Anthropology of Religion: Short Paper on

Sacred Objects & Places (OCM 778) and on Animism (OCM 774) 

by Brad R. Huber, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, College of Charleston

Note by the editors: Dr. Huber uses this short paper assignment as extra credit.

Goal: The goal of this project is to have you do a little research on the topic of religion using eHRAF World Cultures (eHRAF), a database that College of Charleston (CofC) subscribes to.

Note: I'll add up to 5 pts. to your third exam for this assignment. Extra-credit is due at the beginning of class on Wednesday, April 25th, the last day of class.
 

Introduction:

eHRAF stands for the electronic collections of HRAF. HRAF is an acronym for Human Relations Area Files, a non-profit institution founded in 1949 at Yale University. HRAF is a consortium of educational, research, and cultural organizations, and government agencies. Its mission is to encourage and facilitate the comparative study of human culture, society, and behavior. This mission is accomplished mainly through the compilation, indexing, and distribution of a collection of ethnographic and other texts that are indexed by culture and subject.

At CofC, eHRAF is usually accessed by going to CofC's Homepage, clicking on Library, then Databases, and then Subject List. HRAF (Human Relations Area Files) is listed under Social Sciences. 

You can also access the eHRAF (and other online databases) from an Off-Campus Computer.

1) Go to the CofC Homepage 
2) Then click Library
3) Then Databases
4) Then Off-Campus Access to Databases/Ejournals
5) You will be asked to type in your:
LOGIN ID (Your Social Security Number)
Password (Cougar)
6) After you have logged on, scroll down and select Human Relations Area Files 

Note by the editors: Access to the eHRAF database is restricted to CofC users.
 

 
Assignment: 
Using the web version of the HRAF, write a paper that discusses Sacred Objects and Places (OCM 778) in one culture, and Animism (OCM 774) in another culture. Your paper should be typed, double-spaced, have a bibliography, and be between 3-4 pages long.

To find this information, in the database click on "BROWSE" then "SUBJECTS" then
"A-Z index" or "Major Subjects ". 

View the eHRAF User Guide on how to use the database. 

Citing eHRAF documents:
You should include a standard bibliographic reference for the material, i.e. 
Appadurai, Arjun
       1996 Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. 
              Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Don't forget to include page numbers when citing material in the text! You should also include the basic retrieval statement for an on-line database: Retrieved [month day, year,] from [source] on-line database ([name of database], [item no.--if applicable]).