Topics in Cultural Anthropology I-E2
| Numbering Code | U-LAS05 20046 LE40 | Year/Term | 2022 ・ First semester |
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| Number of Credits | 2 | Course Type | Lecture |
| Target Year | All students | Target Student | For all majors |
| Language | English | Day/Period | Thu.3 |
| Instructor name | De Antoni, Andrea (Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies Program-Specific Associate Professor) | ||
| Outline and Purpose of the Course |
This course focuses on the anthropology of religion, magic and witchcraft. It will take into consideration and analyze human religious experiences from an anthropological perspective, by focusing on topics such as debates about definitions and the origin of “religion”, cosmology, myth and social memory, ritual, magic, witchcraft, ghosts, spirit possession, shamanism, religious healing, spirituality and secularization. In doing so, it will also provide a historical overview of anthropological theories on these topics, thus informing students on the history of the anthropology of religion as a discipline. Ethnographic examples from a variety of societies will be analyzed and discussed, in order to illustrate the wealth of religious experiences that exists around the world. Especially examples about East Asian and Japanese religions (including ascetic and shamanic practices) will be central, although also World Religions, contemporary New Age in the West, as well as classical examples about African or Native American religious practices will be taken into consideration. |
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| Course Goals |
- Students will learn the historical development of anthropological theories and debates regarding religion and ritual, thus familiarizing with terminology and concepts. - Students will learn to understand religious and spiritual phenomena in their social context. - Students will gain an understanding of religion as an institution through which gender, class, identity, morality, health and personhood are expressed and performed. - Students will examine the ways in which religions and their adherents respond to social, political and economic changes. - Students will use appropriate methodological tools to formulate scholarly arguments |
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| Schedule and Contents |
The following list of topics is indicative. Depending on the class and discussions, the topics taken into consideration might end up being be fewer. Nevertheless, they will include: WEEK 1: Course Introduction WEEK 2: What is "Religion"? WEEK 3: Debating the Origins of "Religion" WEEK 4: Cosmology, Animism, Magic, Religion and Spirituality WEEK 5: Witchcraft, Accusations and an Anthropology of Rumours WEEK 6: Symbolic Classifications, Pollution, Taboos and the "Sacred" WEEK 7: The Ritual Turn, Rites of Passage and Communitas WEEK 8: (Ritual) violence, Social Liminality and Symbols WEEK 8: The Ways of the Shamans WEEK 9: Charismatic Leadership WEEK 10: Embodiment and Spirit Possession WEEK 11: Myths, History and Social Memory WEEK 12: Religion and Material Culture WEEK 13: The Environment and the Ecological Approach WEEK 14: Pilgrimage and Tourism WEEK 15: Final Test Week 16: Feedback |
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| Evaluation Methods and Policy |
Contribution to Discussions (40%) Final Examination (60%) |
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| Course Requirements | None | ||
| Study outside of Class (preparation and review) | Students are expected to have read the assignments before class and be ready to discuss them. | ||
