Anthropology 330 – Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion
Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:30-2:50pm
Professor: Dr. Pamela Lindell Email:
Office: RN 217 Office hours: MW 12:20-1:20,
Office phone: 558-2316TR 10:30-11:30, and by appointment
Course Description:This is a cross-cultural study of the forms and functions and supernatural beliefs and associated rituals in various societies of Africa, Asia, aboriginal Australia, Oceania, South America, native North America and elsewhere. The emphasis of the course is on understanding beliefs and rituals within their social contexts, and on broad comparison to derive insight into the general functions of beliefs and rituals in human life.
Textbook: Religions in Practice 3rd or 4th edition, by John Bowen
In order to cut costs, students may use either edition. As some material differs between the editions, on occasion students will have to access material that is not in their edition by reading reserves in the library or elsewhere. Both editions are on reserve in the library, and a copy of the 3rd edition is on reserve in the RISE office.
Student learning outcomes and objectives: Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to
- compare a large range of religious, ritual and magical beliefs throughout the world and over time.
- analyze the socio-cultural context of religious and magical beliefs.
- differentiate between the basic anthropological approaches to the study of ritual, magic and religion.
- describe anthropological approaches to date gathering and the analysis of ceremonial, magical and supernatural practices and beliefs.
- evaluate the roles of magic, ritual, and belief systems in contemporary societies, with particular emphasis on the students' own cultures.
- examine examples of "cults", their origins, their most important features and their socio-cultural significance.
- compare curing practices and their underlying beliefs in cross-cultural perspective.
- demonstrate the connections between economics, social organization and supernatural belief systems cross-culturally.
Prerequisite: ENGWR 50 and ENGWR 59 or ESLW 310 and ESLR 310 with grades of “C” or better. This prerequisite is necessary due to the amount of writing that will completed in this class.
Attendance: Attendance is mandatory in order to stay enrolled in and pass this class. In accordance with college policy, any student who has missed 10% or more of the total class hours (5.4 hours for a 54-hour class) may be failed or dropped without prior notification, regardless of performance in other aspects of the course. Illness, car problems, family emergencies, etc. DO NOT qualify for excused absences. Excused absences are only provided for college-sponsored activities. It is the student’s responsibility to get notes for missed lecture material. The professor does not supply copies of lecture notes.
Special needs: If you take exams through Learning Disabilities, please notify the professor as soon as possible so that appropriate arrangements can be made.
Cheating and plagiarism: Cheating and/or plagiarism (direct copying of sources without quotations or citations) is a serious violation of college policy and will result in the following: 1) The student will fail the exam on which s/he cheats or the assignment that was plagiarized. 2) The student will sit in the front row for all remaining exams. 3) The event will be reported to the administration. Repeated administrative reports result in expulsion from the college.
If you are aware that a fellow student is cheating, please report it to the professor. A student who cheats is robbing other students of their hard work, and is cheating him/herself out of an education.
A note on appropriate classroom behavior: All participants in this class will behave respectfully toward each other, the professor, and themselves. Be attentive and take notes. Students are encouraged to ask questions. Hate speech and disrespectful remarks will not be tolerated. Do not sleep in class, come in late or leave early, use cell phones during class, pass notes, or otherwise engage in disruptive or rude behaviors. Repeated engagement in such behaviors will result in a grade penalty and/or administrative interference as appropriate.
Grading method: Your grade in this class will be based on your total point accumulation as follows:
A – 360 to 400 points
B – 359 to 320 points
C – 280 to 319 points
D – 240 to 318 points
F – less than 240 points
The class is divided into four sections, as such:
Term 1: January 23 to February 13
Term 2: February 20 to March 12
Term 3: March 24 to April 16
Term 4: April 21 to May 14
It is possible to accumulate a maximum of 100 points per section. These points may be earned by completing any of the following:
- One 100-point exam at the end of the section, which will be a combination of true/false, multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions.
- Four 25-point homework assignments, one due at the end of each week.
- One 75-point activity assignment, due at the end of the section.
- One 50-point Powerpoint presentation submitted on cd-r, due at the end of the section.
- Perfect attendance without tardiness or leaving early, for 25 points per section.
Extra points accumulated in one section may not be carried over into the following section.
