RELS 1512: Local Arts/Humanities: American Indian Lifeways

University of North Carolina, Charlotte

This Local Theme course uses the methods and insights of the social sciences to explore the central question of what it means to be a member of a "local" community. Through the study of the experiences of different peoples, cultures, and communities in our city, our region, or our nation, students will be able to better understand the complexity and diversity of the society in which we live. Selected topics crucial to American religions serve as a prism for understanding how religion has both shaped and been shaped by American cultures. Subjects may include various religious traditions, new religious movements and cult controversies, conversions, environmental issues, popular cultures, and how variables such as sexuality, race, class, gender, region, and politics have changed and been changed by religious worldviews in the past and present. Section information text: This particular course is an introduction to the various dimensions of American Indian religiosity in the US and Canada: myth and orality; sacred space, time, and objects; embodied lifeways and ceremonies; notions of personhood. A key component of the course is an analysis of how American Indian traditions have changed during points of contact with non-indigenous peoples. Adaptation, revitalization, and resistance are cast as vital functions of a living religion. Special emphasis is placed on how American Indian responses to climate change and other forms of environmental degradation are often rooted in religious sensibilities.

Average GPA: 3.28

Grade distribution records: 970 students across 6 terms.

Grade distribution

Based on 970 student grade records across 6 terms and 5 professors.

Instructors

• Sean Mccloud 325 students, Average GPA 3.54
• Fotini Katsanos 189 students, Average GPA 3.07
• Janna Shedd 158 students, Average GPA 3.20
• Janet Mcdaniel 149 students, Average GPA 3.16
• Julia Moore 149 students, Average GPA 3.17