RELI 180: Introduction to Islamic Civilization Introduction Instructor Required Texts and Readings Course Assignments and Expectations Grading Academic Policies Introduction Welcome to RELI 180: Introduction to Islamic Civilization. This course will introduce you to some of the major themes, issues, people, places, sights, and sounds of Islam past and present. Being an introductory course, it presumes no prior knowledge of Islam. This course is intended to highlight the manifold expressions of Islamic piety in diverse historical, cultural, and geographical contexts. Its two broad aims are, first and foremost, to provide you with basic knowledge of Islamic history, belief, and ritual life; and secondarily, to equip you with knowledge for critically an, actively analyzing discussions of Islam in media and contemporary world events. In this course, you will
gain knowledge about Islamic civilizations, including religion, history, politics, culture, and society, from seventh-century Mecca to Islam in twenty-first-century America learn about the diversity of interpretations and expressions of Islam that exist among Muslims be exposed to Muslim cultures from around the world through historical texts, multimedia, art, and literature understand problems related to the study of religion and history develop critical thinking, reading, and writing skills in the humanities. Islam is the religion of nearly two billion people, roughly one in four people on the planet today. It is a faith that is over fourteen centuries old, the youngest of the three Abrahamic traditions with which it shares aspects of theology and core values. It is a religion of almost unimaginable diversity: a faith of Americans and Indonesians, of Europeans and Africans, of liberals and conservatives, of radicals and pacifists, of scientists and filmmakers, of computer engineers and poets, of Nobel Prize winners and slumdwellers. This course aims to draw attention to the rich history, culture, and society within and related to Muslim and/or Islamic traditions. The course begins with an overview of issues pertaining to the study of Islam today. We will proceed with an in-depth look at the emergence of Islam and the life of Muhammad, followed by readings from the Qur an. We will aim to understand not just the major themes and structure of the Qur an, but also learn how Muslims around the world use the Qur an in prayer, recitation, and other aspects of lived religious practices. Next, the course traces the twin influences of the Qur an as text and Muhammad as spiritual model in the growth of Islamic law, literature, and mysticism. We will examine themes such as Islamic visual arts and architecture, the history, culture, and knowledge production of medieval Muslim societies.the course closes with some extended reflections on the fate of Muslim societies under European colonial domination in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the status of Islam today, the issue of gender in Islam approaches to the problem of religiously motivated violence, and an overview of Muslims in America. The course is offered through the Religious Studies Department at the University of North Carolina. This program treats the study of religions as integral to the humanities as a whole, and believes that all people, regardless of their own religious backgrounds, benefit from learning about other religions. Religious literacy is vital in helping students become informed and responsible citizens of the world. This is all the more true for learning about Islam, which is typically underrepresented in university curricula, while at the same time, it is increasingly discussed and debated in popular media (but often only on a superficial level). It is my hope that this course will vastly expand your knowledge of one of the world's largest and most historically consequential religions, and guide you to resources that you can use to take your knowledge further. As we proceed with the course, many questions will arise. Do not hesitate to ask questions and post them to the Forums. We learn by asking. One thing you will quickly realize, however, is that few questions yield simple answers when talking about religions in general, and Islam in particular. Specifically, you will see that questions of the What does Islam say about X? are rarely answerable at all. For one, Islam doesn't say anything. Islam is not a person, and doesn't have opinions of its own. Rather, Muslims have countless opinions,
and we will be studying some of the formative ways that Muslims have understood their own religion and history. In other words, it is important not to treat religions as if they were unified entities with set dogmas that every one of their members follows uniformly. This is especially true for a religious tradition of such breadth and complexity as Islam. Required Texts and Readings See the course description for the most uptodate list of materials. COURSE Assignments and Expectations See the schedule for assignment due dates. Tweeting with #reli180 To better facilitate the dissemination of relevant news articles, research, films, videos, songs, and so on, related to the context of this course, I have established a Twitter hashtag, #reli180, where we will share links with the entire class. Although the use of social media is widespread, most people use it mainly to connect with friends and to talk/complain about their lives and tell everyone about the food they eat. The purpose of this assignment is to educate you about the educational and professional uses of Twitter and social media in general. Through Twitter, one can keep on top of cutting-edge developments, keep track of the latest news and debates, and engage in conversations and ask questions of specialists in a field. You must sign-up for a free Twitter account if you do not have one. Click the image below to access the Twitter site. If you prefer not to share your personal Twitter account for this class, create a second (temporary) account. You can also create a pseudonymous Twitter account for class as long as you share the name of your account with the class. You must tweet related articles, collection of images, videos, and so on, with a short blurb that includes the class hashtag, #reli180. To receive participation credit, you must post a minimum of 6 original links over the semester. You must also respond to 6 people, either your peers in the class or other people on Twitter tweeting on topics related to our class. You must also retweet a minimum of 6 original tweets during the semester. When I favorite your post, it means I have included it in your Twitter activity. You will also be able to follow the latest tweets on the class Sakai homepage. To protect your privacy, I will not follow you (unless you want me to), but feel free to follow me @CandaceMix. The important thing is to follow #reli180 on a frequent basis. This is not optional! Media Analysis Paper
