ASSN 1          Book Review

Read Some's book, Ritual: Power, Healing and Community.
Write a thorough review of the book, discussing such things as
content you found interesting, ideas you agree or disagree with,
why you did or didn't enjoy the book, things you think the author
should have gone into more deeply (or not at all), whether you
think the book is helpful for this course, other books or courses
the book brought to mind, and so on.

You will be graded on the extent to which your review
demonstrates that you have completed the reading, how well you
have grasped what you have read ,and your ability to relate the
material to other ideas, readings, and experiences.
 

ASSN 2           Ritual Analysis

(1) Watch the Super Bowl.   If necessary, tape it so you can watch
it later. Also watch at least one pre-game and one post-game
show. If you do not know what or when the Super Bowl is,
get a life.

(2) Take careful notes on what is going on, particularly before
the game, during half-time, during commercials, and at the end.
In between, you can watch the game.

 · Look especially for rituals and ritualized behavior associated
with the occasion. These may include all the hype that builds up
to the game and the behavior of announcers, former players, and
so on; special commercials; fan rituals; half-time shows; things
players and coaches do; and so on. Be imaginative and don't
overlook anything.

  · Ask yourself a series of questions to get at the ritual content
and meaning of the game.What actions make this different from
any other game? (Remember, talking is also an action.) What is
repeated from year to year? What seems to reveal a deeper
meaning in American society (if any)? What do these rituals
accomplish? What symbols are used; how and why? What myths
are expressed, and what do they mean? Are there recognizable
ritual elements? (Use the syllabus and the readings as a guide to
some of the things that might be present). How are ritual
elements used, and what for?  In what way, if any, can sports be
considered to be like religion?  Are sports rituals like religious
rituals?  How?

(3) Write a paper detailing your findings. Describe the event, its
ritual aspects, the answers to the questions above and any
others that you think of. Argue convincingly that the Super Bowl
is indeed a ritual event. (You can argue that it is not, but since
most ritualists are convinced that it is, you will have an uphill
climb if you choose this option.)

The length of the paper is up to you, but be sure you cover the
assignment in detail, including whatever you have learned and
can conclude from the course readings, lectures, and other
material. It will probably need to be at least 5 pp. (for a very
concise writer), but that will vary from student to student.

ASSN 3           Web Research

For this assignment you must do some substantial web research.
This means you will need access to a computer--your own, a
friend's or partner's, or a university computer lab.  You will need
to be familiar with basic web-surfing techniques and be able to
search out and pursue interesting websites.

First, go to the Websites webpages, linked to your syllabus page,
and review the list of websites there.  These lists were created by
former students in this course, who researched, reviewed, and
rated the sites shown.  Your task will be to find new and
interesting sites to add to the list.  No doubt a number of these l
inks will now no longer work, so report those that do not.

                               PART I

1.  Find THREE (3) useful, informative, interesting, and valuable
websites related to the study of ritual.  Avoid websites that are

• commercial sites
• the official sites of particular religions
• sites that deal with ritual only peripherally

2.  Write a descriptive one-page report for each website,
describing its contents and why it is useful, informative, etc.
Your description should say
• what type of ritual information it provides,
• how it might be useful;
• why the website is different from others you have seen;
why anyone should believe the information posted there;      How can we judge its veracity?  Is the data valid, or the raving of some nut?  How would we know?
• whether this would be a good website for objective,                   academic research (Is it only "fun"?  How "serious" is it?
• What does it have to contribute?  Who has authored it?             Is it objective? scholarly? unbiased?)


3. Your website, with description, will be posted on a webpage
for the class to use in ritual research. Thus, it is important that
you e-mail your assignment to me or give it to me on disk.

4.  There are lots of websites out there, and I do not want
duplication, or a simple list of whatever sites Google turns up
for you.  Thus, you may not submit information about a site
done by another student.  Here is how that works:  first come,
first served.  You may turn in your descriptions at any time, one
at a time or together.  As soon as I have one, I will post the
information.  You must consult the webpage at
www.fiu.edu/~northupl/ritualsites.html(also accessible from
course main page) to see whether the site you are researching
has already been submitted.  If you hand in a site description
that has already been done--even if it hasn't been posted yet--
you will have to do another one.  Be sure your website is not
already listed on the Ritual Sites page.  Obviously, the sooner
you get started, the easier it will be for you.

5.  The longer you wait, the harder it will be to get them all done!
The final due date for all three is listed on the syllabus.
Remember, I will accept the first report I receive on a given
website, then require another from everyone else who did the
same site, even if they are all handed in on the due date.

                                 PART II
 

Review the websites posted by your classmates.  Yes, all of them.
Write a short but complete report that does the following:

(1)  List the websites in order of your evaluation of their overall
value, best to worst.  Rate them on a scale of 1-5, with "1" the
worst and "5" the best.  Your evaluation should be based on
factors such as

Usefulness of information

Quantity/thoroughness of information

Reliability  (source, bias, research quality, etc.)

Type of site (personal, educational, religious group, etc.)

User-friendliness

How interesting it is

Site design

so on, and so forth, et cetera....

(2)  Next to each website on your list, write a few sentences
summarizing why you gave it the ranking you did (based on the
list above and whatever you want to add), and what features of
the site you think deserve comment.

ASSN 4         Ritual Analysis

This will be a short (2-4 pp.) essay on an article that will be
assigned to you.  You will be expected to analyze the article,           Click here for article
discuss the rituals involved, and relate them to the rest of the
material in the course.