Exams - Exams will be comprised of true/false, multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions. They will be based on information from assigned readings, class lectures, and films. Study guides for the exams are available on my website at wserver.scc.losrios.edu/~lindelp
Homework Assignments – Homework papers must
* be at least 2.5 pages in length
* be typed using 12-point Times New Roman font
* be double spaced, but must not have extra spaces between paragraphs or
elsewhere
* have 1” margins at the top and bottom and 1.25 margins on the right and left
* have page numbers in the bottom right-hand corner
* have a title page with your name and the assignment title/number (your name
and the title of the essay will appear only on this title page and not on following pages)
* be stapled
* have indented paragraphs
* have correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation
* be comprised of an introduction, the body of the essay, and a conclusion
* include appropriate citations when a passage is quoted. Uncited quotes are
considered as plagiarized and may result in a failing grade. Quotes must appear
in quotation marks and be cited in the following manner if, for example, the
quote is on page 11 of the Bowen textbook: (Bowen 2007:11).
Homework assignments will be graded based on the extent to which they meet the criteria listed above, and the quality and thoroughness of the answers to the questions below.
1A. According to Bowen, what are some of the challenges in defining “religion,” and how might we respond to these challenges? Based on your own understanding and experience, what qualities did you think of when you thought of a “religion” before beginning this class? Finally, how do anthropologists go about studying religion?
2A. What are the five world religions? What do they have in common with each other, and how do they differ? What is animism and how is it distinctive from world religions? With which kind of religion is shamanism most often associated? How does one become a shaman, and what are the abilities and duties of a shaman?
3A. Compare and contrast the ideas of Edward Tylor and Emile Durkheim as to the origins of religion. Furthermore, compare and contrast the ideas of Max Weber, Bronislaw Malinowski, and Sigmund Freud as to the psychological underpinnings of religion.
4A. Discuss ways in which the orientation to religion in Japan contrast with that which has been developed in the West. According to Bowen, what are the different emphases in Shinto and Buddhism? Why might these two religions be able to co-exist and be co-practiced in Japan?
1B. What is the liminal period in a rite of passage, and why is it important? What are three kinds of processes that can dominate the liminal period, according to Bowen? Using either the Hopi or the New Guinea example, discuss the roles of pain and secrecy in the initiation ritual of this culture and what type of liminal process you think this is, and why.
2B. Death rituals serve a number of functions. Discuss examples wherein death rituals do the following: reaffirm the social order, separate the status of the dead from the living, and link death with life/fertility.
3B. In “The Legend of the God Neb-Er-Tcher, and the History of Creation,” who are the deities Neb-Er-Tcher and Khepera? How was Khepera created? Who comprised the first Egyptian trinity, and how did they come into existence? What role do elements (water, earth, sky, etc.) play in this creation myth? How were humans created? Finally, what thoughts about or reactions to the myth did you have?
4B. How is it that in some cultures, men and women are “made” through ritual? Discuss one example. Can you think of a ritual with which you are familiar, in which a person is shaped into a new being? Explain. Finally, how does one become a member of the Amish church, and what does this have to do with Anabaptist philosophy?
1C. According to James Frazer, what are the two ideas that form the basis for magical thinking? What are the two types of magic that stem from these ideas? Discuss an example of each. According to the “anxiety” argument, which two activities in baseball would be most associated with magical practice, and why? Apply the anxiety predictor to your own life – have you known yourself or others to engage in magical thinking/practice under such conditions?
2C. Discuss the reported effects of both direct prayer/personal religious activity and intercessory prayer on the health and mortality rates of ill individuals. How might these results be corroborated with studies of mapping the brain? Do you think that research universities should conduct scientific studies of the effects of prayer? Why or why not?
3C. Beliefs in malicious sorcery and witchcraft acts are said to reflect the concerns of a society. Discuss two examples of this, including both the sorcery/witchcraft beliefs and what they say about societal concerns. How do you think that we deal with the same sorts of concerns in societies such as the contemporary U.S., where sorcery and witchcraft beliefs are not prevalent?
4C. Based on the information provided by the guest speaker, provide a synopsis of the basic beliefs and practices of the neo-pagan movement. What was the most interesting thing you learned from the speaker? What surprised you most, if anything, about the neo-pagan movement?
1D. In Hinduism, what are puja and how do living people connect with ancestors and deities through them? Compare and contrast puja with the Catholic communion – what similarities and/or differences do you see? How did the ritual of communion change during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and what was probably the underlying reason for these changes?
2D. Discuss the use of speech and song in the Muslim, Navajo, and Protestant religions. What similarities do you note, and what major differences?
