Announcements
1/1: Happy New Year! The final grade distribution for the course is now available. Your grades will be on SPIRE soon.
12/16: OK, the final is over. So what religion am I?
12/13: Reminder: The final exam for this course will be held on Tuesday, December 16, from 1:30 to 3:30 PM, in Bartlett 65.
Makeup exam: The makeup exam is Monday, December 15, at 12 noon, on the 6th floor of Herter Hall. Meet right in front of the elevators on the 6th floor. If Monday is a snow day, and the University is closed at noon, we will reschedule the exam to Thursday, December 18, at 8 a.m., in the same place.
12/8: Scans of the glossary to Smart are available on the online resources page for those of you who were not able to get the book at the bookstore.
12/1: The study guide for the final exam has been posted on the Handouts page.
9/22: The BBC has a neat web application, Civilisations, that traces the main events and geographical changes of several world religions (along with the Roman and British empires). If you want to see how the areas of influence of Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Sikhism changed over time, and you have a fast computer with a broadband internet connection, check it out. Keep in mind, though, that geography is not everything and that all of these religious traditions have multiple branches.
Where and when
Final exam: Tuesday, December 16, 1:30-3:30 PM, Bartlett 65 (map)
Lecture: Tuesday and Thursday, 1-1:50 PM, School of Management, Room 137 (class #33788 in SPIRE)
Discussion sections:
| D1: Friday, 9:05, Tobin 421 |
D4: Friday, 9:05, SOM 120 D5: Friday, 10:10,Tobin 304 D6: Friday, 12:20, Tobin 421 |
D7: Friday, 9:05, SOM 31 |
Honors Colloquium: Thursday, 2:30-3:20 PM, Herter 110. (Contact Prof. Ogilvie for details on the honors colloquium; you can also register for it on SPIRE.)
Site map: Home | Lecture Outlines | Handouts | Online Resources
I have compiled a page of online resources for this course. Use common sense and your critical faculties when you read material online. When you visit a website, find out who wrote it and what their intended audience is. If you can't figure out who wrote a webpage, don't trust it.
About the instructors...
History 112 will be taught by Professor Brian W. Ogilvie. Prof. Ogilvie's home page has current information, including office hours, telephone, and e-mail . You can also see his profile on the history department web site.
The graduate teaching assistants are:
- Germaine Etienne (sections D1-D3), Herter 707 (tel. 545-6698), getienne@history.umass.edu,
office hours Tu 2-3, Th 2-3, and by appointment. - Thomas Anderson (sections D4-D6), Herter 705 (tel. 545-6770), tjanders@history.umass.edu,
office hours M 12-1, W 9-10, and by appointment. - Andrew Dausch (sections D7-D9), Herter 705 (tel. 545-6770), ard@history.umass.edu,
office hours Tu 9:30-10:45, Th 2-3, and by appointment.
Brief Course Description (for visitors)
Religions may have divine origins, but religious belief and practice, like everything else human, have their own histories. In this course we will consider the origins and development of seven major world religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. We will also consider other religious traditions, the new religions of the twentieth century, and the confrontations and conversations between different religions. We will examine not only religious belief but also ritual practice and the place of religion in society and culture.
This course does not advocate any religion, nor does it advocate atheism; it remains agnostic about the divine inspiration of religious traditions. Rather, it focuses on addressing religion within a comparative, academic perspective. We will look at the history of academic study of religion and develop a vocabulary for talking about religion. The course thus approaches religious traditions from two perspectives: understanding religion from within--from the believer's perspective--and from outside, as a historical and social phenomenon. By the end of the course, students should understand how religious traditions remain a vital part of life even in an increasingly secular and ecumenical world.
Site map: Home | Lecture Outlines | Handouts | Online Resources
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