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Faculty Profile

Mariana Past

Professor of Spanish (2006)
Mariana Past

Contact Information

pastm@dickinson.edu

Bosler Hall Room 124
717-245-1833

Bio

Professor Past's research focuses on Spanish and Francophone Caribbean literature, including issues of migration/exile, Haitian-Dominican relations, and representations of the Haitian Revolution. Her articles have appeared in the Revista de la Casa de las Américas, Afro-Hispanic Review, Revista del Caribe, Global South, Journal of Haitian Studies, Cultural Dynamics, sx salon, and Atlantic Studies. She co-edited (with Natalie Léger, CUNY Queens College) Toussaint Louverture: Repensar un icono (2015) and co-translated (with Benjamin Hebblethwaite, UFL) Michel-Rolph Trouillot's (1977) Ti difé boulé sou istoua Ayiti [Stirring the Pot of Haitian History] from Haitian Creole to English. She has also published poetry and prose translations in Metamorphoses, Transition, and World Literature Today. Professor Past teaches courses that emphasize the overlapping histories and cultures of people in the Caribbean and the broader diaspora, challenging notions of cultural production in terms of national linguistic blocks.

Education

  • B.A., University of Texas at Austin, 1994
  • M.A., Duke University, 2002
  • Ph.D., 2006
Mariana Past

2025-2026 Academic Year

Fall 2025

FYSM 100 First-Year Seminar
The First-Year Seminar (FYS) introduces students to Dickinson as a "community of inquiry" by developing habits of mind essential to liberal learning. Through the study of a compelling issue or broad topic chosen by their faculty member, students will: - Critically analyze information and ideas - Examine issues from multiple perspectives - Discuss, debate and defend ideas, including one's own views, with clarity and reason - Develop discernment, facility and ethical responsibility in using information, and - Create clear academic writing The small group seminar format of this course promotes discussion and interaction among students and their professor. In addition, the professor serves as students' initial academic advisor. This course does not duplicate in content any other course in the curriculum and may not be used to fulfill any other graduation requirement.

SPAN 202 Intermediate Spanish II
The primary goal of this course is to develop students' formal knowledge of Spanish by reviewing and studying the more challenging grammatical structures. The course will also work on development of skills in reading, oral expression, and vocabulary development. The purpose of the course is to equip students with the formal grammatical background necessary to be successful in courses on Hispanic literatures, linguistics and cultures. Prerequisite: 201 or the equivalent.