Sahai Couso Díaz joined the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures faculty in 2024. She received her joint Ph.D. in Spanish studies and comparative media analysis and practice from Vanderbilt University in 2023. She was a Hastac Scholar, a 2020-2021 Andrew W. Mellon Fellow for Digital Humanities and a 2022-2023 fellow at the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities at Vanderbilt University. She held a visiting position at Williams College and taught at her alma mater, the University of Havana, Cuba. 

Her research and teaching interests include race, science, literature and museum studies in Latin America and the Caribbean during the colonial period and beyond. Her interests stretch far and wide as she is also drawn to media studies, visual culture and emerging technologies. Her essays have appeared in Bulletin of Hispanic Studies, Chasqui and Confluencia.

Areas of Expertise

Eighteenth to twenty-first century Spanish and Latin American literature and media; transatlantic and hemispheric studies; museum studies; ethnic and race studies

Education

2023 — Doctor of Philosophy from Vanderbilt University

2019 — Master of Arts from Vanderbilt University

2013 — Bachelor of Arts in Hispanic Literature from the University of Havana

Courses Recently Taught

This first half of the yearlong intermediate-level language course is focused on language and culture for students who are interested in developing their ability to speak, read, write and understand Spanish. In addition to a comprehensive grammar review, the primary texts chosen for the course serve as a general introduction to Hispanic culture and literature. Other materials include short essays, newspaper articles, films, television series and songs, which together provide a point of departure for discussions on a range of issues. This course includes required practice sessions with a teaching assistant, which are scheduled at the beginning of the semester. Students enrolled in this course are automatically added to SPAN 214Y for the spring semester. Prerequisite: SPAN 111Y-112Y or equivalent. Offered every year.