REL 180 - FS: First-Year Seminar

Credits: 3-4

Fall 2015, REL 180-01: First-year Seminar: Travel, Mythic and Modern (3). First-Year Seminar. Prerequisite: First-year class standing. What is travel? How does travel change people? When can we call travel religious? And when we study travel, what questions should we ask? We address these issues by learning theories about what happens when we travel, and by studying some of the journeys of mythic heroes from various cultures (such as Odysseus, Moses, the Buddha, Rama of classical India, and the Chinese trickster called Monkey), of shamans and pilgrims, of modem non-religious travelers (such as Darwin, Nellie Bly, and Kurtz in Heart of Darkness), and then of “new-age seekers” and religious tourism. This discussion-based seminar raises questions about both “religion” and “travel” and challenges the usual meanings. (HU) Marks. Fall 2015 Planned Offering: Offered occasionally. Each first-year seminar topic is approved by the Dean of The College and the Committee on Courses and Degrees. Applicability to FDRs and other requirements varies.