| ANTH 8: ANTHROPOLOGY OF RELIGION (A Critical Writing Course) |
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Dr. Heather Claussen, FALL 2009 Office Hours: E-mail: hlclaussen@yahoo.com (please CLEARLY identify yourself as a student if you e-mail...thanks!)
WWW: http://www.cabrillo.edu/~hclaussen/courses.html
****************************************************************** This course involves the exploration and analysis of religious traditions in diverse cultural contexts from an anthropological perspective. Major anthropological perspectives on and theories of religion will be discussed, as will various aspects of human religious life in contemporary societies—including mythology, symbol systems, magic, witchcraft, sorcery, revitalization movements, shamanism, healing, spirit possession, altered states of consciousness, fundamentalism, ritual, and the ways in which religion relates to gender and ethnicity within the contemporary world. Critical, analytical written work is the primary means of evaluating student performance in this course. *****************************************************************
Required Texts: Farrer, Claire R. 1994. Thunder Rides a Black
Horse.
2nd ed. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES Class Participation/Attendance: Grading: Class Participation (including attendance
and effort) 25
405-450 pts (90-100%) = AClassroom Exercises (10 pts each) 100 Self-Reflexive Essay 50 Ritual Paper 75 Midterm 100 Final Exam 100 Point Total 450 360-404 pts (80-89%) = B 315-359 pts (70-79%) = C 270-314 pts (60-69%) = D 0-269 pts (0-59%) = F Or CR/NC: see me Academic Honesty: Students are expected to exercise academic honesty and integrity. Cheating or plagiarism will result in disciplinary action, possibly including recommendation for dismissal. Papers may be turned in to TURN IT IN.COM or other plagiarism detection services. According to Cabrillo College Writing Center guidelines, “(p)lagiarism is loosely defined as the use of another person's words or ideas without giving any credit or making any acknowledgment of the original source. This is true for both written texts (essays, articles, books, web pages, etc.) and for spoken language (speeches, lectures, interviews, etc.).” All sources used must be properly documented (see reference guidelines, and ASK ME FOR HELP IF YOU AREN’T SURE HOW TO DOCUMENT YOUR SOURCES!) Special Accommodations: Many of you may need special
accommodations,
whether due to disabilities, language difficulties, or other
conditions.
I am very willing to work with you in order to help create a more
positive
learning experience. However, I do need some advance notice in
order
to accommodate students with special needs; if you have special needs,
please
inform me of your situation within the first two weeks of class. COURSE SCHEDULE (subject to revision as necessary during the course of the semester) NOTE: ALL READINGS ARE REQUIRED EXCEPT THOSE LABELED “REC” (RECOMMENDED) 9/2: COURSE INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS RELIGION AND HOW CAN WE STUDY IT? film: “The Asmat of New Guinea”
REC: “Religion” (MWR 6)
REC: “Religious Perspectives in Anthropology (MWR 20) 9/9: MYTH AND SYMBOLISM Farrer, Chapters 1-2
"Nyoro Myth" (MWR 63) "The Virgin of Guadalupe: A Mexican National Symbol" (handout) film: clips from “Guadalupe” REC: "Harelips and Twins" (MWR 68)
REC: “The Study of Mythology” (MWR 51) 9/16: MYTH, SYMBOLISM, TABOO, AND SOCIAL ORDER Farrer, Chapters 3-4
“Mother Cow” (handout) film: “Maharajah Burger” *SELF-REFLEXIVE ESSAYS DUE REC: "Taboo" (MWR 76)
9/23: RITUAL AND MAGIC Farrer, Chapters 5-6
“Return to Wirikuta” (MWR 109) “The Goat and the Gazelle” (MWR 274) film: The Mask of Rangda” 9/30: RITUAL AND MAGIC Farrer, Chapter 7
"Body Ritual Among the Nacirema" (MWR 140) “Baseball Magic” (MWR 302) “Consulting the Poison Oracle among the Azande” (MWR 290) film: clips from “The Azande” 10/7: RITES OF PASSAGE “Betwixt and Between” (MWR 91)
Farrer, Chapter 8: BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS FARRER 10/14: RITES OF PASSAGE “The Cremated Catholic: The Ends of a Deceased Guatemalan” (MWR 336)
film: “The Devil’s Playground” *RITUAL PAPER DUE 10/21: DEATH AND THE UNDEAD “I Can Only Move My Feet Toward mizuko kuyo” (MWR 127)
“Death Be Not Strange” (MWR 332) "The Real Vampire" (MWR 319) film: TBA 10/28: EVIL-DOERS "The Evil Eye among the Amhara" (handout)
“An Anthropological Perspective on the Witchcraze” (MWR 265) “Sorcery and Concepts of Deviance among the Kabana, West New Britain" (MWR 272) film: TBA *MIDTERMS DUE 11/4: SHAMANISM “The Shaman: A Siberian Specialist” (MWR 155)
"Dark Side of the Shaman" (MWR 163) film: “Between Two Worlds” Lewis, Chapters 1-2 REC: “Psychedelic Drugs and Religious Experience” (MWR 205)
REC: “The Sound of Rushing Water” (MWR 199) 11/11: SHAMANS AND RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS "Eyes of the Ngangas: Ethnomedicine and Power in Central African Republic" (MWR 216)
“Mothering and the Practice of ‘Balm’ in Jamaica” (MWR 230) film: “Soothsayers, Cigars, And San Simon” Lewis, Chapters 3-4 REC: “Religious Specialists” (MWR 147)
11/18: PRIESTS, PROPHETS AND REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS “Training For the Priesthood Among the Kogi of Colombia” (MWR 167)
“The Ghost Dance Religion” (MWR 391) “Lubavitch: A Contemporary Messianic Movement” (handout) Lewis, Chapters 5-6 film clips: TBA 11/25: REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS AND CULTURAL CHANGE "Cargo Cults" (MWR 372)
“Serpent Handling as Sacrament” (MWR 77) film clips: Holiness Churches Lewis, Chapters 7-8 REC: “Revitalization Movements” (MWR 361)
12/2: RELIGION AND CULTURAL CHANGE "The Peyote Way" (handout)
“The Rave” (handout) “Religious Dimensions of the UFO Abductee Experience” (MWR 418) film: White Shamans, Plastic Medicine Men Lewis, Chapters 9-10 REC: “On the Peyote Road” (MWR 188)
12/9: RELIGION, THE STATE, GLOBAL CULTURE, AND MODERNITY "Reflections After Waco: Millenialists and the State” (MWR 182)
“The Veil in Their Minds and on Our Heads” (MWR 433) Lewis, Chapters 11-12 film: Inside Mecca 12/16: 7:00-9:50 p.m. FINAL EXAMS DUE VIA BLACKBOARD OR IN CLASS HAVE A GREAT BREAK!!! |
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