Universität Wien
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143144 SE Aspirations to Social Advancement and Religious Reform through Christianity and Islam (2022W)

Case Studies from the African Continent

Continuous assessment of course work
ON-SITE

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 20 participants
Language: German, English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

As you can determine from the list of dates for meetings, the course will be held in both weekly sessions and weekend seminars. You have to make sure to attend the Friday/Saturday weekends as these will be the dates to work with Dr. Sounaye on aspects of religious reform in Islam.
As regards the weekly sessions two unattended sessions will be tolerated.
The sessions wil be held in German and English

  • Friday 07.10. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 14.10. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 21.10. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 28.10. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 11.11. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 2 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-06
  • Friday 25.11. 13:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Saturday 26.11. 10:00 - 13:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 20.01. 13:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Saturday 21.01. 10:00 - 13:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Friday 27.01. 13:00 - 15:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

How do aspirations to a better life have inspired religious reform? How do the social and the religious become the sites where reform and aspirations to a better life become entangled? This seminar offers an examination of the ways in which Muslims and Christians in Africa have articulated, formulated and negotiated their aspirations to a better life using a religious frame and agenda. Over the last few decades, the claims and initiatives of religious reform both among Muslims and Christians have resulted in social transformations processes that have relied heavily on social categories such as youth and women, and religious figures such as pastors and preachers. Gender and generational shifts within religious spheres came to matter where until more recently elders or male and established figures remained rather unchallenged.
What are these processes saying about being religious? How does religion become the avenue and the tool to transform the society? A shift to youth, women and emerging figures, as indicated above, may be interpreted as the sign of a social transformation process underway and as a response to the impact of liberalization and democratization. It may be read as the result of various dynamics that are generally reshaping contemporary Africa. The course will use the lens of religion and religiosity to examine how youth and other social groupings have become social agents in their own right and not mere subservient of an order they have to obey to.
The course requires you to read a set of secondary literature on religious transformation in both Christian and Islamic contexts. Through ethnographic materials and films the course offers an empirical and critical examination of these processes as they become the sites of identity formation, construction of authority, reformulation of gender roles and expression of agency, all in a context where poverty, prosperity, democracy, freedom, women’s rights are major preoccupations.

Assessment and permitted materials

We will ask you individually or in small groups to provide a summary of what we did in each session and what were the main issues of our discussion (05-0,75 pages). One summary after each lesson (not each of you will write a summary after each session). This will serve to keep Dr. Sounaye informed, who is based at the ZMO in Berlin and who will come in person for the weekend seminars. This counts as part of the "attendance & participation" aspect.
We will then expect you to write either a paper of 15-20 pages (topics to be defined and developed as part of the course) OR to write two shorter papers of some 7-10 pages each (one reflection on a discussed film and a second paper on a thematic issue) - to be handed in by 30 March 2023

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

20% attendance and participation
20% presentations/ discussion/ chairing of sessions
60% either one extended paper (15-20 pp) OR two shorter pages (7-10 pp each)

Gesamtnote/ Overall grading
100-91% Very good
90-81% Good
80-71% Satisfactory
70-61% Sufficient/ Pass
60-0% Fail

Each individual assignment must receive a "pass" mark at minimum to result in a positive overall grading.

Examination topics

Seminar materials, secondary literature, your own and independently researched materials/ literature

Reading list

Especially in the weekend sessions we will deal with primary material, i.e. films and Dr. Sounaye's own ethnographic materials.
You will also be assigned readings from secondary literature. Bibliographies will have to be completed by you as our students as you are working towards your semester paper.

Association in the course directory

SAG.SE.1, SAG.SE.2

Last modified: Th 06.10.2022 08:28