2012. ​Chile and the Neoliberal Trap: The Post-Pinochet Era​.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pgs. 39-49.
Hutchison, Klubock,, Milanich and Winn (Eds.). 2014. ​The Chile Reader: History, Culture,
Politics​. Durham and London: Duke University Press.
● Moulián, Tomás. 1997. “The Credit Card Citizen.”
5
DRAFT
● Aylwin Azócar, Patricio. 1991. “Justice ‘To the Degree Possible”: The Rettig Report.”
● Chihuailaf, Elicura. “The Mapuche Nation and the Chilean Nation.”
● Foxley, Alejandro. “Growth with Equity.”
Solimano. Andres. 2012. ​Chile and the Neoliberal Trap: The Post-Pinochet Era​. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, pgs.135-148.
Politics Post-Dictatorship
We will learn about the negotiated transition to democracy beginning with Pinochet's loss
of the 1988 plebiscite. We will see how Pinochet continued to wield much influence over
Chilean politics even after he officially turned over the reins of power to the new
democratically elected government. We will learn about how the binomial political system
that was institutionalized in Pinochet’s 1980 constitution shaped politics post-dictatorship.
We will also consider in what ways and to what extent the development model pursued by
the four center-left Concertacíon governments changed during this period. We will learn
about the Piñiera government (the only right-leaning President since the transition to
democracy began), the massive student movement that emerged during his administration,
and how they transformed the political agenda. We will consider the significance of the
recent reelection of Michelle Bachelet to the Presidency (and the New Majority), what she
has done during her first two years in office, the election of well-known student movement
leaders to the national Congress, and the educational reform underway. We will also look at
the labor movement, the Mapuche (indigenous) movement, as well as at political debates
about energy, the environment and development. We will consider what these movements
are calling for and how they are impacting politics and discussions about development.
Readings:
Delamaza, Gonzalo. 2015. ​Enhancing Democracy: Public Policies and Citizen
Participation in Chile​. New York and Oxford: Berghahn, excerpt TBD.
Vanden, Harry E. and Gary Prevost. 2015. ​Politics of Latin America: The Power Game​.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, pgs. 409-433.
Sehnbruch, Kirsten. 2006. ​The Chilean Labor Market.​ Palgrave McMillan, excerpt TBD.
Frens-String, Joshua. 2013. “A New Politics for a New Chile.” ​NACLA 46(3).
Achtenberg, Emily. 2014. "Elections in Chile: Confronting the Legacy of
Dictatorship." ​NACLA 47(1).
Achtenberg, Emily. 2015. “Chilean Students Struggle to Deepen Educational Reforms.”
NACLA, March 3​rd​.
McAllister, Carlota. 2013. "A Healthy Life: Weighing Hydroelectricity's Costs as the
Climate Changes Around Us." ​NACLA 46(3).
Cruz, Orion. 2014. “Chile's Untapped Clean Energy Potential.” NACLA, October 22​nd​.
6
DRAFT
Richards, Patricia. 2013. ​Race and the Chilean Miracle: Neoliberalism, Democracy, and
Indigenous Rights​. ​Pittsburgh, Pa.: University of Pittsburgh Press, excerpt TBD.
Tentative Itinerary for Week 1
Sunday 5/28: Students arrive in Santiago
Monday 5/29: Lecture on colonial period, guided tour of Cerro Santa Lucia and group
welcome lunch
Tuesday 5/30: Audio tour of National Historic Museum
Wednesday 5/31: Travel to Concepcion
Thursday 6/01: Watch Subterra
Friday 6/02: Tour of coal mine and park in Lota
Saturday 6/03: Guest speaker on the labor movement in Concepcion today
Sunday 6/04: Travel to Valparaiso
Tentative Itinerary for Week 2
6/05 Monday: Discussion and wrap-up of material from first week (including discussion of
the reading Mining for the Nation)
6/06 Tuesday: Day-off to enjoy Valparaiso
6/07 Wednesday: Lecture on the 1960s, the elections of Frei and Allende, the vision of
development under the Allende government, and the specific social and economic policies
implemented; watch part of the Battle of Chile
6/08 Thursday: Guest speakers on the Popular Unity coalition; watch another section of
the Battle of Chile
6/09 Friday: Event with faculty and students at the University of Playa Ancha
6/10 Saturday: Day off to enjoy Valparaiso
6/11 Sunday: Day off to enjoy Valparaiso
Tentative Itinerary for Week 3
6/12 Monday: Discussion of assigned readings on Popular Unity and watch Machuca
6/13 Tuesday: Guest speaker on the ​poblaciones during the Popular Unity period and during
the dictatorship
6/14 Wednesday: Guest speaker on the political history of Valparaiso and the political
relationship of the provinces to the country’s capital
6/15 Thursday: Watch Missing
6/16 Friday: Watch The Pinochet Case & excerpt of the Judge and the General; travel to
Santiago
6/17 Saturday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
6/18 Sunday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
Tentative Itinerary for Week 4
6/19 Monday: Visit Villa Grimaldi, Group meal at the Popular Unity Café
6/20 Tuesday: Visit Museum of Memory and Human Rights
6/21 Wednesday: Discussion of Spooner’s book; Lecture on and discussion of material
on human rights under the dictatorship, challenges of accountability
post-dictatorship, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission
7
DRAFT
6/22 Thursday: Lecture on the economic model and discussion of readings on this
material
6/23 Friday: Watch Defeat of a Dictator and No; Noche de San Juan Festival
6/24 Saturday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
6/25 Sunday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
Tentative Itinerary for Week 5
6/26 Monday: Chilean National Holiday
6/27 Tuesday: Lecture on the four Concertacíon governments and how the binomial
political system continues to shape politics today, as well as a discussion of the
readings; Guided tour of the Presidential Palace
6/28 Wednesday: Lecture on the Piñiera administration, the emergence of the student
movement, and Bachelet’s platform during her second Presidential
administration
6/29 Thursday: Activity with university students about the student movement and the
educational reform; and visit a school that uses a popular education
model
6/30 Friday: Guest speaker on the Left today in Chilean politics
7/01 Saturday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
7/02 Sunday: Day-off to enjoy Santiago
Tentative Itinerary for Week 6
7/03 Monday: Field trip to a Mapuche-run health clinic based on their traditional
medicinal practices and guest lecture indigenous politics in Chile today
7/04 Tuesday: Watch Patagonia Rising; Guest speaker on environmental issues
7/05 Wednesday: Guest speaker on the feminist movement in Chile today
7/06 Thursday: Final discussion and course wrap-up
7/07 Friday: Final exam; group departure lunch
7/08 Saturday: Students return home
8