| 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.
Myers, James E. and Pamela A. Moro, eds. 2010.
Magic, BLACKBOARD We will be using Blackboard as an online course platform—as a means of providing further opportunities for you to access, discuss, and share subject matter related to the course. You will also be able to keep track of your point totals for all assignments via Blackboard, and you will be able to submit all assignments via Blackboard. It is not mandatory to log in regularly, but I do want you to introduce yourself on Blackboard at the beginning of the course, and you will have opportunities to download readings and submit and access “presentations” via blackboard. Access blackboard via the general course webpage, or via: https://online.cabrillo.edu/webct/entryPageIns.dowebct You will need to disable your browser's pop-blocker and enable javascript. You can get help via Blackboard's browser tune-up page. There is a helpline at the bottom of the webpage, if you are having trouble with Blackboard, and there should be a link to a tutorial on Blackboard. Feel free to ask me if you need help, as well. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES Class Participation/Attendance: Grading:
400-449 pts (80-89%) = B 350-399 pts (70-79%) = C 300-349 pts (60-69%) = D 0-299 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. If
you need assistance with an accommodation, please contact Disabled
Student Services, Room 810, 479-6379, or Learning Skills Program, Room
1073, 479-6220. COURSE SCHEDULE (subject to revision as necessary during the course of the semester) NOTE: ALL READINGS ARE REQUIRED EXCEPT THOSE LABELED “REC” (RECOMMENDED) 2/8: 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)
2/10: RELIGION, MYTH AND SYMBOLISM “Anthropologists Versus Missionaries…” (MWR 28)
"Nyoro Myth" (MWR 58)
REC: “The Study of Mythology” (MWR 46)
2/15: SCHOOL HOLIDAY: NO CLASS 2/17: MYTH AND SYMBOLISM "Harelips and Twins" (MWR 63)
"The Virgin of Guadalupe: A Mexican National Symbol" (MWR 67)
film: clips from “Guadalupe”
Farrer, Chapters 1-2
2/22: SYMBOLISM, TABOO, AND SOCIAL ORDER Farrer, Chapter 3
“Mother Cow” (handout)
film: “Maharajah Burger”
REC: "Taboo" (MWR 72)
2/24: RITUAL, MYTH, AND SYMBOLISM Farrer, Chapter 4
“Return to Wirikuta” (MWR 108)
TOPIC PROPOSALS DUE
3/1: RITUAL, MYTH, SYMBOLISM, AND MAGIC Farrer, Chapter 5
“The Goat and the Gazelle” (MWR 299)
"Body Ritual Among the Nacirema" (MWR 135)
film: The Mask of Rangda”
3/3: RITUAL AND MAGIC Farrer, Chapter 6
“Baseball Magic” (MWR 320)
“Thai Buddhism and the Popularity of Amulets…” (MWR 34)
3/8: RITUAL AND MAGIC Farrer, Chapter 7
“Consulting the Poison Oracle among the Azande” (MWR 308)
film: clips from “The Azande”
3/10: RITES OF PASSAGE “Betwixt and Between” (MWR 87)
“I Bow My Head to the Ground…” (MWR 97)
Farrer, Chapter 8: BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS FARRER
3/15: RITES OF PASSAGE: PERSONHOOD AND PUBERTY RITES film: “The Devil’s Playground”
3/17: RITES OF PASSAGE: FUNERARY RITES “The Cremated Catholic: The Ends of a Deceased Guatemalan” (MWR 349)
“Death Be Not Strange” (MWR 345)
film: clips from “La Ofrenda”
3/22: RITES OF PASSAGE: DEMARCATING PERSONHOOD “A Handmaid’s Tale” (MWR 126) 3/24: MIDTERMS DUE SPRING BREAK: 3/29-4/3 4/5: WITCHCRAFT, SORCERY, AND THE UNDEAD "The Real Vampire" (MWR 332)
“An Anthropological Perspective on the Witchcraze” (MWR 283)
film: TBA
Lewis, Chapter 1
4/7: WITCHCRAFT, SORCERY, AND THE UNDEAD "The Evil Eye among the Amhara" (handout)
“Sorcery and Concepts of Deviance among the Kabana, West New Britain" (MWR 290)
Lewis, Chapter 2
4/12: SHAMANISM “Shamanism” (MWR 150)
“Trance, Possession, Shamanism, and Sex” (MWR 188)
“The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” (MWR 269)
film: “Between Two Worlds”
4/14: SHAMANISM “The Sound of Rushing Water” (MWR 214)
"Dark Side of the Shaman" (MWR 158)
Lewis, Chapter 3
film: “White Shamans, Plastic Medicine Men”
4/19: SHAMANS AND RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS "Eyes of the Ngangas: Ethnomedicine and Power in Central African Republic" (MWR 240)
“Mothering and the Practice of ‘Balm’ in Jamaica” (MWR 261)
Lewis, Chapter 4
REC: “Religious Specialists” (MWR 142)
4/21: SHAMANS AND RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS “Hypnosis and Trance Induction in the Surgeries of Brazilian Spiritist-Healer-Mediums” (MWR 196)
film: “Soothsayers, Cigars, And San Simon”
4/26: PRIESTS AND PROPHETS “Training For the Priesthood Among the Kogi of Colombia” (MWR 162)
Lewis, Chapter 5
film clips: “Elder Brother’s Warning”
4/28: PRIESTS AND PROPHETS “The Ghost Dance Religion” (MWR 366)
“Lubavitch: A Contemporary Messianic Movement” (handout)
Lewis, Chapter 6
5/3: REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS AND CULTURAL CHANGE “Revitalization Movements” (MWR 360)
"Cargo Cults" (MWR 371)
Lewis, Chapter 7
5/5: REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS AND CULTURAL CHANGE “Serpent Handling as Sacrament” (MWR 77) film clips: Holiness Churches Lewis, Chapter 8 5/10: REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS, THE STATE, AND MODERNITY "Reflections After Waco: Millenialists and the State” (MWR 177)
Lewis, Chapter 9
PAPER DRAFTS/OUTLINES DUE FOR IN-CLASS PEER REVIEW—more info. TBA
5/12: RELIGION, THE STATE, GLOBALISM, AND MODERNITY "The Peyote Way" (handout)
“On the Peyote Road” (MWR 207)
Lewis, Chapter 10
5/17: RELIGION, THE STATE, GLOBALISM, AND MODERNITY “Ritual and the Performance of Buddhist Identity…” (MWR 428)
“The Rave” (MWR 220)
Lewis, Chapter 11
5/19: RELIGION, THE STATE, GLOBALISM, AND MODERNITY “Islamic Law…” (MWR 397)
“The Veil in Their Minds and on Our Heads” (MWR 412)
Lewis, Chapter 12; BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS LEWIS
524: RELIGION, THE STATE, GLOBALISM, AND MODERNITY film: Inside Mecca
5/26: FINAL EXAMS DUE CLASS PRESENTATIONS
6/2: 10:00-12:50 a.m. CLASS PRESENTATIONS
FINAL PAPERS DUE
HAVE A GREAT BREAK!!! |
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