REL 322 Spirits of Capitalism: Spirit Possession and Witchcraft in Africa and the Diaspora
This seminar explores the relationship between global capitalism and phenomena like spirit possession and "witchcraft" in different historical and cultural contexts in Africa and the diaspora. Rather than approach such phenomena as exotica, we will instead seek to understand them as sophisticated forms of theory and practice. In the first part of the course, students will engage with classic theories of capitalism and its critics. The course then engages with specific case studies of possession-based religions and moral panics about witchcraft as vital windows into the relationship between economic forces and religious development. [GM2, H]
Instructor
Robert Blunt