JoAnn D’Alisera
University of Arkansas
Office: 336 Old Main
Office Hours: T/Th 10-11:30
575-4460/2508
dalisera@uark.edu
ANTH 3123: Anthropology of Religion
This course will explore the rituals and rules, symbols and laws that shape religious life in different societies. We will take a broad view of religion, including in its domain those activities that invoke realities and powers beyond the reach of the ordinary senses. Presenting analyses and case studies of religious experience and practice from a wide variety of cultures, we will explore what people say and do as they participate in religious activities, from magic and healing to pilgrimages and contemporary religious movements. Beginning with a discussion of theories of religion, we turn to specific practices from both small-scale and large-scale religions , exploring how religious experience is perceived and interpreted by adherents, and highlighting the way in which individual and group identities are constructed, maintained and contested within religious contexts.
Required Texts:
Bowen, John
1998 Religions in Practice: An Approach to the Anthropology
of Religion. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Metcalf, Barbara Daly, ed.
1996 Making Muslim Space in North America and Europe.
Berkeley: University of California Press
Orsi, Robert Anthony
1985 The Madonna of 115th Street: Faith and Community
in Italian Harlem, 1880-1950. New Haven: Yale University Press
Requirements:
Book Reviews ( 200pts/100pts each)
You will write a 5 page book review for each of the two ethnographies that will be read in class (Orsi and Metcalf, ). The review should describe the authors intent, the issues addressed, and the broad and specific questions posed by the author. However, it should not be a mere regurgitation of the authors ideas, but include a thoughtful assessment of those ideas. It should show me that you have read the book carefully, and participated in class discussions. It should be concise, clear, and well written. All direct quotes and key ideas from the text should be properly acknowledged and a standard reference/citation format should be used. I prefer American Anthropologist or American Ethnologist style. Guidelines for each of these reference/citation formats will be placed on reserve in the Anthropology Reading Room (room 332 Old Main).
Weekly Reviews (220pts/20pts each)
You will hand in once a week (Tuesday) a 2-3 page review of the previous week’s readings (for Bowen only). Your review should be a thoughtful assessment of the weekly readings and films that incorporates issues raised by readings from past sessions.
Participation (100pts)
Class sessions are planned around readings, so it is expected that you keep up with the reading and read material prior to class. Come prepared to discuss and/or ask questions.
Format for Written Assignments
Please note that all assignments should be typed and doubled-spaced. Type should be no smaller than 10pt or larger than 12pt. You may use any common, distinctly legible, non-script font. Failure to adhere to these standards will result in a loss of points.
Grading
You are expected to complete ALL written assignments. If you fail to hand in an assignment you will receive an F for that assignment. If you fail to hand in an assignment ON TIME I will deduct 10% from the grade for that assignment. Late papers will be accepted only after you have consulted with me and within one week of the due date. Class discussions are structured around readings. I expect you to have completed ALL of the assigned readings for a given day and that you come to class prepared to discuss and/or ask questions related to those readings. This is not a course in which passive note taking and night-before-the-test memorization are important. I want you to think, actively and often.
Grading Scale
Your final grade will be based on the total number of points you have accumulated for all assignments. Your grade will be a percentage of that score. The percentages to be used are as follows:
A 90-100%; B 80-89%; C 70-79%; D 60-69%; F Below 60%
Grading Philosophy -- Written Assignments
My grading philosophy is as follows:
An A paper is an excellent paper that uses information from class readings and independent research to make an argument that is not simply a repetition of arguments made in those readings, but goes well beyond them. An A paper should be a sophisticated, insightful, and convincingly made synthesis of ethnographic and theoretical resources. An A paper is very well written, that is, your paper should have outstanding grammar, spelling and organizational style.
A B paper is an above average paper that contains good coverage of topics covered in class readings and independent research. A B paper should be an articulate synthesis of ethnographic and theoretical resources. A B paper is well written with good grammar, spelling and organizational style.
A C paper is an average paper that recapitulates information correctly from class readings and independent research. It may be a B paper with some shortcomings.
A D paper is a paper with errors in information (these range from misidentifying authors, people, and places- including misspellings- to broader misrepresentations). A D paper is poorly written with numerous mistakes in grammar and spelling. A D paper is poorly organized.
An F paper is riddled with error, is badly written, and makes no attempt beyond repeating (albeit badly) information. Or it may reveal openly that the writer has not done the work upon which the assignment was based.
Academic Honesty
I expect that all written work that you turn in for this class is ultimately authored by you and you alone. Any student found to be deliberately copying from the written work of someone else (this includes fellow students, a published author or anyone else) without acknowledgment will receive 0 points for that assignment. In severe cases (100% plagiarism) you will receive an F for the entire course. There will be NO second chances. If you are unsure what constitutes legitimate paraphrasing vs plagiarism please see me or check your University Catalog.
Inclement Weather
In icy or snowy weather, I will have a voice mail message (575-4460) about whether or not class will be held.
Please note if you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact me A.S.A.P.
COURSE OUTLINE
Religions in Practice: An Approach to the Anthropology of Religion
Week 1 1/16 – 18
Elements and Theories of Religion,
Bowen pp. 1-20
Doctrine and Practice in Tension,
Bowen pp. 21-40
Week 2
1/23 – 25, Review #1 Due
Transitions in Life and Death, Bowen pp.
41-66
Film: Horses of Life and Death
Week 3
1/30 – 2/1, Review #2 Due
Extending Our Powers: ‘Magic’ and Healing,
Bowen pp. 67-81
Film: Divine Horsemen
Week 4 2/6
– 2/8, Review #3 Due
Explaining Misfortune: Witchcraft and
Sorcery, Bowen pp 82-100
Film: Saints and Spirits
Week 5 2/13 – 2/15, Review #4 Due
Sacrifice Contested, Bowen pp 101-124;
Film: Miao Year (Room TBA)
Week 6 2/20 – 2/22, Review#5 Due
Prohibitions and Boundaries,
Bowen pp 125-141
Film: Forbidden Marriages in the Holyland
Week 7 2/27
– 3/1, Review #6 Due
Objects, Images, and Worship,
Bowen pp. 142-169
Film: Movable Feast
Week 8 3/6
– 3/8, Review #7 Due
Sacred Speech and Divine Power, Bowen pp
170-192
Film: Jolo Serpent Handlers
Week 9 3/13 – 3/15, Review #8 Due
Places and Pilgrims, Bowen pp.
192-210
Film: Hosay Trinidad
Week 10 3/20 – 3/22
Spring Break!
Week 11 3/27 – 3/29, Review #9 Due
Religious Authority and Religious Movenments,
Bowen pp. 211-233
Film: Tale of Two Mosques
Week 12 4/3 – 4/5, Review #10 Due
The Place of Religions in Modern Nation-States
Film: The Peyote Road
Making Muslim Space in North
America and Europe
Week 13
4/10 – 4/12, Review #11 Due
Metcalf , pp. 1-127
Week 14 4/17 – 4/19, Book Review (Metcalf) Due
Metcalf, pp. 131-250
The Madonna of 115th Street: Faith and
Community in Italian Harlem, 1880-1950
Week 15
4/24 – 4/26
Orsi, pp. xii - 149
Week 16
5/1 – 5/3
Orsi, pp. 150 -233