Approaches to History (393-0-22)

Topic

The Natural and Supernatural in Southeast Asia

Instructors

Haydon Leslie Cherry
847/467-3032
Harris Hall - Room 217

Meeting Info

Harris Hall L06: Tues, Thurs 3:30PM - 4:50PM

Overview of class

The Natural and Supernatural in Southeast Asia

This course examines the ways in which different Southeast Asian peoples
have conceived of what we might think of as the natural world - the
environment; and the supernatural world - various religious traditions and
cosmologies; and the continuous interplay between the two. Together we
will explore the Kahiringan tradition of the Ngaju Dayak people from
Central Kalimantan in Indonesia; representations of nature in the textual
traditions and temple paintings of the Vessantera jataka in Myanmar and
Thailand; swiddening and headhunting in the Philippines; and the hydraulic
landscape of Bali's water temples. Our goal will be to understand the
kinds of conceptual and practical resources Southeast Asians have brought
to understanding and controlling the world in which they have lived.

Class Notes

Area of concentration: Asia/Middle East

Class Attributes

Historical Studies Distro Area