Magic, Witchcraft & Religion
Midterm I- Study Guide & Essay Questions
Breakdown of points: Essay will be worth 30 points, Objective questions 70 points (35 questions)
Keep in mind you are allowed and encouraged to use one page of handwritten notes for the exams, (8.5
X 11, two sided, one dimensional) but you must turn it in. DO NOT copy anyone else’s notes or this
will be constituted cheating. I hope you find this study guide helpful, keep in mind that this is only a
guide and not an exact reflection of what will be on the exam. You are responsible for learning all
material assigned and discussed throughout the semester. Some exam question may come directly from
the textbook and may not have been discussed in class.
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Anthropological Study of Religion
o Historic overview of the emergence of religion in humanity (from Neanderthals to the
Enlightenment period).
o Films:
 Grasping for the Wind (relevant philosophers and their influence on
enlightenment period)
 Touching the Timeless- Navajo ritual
o ARTICLES- Key points/concepts and rationality (supporting evidence)
 C. Geertz- Religion (theories on religion and history of the development of study
of religion in the West). Main philosopher and their contributions (i.e. Freud,
Jung, Durkheim, Wallace, Tylor, etc.)
 M. Harris article- Why We Became Religious & the Evolution of the Spirit
World?
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D. Lee’s article- Religious Perspectives in Anthropology (religion among
“primitives”)
Myth, Symbolism, and Taboo
o Myth, Symbolism, & Taboo explanation and discussion (lecture notes)
o Films:
 Serpent Handling- functionality and context of the handlers
o ARTICLES- Key concepts and rationality (supporting evidence)
 McClure- The Study of Mythology Key concepts from this article discussed in
class (see online notes)on the history of the study of myth.
 M. Douglas’ article- Taboo (why people have taboos, problems of learning, based
on people’s perceptions, mana among Polynesians, etc.)
 M.L. Daugherty- Serpent Handling as a Sacrament (church, people, faith,
reasons, outcomes and justifications, future.)
Ritual
o Ritual- Chapter introduction, focus on Wallace list of types of rituals(Therapy rituals, etc.)
o Films:
 Alternative Religions
o ARTICLES
 Miner- Body Ritual among the Nacirema (meaning of this article, various rituals
and practitioners, relevance to anthropology)
 Gordon- Female Circumcision in Egypt and Sudan (types of FGM’s, regions
where practiced, reasons, promoters and advocates against it, new medical
changes, statistical info., etc.)