3D. What is a revitalization movement? What is the difference between a millenarian movement and a messianic movement? Discuss an example of each. Do you think these examples were “successful” revitalization movements? Why or why not?
4D. After reading chapter 14, what is your answer to the question “Does religion promote violence?” Explain why you answered the way you did. If after reading this chapter you were hired as a consultant to try to end religious violence, what suggestions would you make?
Activity Assignments - Activity assignments must
* include at least 5 pages of typed essay
* be typed using 12-point Times New Roman font
* be double spaced, but must not have extra spaces between paragraphs or
elsewhere
* have 1” margins at the top and bottom and 1.25 margins on the right and left
* have page numbers in the bottom right-hand corner
* have a title page with your name and the assignment title/number (your name
and the title of the essay will appear only on this title page and not on following pages)
* be stapled
* have correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation
* have indented paragraphs
* be comprised of an introduction, the body of the essay, and a conclusion
* include a thesis statement
* include appropriate citations if a passage is quoted. Uncited quotes are
considered as plagiarized and may result in a failing grade. Quotes must appear
in quotation marks and be cited in the following manner if, for example, the
quote is on page 11 of the Bowen textbook: (Bowen 2008:11).
* include a “works cited” page if you include citations in your essay
Activity assignments will be graded based on the extent to which they meet the criteria listed above, the cohesiveness between the thesis statement and the information presented to support it, the description of activities and results, the interpretation of results, and the quality and quantity of information presented in the paper.
Activity assignment, section 1: “Create a Religion” (read chapters 1, 2, and 3 before beginning this assignment)
In this exercise you will create and describe a realistic, though fictional, religion. First think about what type of religion this will be – animistic or world? This initial categorization will determine several characteristics of your religion, as discussed in class. Assign a name to your religion, or not, but explain its name or absence thereof. Your thesis statement should appear in the introduction (see “What is a thesis statement?” below).
Describe the religion as if you are writing for a textbook. Readers will want to know the origins of the religion. Discuss the geographic location or geographic origin of your religion and how the environment influenced it. Discuss the religion’s primary beliefs and practices, and central characters if any. Again, the characteristics of the religion must be consistent with what you have learned about animistic and world religions. Are there any images used in the religion and if so, what do they symbolize? Have any historical factors influenced the way in which the religion is practiced today?
Next, describe the functions of the religion – what benefit does it serve to its adherents? In this section, utilize at least one theoretical framework from chapter two.
Close your paper with a conclusion that reiterates your thesis statement and the main points of your paper that lend support to the thesis statement.
Activity assignment, section 2: “Attend a Ritual” (read chapter 4 before beginning this assignment)
Attend a ritual, preferably one with which you are unfamiliar. The ritual might be a special occasion such as a rite of passage, or may be a regular worship service. A good list of places of worship in Sacramento can be found at
and also at
although the latter includes only Christian churches. Before you attend the ritual, be sure that they have an open-door policy. If not, be sure to get permission from someone before you attend. In addition to your attendance, you will need an informant to provide an emic perspective.
Your thesis statement should appear in the introduction (see “What is a thesis statement?” below). In the beginning of your paper you will also justify why the event that you attended can be classified as a ritual.
Include the following information in your paper: What ritual did you attend and how did you find out about it? Who is your informant and how did that person come to be your informant? Was the ritual sacred or secular? Explain. Who led the ritual, who participated, and who attended (general types of people, not specific names)? Describe the sequence of events. Analyze symbolism present in the ritual. Analyze social and/or psychological functions of the ritual. Note whether any of the following applied: Sacred space, sacred objects, formula of words or actions, or communitas. Was this a rite of passage? If so, identify the three stages. Include a brochure/program if available. Takes notes at the ritual if you can, but do not do so if you think it will seem offensive or unseemly.
You should interview your informant after attending the ritual in order to gain an understanding of anything that seemed unfamiliar to you, including any symbolism or actions that you observed.
Close your paper with a conclusion that reiterates your thesis statement and the main points of your paper that lend support to the thesis statement.
Activity assignment, section 3: “Magical Thinking and Behavior” (read chapter 6 before beginning this assignment)
In this exercise, you will identify and discuss magical thinking and/or practice among your friends and relations. If you ask someone if they practice magic, they are likely to say “no.” However, we know that people practice magic when they do not consider it as such; for example, when they employ good luck charms or otherwise engage in routines of behavior for specific results, use specific words to influence events, or utilize healing remedies based on principles of likeness or contact.