| Costa Rica’s unofficial national saying is “pura vida,” which roughly translates as “pure life.” At the most basic level it communicates the cultural ethos of the nation in its approach to savoring the best in life. However, it also gestures toward a strong sense of community, perseverance, and celebrating life’s victories both great and small. “Framing the ‘pura vida’” will place this element of Costa Rican culture into a larger cultural conversation about history, culture, literature, political and economic development, sustainability, and relations with the U.S., among other topics. The objective of this course is to contextualize the students’ experience tutoring and living in the Guanacaste region of the country through critical inquiry into these questions with reference to Central America in general and to Costa Rica in particular. |
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