Course Syllabus
Welcome to Understanding World Religions!
Here, you can obtain general information about the course, such as syllabus and reading list.
Course coordinator and teacher: Jessica Moberg, jessica.moberg@lir.gu.se
Course administrator: Daniel Rolk, daniel.rolk@lir.gu.se
Student counselor: Kristina Svensson, kristina.svensson@lir.gu.se
Course contents
Is religion a universal human phenomenon or a category created by scholars? Is religion grounded in social structures, in biology or elsewhere, and which are its main characteristics? How do we categorize, name and represent religion, and which are the scholarly, social and political consequences? Is it fruitful to speak about “world religions”?
The course treats various ways of understanding and categorizing religion. The course critically examines the “World Religion Paradigm” (WRP) and discusses alternative approaches. It presents critique of the understanding that religion is a universal phenomenon, and highlights recent attempts to defend and redefine the category religion. Key texts that students are expected to acquire before the course begins are listed in the course literature list. Instruction will take place through one introductory lecture, three seminars and one workshop.
Course design
You can follow the course online or on campus. The course takes place on Thursdays, with campus activities 13.15-15.00 and online activities 15.15-17.00. The course starts with a course introduction, September 7, 13.15-16.00. It contains a course presentation and a lecture that introduces the field of research. The introduction is held on campus and is streamed live online via zoom. The introduction is not recorded.
The rest of the course is divided into three sections where the literature is read, scrutinized and discussed. You have the opportunity to begin the discussion on Canvas, where you can highlight and discuss substantive, methodological and theoretical aspects of the literature. Lively discussions, while decent and respectful, are encouraged. The teacher(s) supervise the discussions, but do not participate, act as moderators or keep the discussion going. Each period ends with a seminar on campus (13.15-15.00) and online (15.15-17.00). The seminars are part of the examination and are mandatory. If you miss a seminar you need to write a review of the book in question. The seminars take place September 21, October 5 and October 19.
The course ends with a workshop October 26, 9.15-12.00, where you have the opportunity to present and get feedback on your half-finished written take-home examination. It is not mandatory. The workshop takes place online via zoom, for both campus and online students.
When you are a registered student you will have access to further information related to the course, and how to get started.
Course registration
The registration will be open between 2023-08-17 and 2023-08-23.
You will find information about the Department of Literature, History of Ideas, and Religion on our web site.