Course Listings

1st half semester course "All rites begin in simplicity, are brought to fulfillment in elegant form, and end in joy." So says Xunzi, the great Confucian writer of antiquity. Is he right? What are rituals? Are they routine acts, which we do simply because we've always done them? Or are they meaningful acts, which we do because they actually signify something? If the latter, what do they signify? Can we say that all rituals somehow religious? If so, why? If not, why not? In this half-course, we'll read selections from various writers on ritual. Using film and other media, we'll also look at a variety of ritual activities from different cultures, including College rituals, religious ceremonies, holidays like Thanksgiving, and the "little rituals" of everyday life in, e.g., media, sports, or politics.