ATS1203 - Magic, science and spirituality - 2017

This unit enables students to gain understanding of what magic, ritual and spiritual beliefs means to people in the modern world. It also introduces first year students to some of the contributions that anthropologists and sociologists of magic and religion have made to knowledge of human societies.

Case studies provide a comparative understanding of rituals and associated cosmologies in a variety of sociocultural settings, from both the developing world and post-industrial settings and examine critically the cultural borders established between the fields of science and spiritual belief.

Topics include: magic's rationalities; teenage magic in the west; witchcraft in the non-west; materiality and faith; embodied experience and spirituality.

Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:

1. Describe and explain what magic, ritual and spiritual beliefs mean to people in the modern world.
2. Appraise the contributions that anthropologists and sociologists of magic and religion have made to knowledge of human societies.
3. Use case studies of rituals and associated cosmologies in a variety of sociocultural settings to examine critically the cultural borders established between the fields of science and spiritual belief.
4. Develop research skills to identify and evaluate texts, and analyse and communicate knowledge in an academic context.

Within semester assessment: 100%

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

See also Unit timetable information

Professor Andrea Whittaker

Anthropology

ATS2371