- Course code: RL2025
- Credits: 10
- Semester: Spring
- Language: English
Study program affiliation:
Key Thinkers in the Study of Religion RL2025
This course provides a basic introduction to important figures and debates in the critical study of religion. Students will be introduced to a selection of western scholars from the late nineteenth century to the early twenty-first century that have made a lasting impact on how we think about religion. The course will be built around close readings of primary sources with an emphasis on demonstrating solid comprehension of academic debates. The course will be divided into four thematic units proceeding in rough chronological order. We begin with an examination of Freud and evolutionary models of religion, introducing the course themes of power, the body, culture and otherness. We then turn to Mary Douglas and ethnographic approaches to religion, including ideas of purity. Third, we examine the scholarly dialogue between Clifford Geertz and critics of his approach, focusing on interactions between religion and culture. The course closes with investigation into the work of Edward Said and ongoing discussions of orientalism.
Study requirements
In order to receive a final assassment, the student must:
- Take active part in 75% of the teaching activities.
- Submit and have approved a portfolio of reading response.
- Participate in the electronic evaluation of the course if such evaluation is stipulated in the relevant term.
When course requirements are not fulfilled, this will count as one examination attempt, unless the student withdraws before the set deadline (1 May/November)
Final assessment/Exam
The final grade (A-F) for this course is given on the basis of a three-day home exam (2500-3500 words) and a portfolio of reading responses. The three-day home exam and the portfolio of reading responses will each make up 50% of the grade. Both the home exam and the portfolio must be passed in order to pass the course.
Learning outcome
Knowledge
The student has:
- Good knowledge of a selection of influential thinkers in the study of religion whose concepts and models remain influential in both popular and academic discourse today.
- Knowledge of the interactions between key thinkers in the field of religious studies and how the field has shifted and developed over time through debate and dialogue.
- Good knowledge of key terms within the study of religion as represented by the respective thinkers.
Skills
The student can:
- Partake in discussions of how scholars have analysed religion at an appropriate academic level.
- Summarize theoretical models developed by each key thinker accurately and compare and contrast them with one another.
- Perform close reading of scholarly texts such that they are able to retrieve, deploy and interact with complex ideas.
- Formulate their thoughts and questions on each sample text in writing with clarity.
Course responsible
