Ritual, Religion and Performance (ANTH3050)
Information valid for Semester 1, 2024
Course level
Undergraduate
Faculty
Humanities Arts Social Science
School
Social Science School
Units
2
Duration
One Semester
Attendance mode
In Person
Class hours
Workshop 4 Hours/ Fortnight
Incompatible
ANTH2050
Recommended prerequisite
ANTH1008
Assessment methods
Individual presentation, demonstration and reflection, major essay
Course enquiries
Associate Professor Gerhard Hoffstaedter ()
Study Abroad
This course is pre-approved for Study Abroad and Exchange students.
Current course offerings
Course offerings | Location | Mode | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2024 (19/02/2024 - 15/06/2024) | St Lucia | In Person | Course Profile |
Please Note: Course profiles marked as not available may still be in development.
Course description
In this course students will grapple with some big questions about religion and how anthropologists approach these questions. The class will examine some of the pitfalls of studying other people's beliefs and how anthropologists overcome these kinds of problems. We will encounter and engage with some of the Abrahamic faiths in detail and look at some New Religious Movements. We will learn about the rich history of the study of religion in anthropology and cognate fields, how anthropologists used to think about religion and religions and how they think about it today. The course covers both classical and founding concepts employed by anthropologists, such as ritual, symbolism, witchcraft and shamanism and the way religions have adapted, changed or remained the same. We examine how religious systems encounter modernity, the modern nation state and the diversity of religious adherents today. Students are encouraged to be independent learners, taking ownership of the learning processes and will be expected to work in groups and individually. Students will have the chance to research and learn about a variety of religious lifeworlds, as well as how such religious lifeworlds are performed and have social, political, emotional, moral and physical effects on people.
Archived offerings
Course offerings | Location | Mode | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2023 (20/02/2023 - 17/06/2023) | St Lucia | In Person | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2022 (21/02/2022 - 21/06/2022) | St Lucia | Internal | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2022 (21/02/2022 - 21/06/2022) | External | External | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2021 (22/02/2021 - 19/06/2021) | St Lucia | Flexible Delivery | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2021 (22/02/2021 - 19/06/2021) | External | External | Course Profile |
Semester 1, 2020 (24/02/2020 - 11/07/2020) | St Lucia | Internal | Course Profile |