This course same as 195:318
01 MW6 CAC 33521 WALKER MU-208
Sacred texts are texts that have been given canonical status within particular religious traditions, and so are likely to be interpreted in a purely religious framework. However, by examining these texts from a literary perspective it is possible to find new and interesting insights about them that can restore to them some of their originally pre-canonical controversial qualities. We will take several texts of this sort, such as the Book of Job, Exodus, and the Bhagavad Gita, and consider how they have been viewed in an unconventional way by Jung (Answer to Job), Freud (Moses and Monotheism) and myself as an unconventional Gita fan. We also will look at how sacred texts have provided subtexts for the modern creative imagination, as in the case of Godard’s film Hail, Mary and D.H. Lawrence’s Apocalypse. The literary approach is meant to enhance the experience of the texts without recourse to any particular faith or set of beliefs.
There will be one course paper of about 15 pages, several short response papers, a midterm and a final examination.
Grading: attendance 10% (three unexcused absences without penalty), midterm 20%, final 35%, paper and response papers 35%
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