Postgraduate Course: Anthropological Approaches to Shamanism and Spirit Possession (SCAN11015)
Course Outline
School |
School of Social and Political Science |
College |
College of Humanities and Social Science |
Course type |
Standard |
Availability |
Available to all students |
Credit level (Normal year taken) |
SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Credits |
20 |
Home subject area |
Social Anthropology |
Other subject area |
None |
Course website |
None |
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Course description |
The anthropological engagement with shamanism and spirit possession reflects a particular history of the discipline, pushing us to the limits of both the theoretical and empirical. In this course students will examine these phenomena and the social relations involved through lectures addressing theoretical approaches and case studies across regional contexts. We will ask to what extent a universal shamanism can be extracted from the specificities of locality, and explore the range of theoretical ideas used to understand and explain these phenomena. In particular we shall ask, what has been the relationship between these practitioners and modernity, particularly the state?; are shamans and mediums best understood as healers, or religious practitioners, and does this distinction matter? Core lectures will be delivered by the course convenor, with several guest slots delivered by staff across social anthropology drawing on their diverse regional engagement with these practitioners. |
Entry Requirements
Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites |
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Prohibited Combinations |
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Other requirements |
None
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Additional Costs |
None |
Course Delivery Information
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Delivery period: 2010/11 Semester 1, Available to all students (SV1)
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WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: None |
Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
No Classes have been defined for this Course |
First Class |
First class information not currently available |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students will have a critical understanding of the historical evolution of the anthropology of shamanism and spirit possession. They will have been exposed to a wide range of regional approaches to the phenomena and will understand its place in the broader regional traditions of anthropology, and its divergent manifestations. They should be familiar with the key anthropological analyses of shamanism and spirit possession from Lewis and structural functionalism, through Tausig and historically informed political economic analyses, to medical anthropology and the anthropological engagement with religion. The strengths and limits of different approaches will be developed through case studies across regions and countries, and reflected in essays and assessments. |
Assessment Information
Essay of 4000 words. |
Please see Visiting Student Prospectus website for Visiting Student Assessment information |
Special Arrangements
Not entered |
Contacts
Course organiser |
Dr Ian Harper
Tel: (0131 6)50 3816
Email: ian.harper@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary |
Miss Madina Howard
Tel:
Email: Madina.Howard@ed.ac.uk |
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copyright 2010 The University of Edinburgh -
1 September 2010 6:39 am
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