The Art, Ritual, and Cosmology of the Ancient Maya
ARHA 293
Spring 2006
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
ARCP 293, ANTH 293, LAST 293 |
This seminar is a general and systematic introduction to the cosmology, religion, and ritual practices of the ancient Maya from approximately 300 BC - AD 900. The course first examines Classic Maya mythology as it is depicted in visual narratives and recorded in hieroglyphic inscriptions, especially those from the sites of Palenque, Quirigua, and Copan. This evidence will be supplemented with a review of colonial and current mythological narratives from both the Maya area and elsewhere in Mesoamerica. With a sound understanding of Maya and Mesoamerican mythology, we will turn to ritual and ritual art, to address such issues as divine embodiment, sacral presence, and the actualization of myth in
ritual. Additionally, we will explore the art historical and cultural factors that guided the formal development of certain genres of ritual art, and how changes in style and modes of representation suggest corresponding changes in ritual practices. A central theoretical goal of this seminar, therefore, is to build a bridge between the disciplines of art history and anthropology so that a more complex understanding is gained of representation's role in ritual and religion. This project requires viewing the Maya's ritual use of art within a wider, cross-cultural context that compares it not only to other Mesoamerican traditions, but also to other pre-industrial societies outside the Americas. |
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Essential Capabilities:
Speaking, Speaking, Writing, Writing |
| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA ART |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: None |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Hans Belting, LIKENESS AND PRESENCE: A HISTORY OF THE IMAGE BEFORE THE ERA OF ART, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996
David Freidel, Linda Schele and Joy Parker, Maya Cosmos, THREE THOUSAND YEARS ON THE SHAMAN'S PATH, New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1993
Roy A. Rappaport, RITUAL AND RELIGION IN THE MAKING OF HUMANITY, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999
Denis Tedlock, POPOL VUH: THE DEFINITIVE EDITION OF THE MAYAN BOOK OF THE DAWN OF LIFE AND THE GLORIES OF GODS AND KINGS, New York: A Touchstone Book, 1985
Claude Lévi-Strauss, selections.
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Examinations and Assignments:
Weekly presentations; regular short written exercises (usually 1-2 pages); term paper (15-20 pages). |
| Instructor(s): Carrasco,Michael David Times: ..T.... 07:00PM-09:50PM; Location: DAC300; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: 15 | JR major: 0 | | |
| Seats Available: 5 | GRAD: 0 | SR non-major: 0 | JR non-major: 0 | SO: 0 | FR: 0 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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