Description
In this course we will explore many different aspects of sacred space in the United States. Throughout the semester we will challenge the notion of “sacred” and seek to find ways in which we can use this term in a significant manner. What does it mean, where do we find it, how is it used and debated, and how does it orient people’s thoughts, lives, and activities? We will start with an examination of sacred space traditionally conceived: in churches, synagogues, and temples—the spaces easily identified as sacred by some if not all. We will then explore sacred space less traditionally conceived: in cemeteries, at memorials and battlefields, and in secular locations (Walt Disney World and Washington, DC, for example). We will conclude with an examination of personal space and the sacred properties of identity, the body, and the disembodied.
This course is designed to encourage you to think about the space you occupy in a way that challenges your current conceptions. Therefore, heavy emphasis will be placed on critical thinking skills, as well as creativity and circumspection. You will be expected to participate fully in class discussions, complete all of the assigned readings, make presentations during the semester, and submit a final project on an American sacred space.
In addition, because this course is listed as both RELST and WES200, you are reminded that the Wesleyan Seminars are an immersion into liberal arts education. Within the seminars, students will learn how to identify complex problems and issues, consult expert sources, question assumptions, consider disparate points of view, develop complex personal positions, and present conclusions. The three seminars are progressively more sophisticated in their approaches and expectations.
Seminars are not merely places where knowledge is imparted, but where it is exchanged and created. To successfully complete a seminar, you need to engage actively with the course material, me, and your classmates. As a community of learners, we will work together to explore and consider our topic from a number of different perspectives. Each person’s participation is crucial.
Goals
By the end of the semester, you should:
⇒ Have a developing vocabulary for related concepts and theories related to “sacred” space;
⇒ Have an understanding of the various examples and purposes of these spaces in the American context;
⇒ Have the basic tools for examining the various constructions – sacred and secular – of such space; and
⇒ Because this class is listed as both RELST & WES200, you should also achieve “AAC&U [Association of American Colleges & University] milestone level 3 standards”:
◊ “Critically consider an issue or problem”;
◊ “Consult sources and consider expert opinions”;
◊ “Question assumptions and attend to relevant contexts when presenting a position”;
◊ “Develop a specific position while acknowledging different sides of an issue”; and
◊ “Articulate conclusions effectively before an audience.”
NOTE: WES Seminar II courses may be used to count towards a major; however, if you do so you will have to complete another Seminar II to complete your general studies requirements.
Texts & Readings
The following texts have been assigned for this class.
⇒ Eliade, Mircea. The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion, trans. Willard R. Trask;
⇒ Foote, Kenneth E. Shadowed Ground: America’s Landscapes of Violence and Tragedy;
⇒ Lane, Belden C. Landscapes of the Sacred: Geography and Narrative in American Spirituality.
In addition, links for electronic versions of various articles are included on the course “Schedule of Readings & Assignments” page. Others may occasionally be distributed in class or linked to the class Web site.
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR OBTAINING and COMPLETING ALL of the READINGS, including any ON-LINE READINGS or READINGS DISTRIBUTED IN CLASS.
Evaluation
Attendance (10%)
You are expected to attend all classes and complete all assignments. Your attendance grade will be calculated by diving the number of classes you attend by the total number of classes held.
In-Class Participation (10% + 10% = 20%)
Basic Participation (10%): You are expected to participate fully in class discussions and engage the materials in class. Regular and thoughtful participation in class – as well as enthusiastic participation in the assignments – will be rewarded in this category; mindless blather will not. In addition, on occasion I will engage you directly in informal conversation about the assigned materials, and you will be evaluated based on your ability to discuss the materials substantively and meaningfully.
Reading Presentation (10%): On any given day you may be called upon to introduce the materials that were assigned for that day’s class. (If there was more than one article or chapter assigned, you will be called upon to introduce one of the readings.) This means that – for every class – you must be prepared to summarize the assigned reading and provide some basic thoughts / reflections on that reading.
“An American Sacred Space” Project (10% + 10% + 20% + 30% = 70%)
“An American Sacred Space” Project is an opportunity for you to identify, investigate, and justify the selection of any American space as “sacred.” However, the justification must be based on theories assigned and discussed in this class over the course of the semester. “An American Sacred Space” project is comprised of several parts:
1. “Identifying an American Sacred Space” paper (10%)
On (or before) the date specified, you must submit a short statement (no fewer than 1000 words) identifying the (American) space you wish to investigate, either as an example of a space that may be considered sacred (by some, or all), or as an example that is currently considered sacred (by some, or all) that should not be. This statement will serve as the introduction to your larger project, so be certain to state it as if you were introducing your topic: identify the space, describe it briefly, and make an assertion related to your anticipated argument (that you intend to argue that the space is / is not sacred).
NOTE: Do not be concerned if your ideas / arguments evolve as the semester progresses; this statement is a structural foundation for the larger project, meaning that the specifics can shift as your thinking progresses. Also, keep in mind that the notion of “sacred” is one that will be developed / challenged over the course of the semester – that is actually the point of it all!
2. “Defining Sacred Space” conversation (10%)
On one of the two dates specified, you will schedule a 10 minute meeting with me where we have a one-on-one conversation about sacred space in which you provide evidence of being able to recall and integrate the various arguments / definitions found in the assigned readings we have discussed in class.
It is expected that this conversation will provide you with a basic theoretical foundation for your final paper.
Definition Assignment Guidelines
3. “Annotated Bibliography,” written (10%) and in conversation (10%)
On the date specified, you will submit an annotated bibliography (of no less than 1000 words), which is an alphabetized listing of sources with an accompanying explanation of each reading. The bibliography should contain a variety of entries from sources spread over a variety of formats, including scholarly journal articles / chapters; newspaper / periodical articles, and Web-based information. It is expected that at least one of your sources will be from among the course readings.
On one of the two dates specified, you will schedule a 10 minute meeting with me where we have a one-on-one conversation about those sources that you have found during the investigation of your previously selected space. In this conversation it is expected that you will provide evidence of being able to recall and integrate the various arguments / definitions found in the materials you have identified on your annotated bibliography.
It is expected that this annotated bibliography, and our conversation about its contents, will provide you with a basic research foundation for your final paper.
4. “An American Sacred Space,” written (20%) and in conversation (10%)
On the date specified, you will submit the final version of your “Sacred Space” project (of no less than 2000 words). This final version should include all of the elements developed for steps #1-3 (above); you will be evaluated not only in how well you have developed an argument (with a thesis, evidence, and conclusion based on that evidence), explored and evaluated primary and secondary sources, and utilized methods explored in class and in the readings, but also in how well you have incorporated the comments on the previously submitted work and suggestions and ideas developed during our related conversations.
[WES Seminar acknowledgment: This final written assignment will serve as an artifact that can be assessed at a later date. It therefore needs to demonstrate your engagement with the Wesleyan Seminar objectives (see criteria, above). More on this as the semester progresses.]
On the same date, you will schedule a 10 minute meeting with me where we have a one-on-one conversation about the sacred space you identified, your accompanying notions of sacred space, the materials you used to evaluate your sacred space, and any general conclusions. In this conversation it is expected that you will provide evidence of having integrated all of the various components of the project as well as related class assignments and discussions.
Final Paper Guidelines
THERE IS NO FINAL EXAM IN THIS CLASS.
