RLST 2400

RELIGION AND CONTEMPORARY U.S. SOCIETY

Write An essay answering one (1) of the following questions.

(Please identify which question you are answering.)

1. Imagine that a roommate, a friend, or a parent, who has never heard of Peter Berger, finds the following paragraph in your notebook:

The hallmark of a secular society is that the processes of externalization, objectivation, and internalization that create the nomos are carried on largely within the public sphere. Thus the public sphere is the primary bulwark against anomie. One might expect, therefore, that the public sphere would be legitimated by some language invoking numinous power. Yet this is not the case in a secular society. The nomos of the public sphere is legitimated without reference to numinous power. There are a variety of private nomoi whose language invokes numinous power. However, these must compete in the marketplace with secular nomoi. The availability of competing religious and secular nomoi may shape the ways in which individuals experience the challenges of alienation and bad faith.

Naturally your roommate, friend, or parent will respond: "What the hell does that mean?" Write an explanation of the paragraph. You do not have to say whether you agree or disagree with Berger. You simply have to explain the meaning of the terms and the ideas in the paragraph, so that anyone can understand it. In other words, you have to tell what it means in plain English. Berger does not directly address the last sentence in the paragraph above, so explaining it will take some independent thought and speculation on your part.

2. Do you believe that people living in a secular society would be more or less alienated (as Peter Berger defines that word) than people living in a traditionally religious society? Or might people in both societies be equally alienated? To answer this question you will have to explain Berger’s concept of alienation and his distinction between religious and secular society. Be sure to give clear, logical reasons for your answer to the question.

Essays should be about 4 typed pages, or the equivalent in neat handwriting. All papers double-spaced, please. No papers above the length limit will be accepted.

Please read carefully and follow the Guidelines for Writing Essays (on the reverse side).

This exam covers material studied in class through February 3.

It is due in recitation on February 6 / 7.

GUIDELINES FOR WRITING ESSAY EXAMS

As in any other academic course, you are being tested on your ability to understand, organize, synthesize, and think logically about the ideas presented in the course. Therefore, in answering the question, you should show that you have read the assigned readings, attended class, and grasped the main ideas presented in readings and class. On some occasions you may be asked to write about your own personal experiences or feelings. But please remember that your grade is always based on your demonstrated understanding of the course material. Your primary responsibility in every essay is to show what you have learned in this course. The more course material you include in your essay, presented accurately and logically, the better your grade will be.

A good essay is written clearly, concisely, and precisely. It offers a series of general ideas, with each one supported by more specific ideas or evidence, and all the general ideas are arranged in a logical order. Make sure your essay has a clear logical flow of ideas within each paragraph and from one paragraph to the next. If your paragraphs could be rearranged in a different order and make just as much sense, your essay is not yet well organized! A good way to avoid this problem is to make an outline before you write your final draft, so that you can see the organization of your essay clearly. Make every word count, from the very first word; avoid needless introductions and repetitive conclusions. Make every sentence add a new thought or a new way of supporting a main idea.

You should always show that you can express the main ideas of the course in your own words. A good way to do this is to assume that you are writing for someone who knows nothing about the subject; imagine you are writing to a parent, a friend, etc. Do not use lengthy quotations (though you may want to refer to specific pages in the readings in parentheses or footnotes).

Your essay exams will be graded by your recitation instructor. It will be to your advantage to discuss the course material as fully as possible with your instructor, both in class and outside of class. It makes a lot of sense to discuss the ideas BEFORE you write the essays, though you are also encouraged to discuss the essays after they are returned to you with comments. We will be happy to discuss your exam with you, or go over a preliminary draft, during office hours or at other times by appointment. See the syllabus for office hours and phone numbers.

THE SAME GUIDELINES WILL APPLY FOR EVERY EXAM.

PLEASE SAVE THIS SHEET FOR FUTURE REFERENCE.

