Religion and the Social Construction of Race
RELI 391
Fall 2007
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
AFAM 280, AMST 297 |
| Course Cluster: Christianity Studies |
This course will examine aspects of the interactions between race and religion in a number of historical and social contexts. We will place at the center of our discussions the question of how race functions as a prism through which people come to both understand and experience their own religious life and that of others. In examining race, we will privilege interpretations that emphasize the construction of race as a process in which power plays a pivotal role and means through which communities form collective identities. We will read a wide range of historical analysis and primary source materials from the United States and the Caribbean. We will examine pro-slavery documents, Native American missionary works, analyses of anti-Semitism, and works on Father Divine, the Nation of Islam, Rastafari, Haitian Vodou, Jonestown, and Christian right supremacist groups like Aryan Nation. |
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Essential Capabilities:
None |
| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS RELI |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (AFAM)(AMST)(CBST-MN)(CIVI-MN)(EDST)(RELI-MN)(RELI)(STS) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Michael Barkun, RELIGION AND THE RACIST RIGHT: THE ORIGINS OF THE CHRISTIAN IDENTITY MOVEMENT
Leonard Barrett, THE RASTAFARIANS
David Chidester, SALVATION AND SUICIDE
Jill Watts, GOD, HARLEM U.S.A., THE FATHER DIVINE STORY
Melani McAlister, EPIC ENCOUNTERS
Sander Gilman, THE JEW'S BODY
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Examinations and Assignments:
Attendance, weekly response papers, three critical essays. |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
This course fulfills a "Critical Theory" requirement for the department major. |
| Instructor(s): McAlister,Elizabeth Times: ..T.R.. 02:40PM-04:00PM; Location: FISK414; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 24 | | SR major: 8 | JR major: 7 | | |
| Seats Available: 5 | GRAD: 0 | SR non-major: 3 | JR non-major: 3 | SO: 3 | FR: 0 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 16 | 1st Ranked: 1 | 2nd Ranked: 1 | 3rd Ranked: 1 | 4th Ranked: 2 | Unranked: 11 |
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