For this assignment, you will choose 4 news sources that cover the same event related to Islam or Muslim societies and critique these sources in their coverage of the event in a 800-1000 word paper. The aim of this assignment is for you to reflect critically on representations of Islam in various media, using your knowledge of Islamic history and the Qur'an to do so. You should cite at least one class reading in the paper. Consider a variety of approaches (domestic or international news sources) as well as a variety of media (televisual, audio, print, Internet, and so on). You should briefly summarize the content of the news source and focus on analyzing its rhetoric and argumentation (or lack thereof). You need not necessarily disagree on all, or for that matter, any points that the source makes, so long as you justify your claims.you will submit your paper both on Sakai as well as on the class blog. See the schedule for due dates. Discussion Forum Participating every week in the discussion forum is absolutely essential to the success of this course. The forum is our classroom. This course can only be successful if we have active discussions. Posting Requirements and Guidelines You are required to post at least two original forum posts (minimum 250 words) and two responses to classmates posts (minimum 100 words) for each lesson. Your original posts for each lesson are due by Wednesday and Saturday at 11:55 pm; and your response posts are due for each lesson by Thursday and Sunday at 11:55 pm. Follow these simple guidelines for your discussion posts. First, make sure your posting is tailored to the readings in question (you may, however, connect the current reading to one of our past readings, or to some issue outside of class, such as in the news). To do this, I ask that you directly quote or reference the reading at least once in your post, referring to a specific page number. Second, make sure that your posting has a specific talking point to contribute to the discussion, or a specific reaction to another student's talking point. There are several ways to contribute a specific talking point to the discussion: reflect on an idea you found interesting or intriguing in the readings discuss how the various readings complement or differ from one another explore the implications of a particular idea compare to another book we've studied or assignment that we've read trace how the work speaks to a theme we encountered earlier point out some issue from the reading that you find perplexing or that you feel needs more elaboration. You are required to read all the class posts; the terms and topics your fellow students write about may appear on the final exam. See the schedule for due dates Film Analysis I have paired film viewings with most of the lessons. Some are listed as required, and some are suggested. Over the course of the semester, you will submit two film analyses (due dates on the schedule, 600-800 words
each) on required or suggested films; the film you write about must be at least 30 minutes long. You may only write about films we have covered up to the point the assignment is due (i.e. if a paper is due at the end of Lesson 4, choose a film assigned with Lesson 4 or a prior lesson). You will submit your two analyses through the Assignments portion of Sakai. You are encouraged to make a post on the forum with a selected portion of your film reports (not counted as one of your weekly two posts, but highly encouraged for participation). A sample will be provided on Sakai under the assignment. Some questions you might ask include: What did you learn from the film? Was it a good film in terms of style, production quality, and so on? In your view, what messages was the director trying to convey to the viewers? Did it do this effectively? Does it illuminate the course readings in any way? Be sure to also discuss the films you watch in the discussion forum. Films are almost all available online through UNC libraries and the link is provided in the lesson (and usually require ONYEN login). If you prefer not to stream, you can check for copies at the UNC MRC. Final Essay The final essay will be a 1200-1500 word research essay on a topic related to the class theme. You will have the prompt at least 10 days prior to the due date. See the schedule for the due date. Final exams may not be submitted late. Submitting Your Assignments You will submit all your film analysis reports, media analysis paper, and essay as Word Document or PDF attachments simply titled with your last name(i.e. Mixon.docx or Mixon.pdf) on the Assignments section of Sakai. Grading Grading Components Tweeting 5 percent Media Analysis Paper 15 percent Film Analysis Papers Final Exam Essay Discussion Forum Total 20 percent (10 percent each) 30 percent 30 percent 100 percent Grading Scale
94-100 90 93 87-89 84-86 80-83 77-79 74-76 70-73 67-69 60-66 Below 60 A A B+ B B C+ C C D+ D F A work far exceeds basic assignment requirements; the work is of excellent quality. B work exceeds basic assignment requirements; the work is good or very good. C work meets basic assignment requirements; the work is satisfactory. D work does not meet most of the basic assignment requirements; the work is poor but passing. F work fails to meet most of the requirements of an assignment, or of the course. Academic Policies By enrolling as a student in this course, you agree to abide by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill policies related to the acceptable use of online resources. Please consult the Acceptable Use Policy on topics such as copyright, net-etiquette, and privacy protection. As part of this course, you may be asked to participate in online discussions or other online activities that may include personal information about you or other students in the course. Please be respectful of the rights and protection of other participants under the UNC-Chapel Hill Information Security Policies when participating in online classes. When using online resources offered by organizations not affiliated with UNC-Chapel Hill, such as Google or YouTube, please note that the Terms and Conditions of these companies and not the University s Terms and Conditions apply. These third parties may offer different degrees of privacy protection and access rights to online content. You should be well aware of this when posting content to sites not managed by UNC-Chapel Hill. When links to sites outside of the unc.edu domain are inserted in class discussions, please be mindful that clicking on sites not affiliated with UNC-Chapel Hill may pose a risk for your computer due to the possible presence of malware on such sites. Honor Code Students will abide by the University s established Honor Code. Any cheating or plagiarism will be punished according to the sanctions outlined in the Honor Code. View the Honor System Module for details. All the assignments for RELI 180 will be open-book, but this does not mean that it is not possible to cheat on an assignment, knowingly or not. Two things are important to keep in mind: First, you cannot collaborate or share information on assignments. Second, you must be especially careful to avoid plagiarism in your writing. If you are ever in doubt, please ask. Please view this brief Plagiarism Tutorial. Accessibility Resources & Service If you are a student with a documented disability, you can receive services through Accessibility Resources & Service. You must self-identify through Accessibility Resources to receive services or accommodation from
either of these offices. Accessibility Resources works closely with programs, offices, and departments throughout the University to help create an accessible environment. The office is located in Suite 2126 of the Student Academic Services Building (SASB), 450 Ridge Road, Chapel Hill, NC, and is open from 8 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday. You can contact them by phone at 919-962-8300 or 711 (NC-RELAY), or by email at accessibility@unc.edu.