RLST 2400 SPRING, 2003

Religion and Contemporary Society

PLEASE ANSWER ONE OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

1. Cultural changes do not happen overnight. When a new nomos takes over from an old nomos, the process takes a long time. Even if postmodernism is becoming the new nomos, we are still strongly affected by elements of the traditional (= modern) nomos. So our present nomos is actually a blending of the modern and the postmodern. Pick THREE examples of different facets of life in the U.S. today, and show how elements of the modern and the postmodern are blended in them. Explain the SPECIFIC features or qualities of modernity and postmodernity shown by your examples. Explain what makes those features or qualities modern or postmodern. In other words, explain briefly how those specific features or qualities fit into the larger patterns of modern and postmodern nomoi we have studied. On balance, does your evidence show that we are predominantly still in a modern or now in a postmodern nomos?
2. Choose ONE cultural phenomenon, and explain how it would be experienced differently by a modern person (a person living in the traditional U.S. nomos) and a postmodern person. A "cultural phenomenon" can be anything that people experience in the U.S. today. Some examples: the idea of progress, a famous historical figure like George Washington, a war against Iraq, a television show like the Simpsons, a supermarket. In answering the question, be sure you explain the key features of the modern nomos and the postmodern nomos, to show that you clearly understand the differences between the two. In conclusion, if you had the choice to experience the phenomenon you study in a strictly modern way or a strictly postmodern way, which would you choose? Why?

This essay covers material studied through March 21.

It is DUE in recitation on April 3 / 4.

Essays should be about FOUR (4) typed pages, or the equivalent in neat handwriting;

all papers double-spaced please. Please identify clearly which question you are answering.

Please refer to the guidelines distributed with Exam # 1. Those guidelines apply to all exams in this course.

Remember again that your recitation instructor will be glad to discuss your paper with you as you are preparing it.

FINAL EXAM

RLST 2400: Religion and Contemporary Society Spring, 2003

CHOOSE ONE (1) OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

(Please identify clearly which question you are answering.)

1. Write an essay explaining why you agree or disagree with the following statement:

Charlene Spretnak's holistic spirituality and the various movements of liberation theology all offer themselves as radically new alternatives to modernity and postmodernity (as Jameson understand postmodernity). In fact, though, they include substantial elements of modernity and postmodernity. They do not represent a total break with the two dominant nomoi. Holistic spirituality and liberation theology are somewhat different from modernity and postmodernity. But they are not different enough to be considered totally new or totally different alternatives.

B. Do you think that Spretnak’s holistic spirituality and the movements of liberation theology, taken together, provide the resources for a viable alternative to the dominant public nomos (consisting of modernity and postmodernity)? In order to be "viable," an alternative must be both possible and desirable. In other words, there must be a real chance that the alternative could become the dominant nomos, and there must be good reasons to want the alternative to become the dominant nomos.

C. Both liberation theology and Spretnak's holistic spirituality focus on specific problems in our society. The question is: Do you think that liberation theology and holistic spirituality can work together in an alliance? Or do they contradict each other too much to be effective partners? Discuss how the two movements would deal with one or more specific social problems that they think must be addressed, and specific changes they think are necessary to make our society better. But be sure to show that you understand the religious / spiritual foundations of their approaches.

Guidelines from previous exams apply to this exam too. Remember that there is no "correct" answer to either question. Your grade will depend on how well you demonstrate understanding of the course material in your essay. Be particularly careful to avoid unnecessarily long introduction and quotations. (You may be best off with no quotes at all. You can cite specific page numbers in the books for specific ideas to which you refer.)

This IS your final exam. There is no other final exam.

Essays should be about five (5) typed pages, or the equivalent in neat handwriting. All papers double-spaced, please.

The exam is due by 4:30 PM on Monday, May 5, in the Religious Studies Department mail room, Humanities 273. Look for the box with your recitation instructor’s name.

If you would like your instructor’s comments on your paper, please attach a stamped self-addressed envelope, or call Prof. Chernus (492-6169) after May 10 to make arrangements.

Your recitation instructor will be happy to discuss the exam with you as you are preparing it.

THANK YOU FOR A VERY ENJOYABLE COURSE. HAVE A FINE SUMMER.