Courses in Religion taught by Loring Danforth

225. Gods, Heroes, Magic, and Mysteries: Religion in Ancient Greece.

An anthropological and historical approach to ancient Greek religion in which archeological, literary, and art-historical sources are examined and compared with evidence from other cultures to gain an understanding of the role of religion in ancient Greek culture and of changing concepts of the relation between man and the sacred. Topics to be explored include pre-Homeric and Homeric religion and religious thought, cosmology, mystery cults, civil religion, and manifestations of the irrational, such as dreams, ecstasy, shamanism, and magic. This course is the same as Anthropology 225. Open to first-year students. co-taught with Mr. Allison

261. Myth, Folklore, and Popular Culture.

A variety of texts, including ancient Greek myths, Grimms\rquote folktales, Apache jokes, African proverbs, and Walt Disney comics, are examined in light of important theoretical approaches employed by anthropologists interested in understanding the role of such expressive forms in cultures throughout the world. Major emphasis is placed on psychoanalytic, Marxist, and structuralist approaches. This course is the same as Anthropology 234. Open to first-year students.