Summer 2025 - ARCH 226 OL01
Shamans, Sacrifice and Psychedelics (3)
Class Number: 3668
Delivery Method: Online
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
Online
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Instructor:
Brea McCauley
bmccaule@sfu.ca
Office Hours: Fridays 12:30-2:30 over Zoom
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
Charts the emergence and changes in the expression of human religious behavior. It covers the earliest rituals of the Palaeolithic, the importance of fertility cults, ancestor cults, alliance rituals, shamans, witchcraft, and monotheism. Breadth-Humanities/Social Sciences.
COURSE DETAILS:
Charts the emergence and changes in the expression of human religious behavior. It covers the earliest rituals of the Palaeolithic, the importance of fertility cults, ancestor cults, alliance rituals, shamans, witchcraft, and monotheism. Breadth-Humanities/Social Sciences.
An overview of how archaeologists attempt to recognize ritual behaviours and religion in the past. Topics include the distinction between traditional religions and book religions, myth and its connection to ritual behaviour; magic and witchcraft, shamanism, altered states of consciousness, monumental architecture, ritual offerings, ritual and warfare, human sacrifice, and human burial and cremation. Examples are drawn from a wide variety of ancient cultures, ranging from the state societies of the Maya and Egypt, to smaller farming communities such as Chaco Canyon (North America), and foraging cultures of the distant past.
This is a fully online asynchronous course. Quizzes are taken online using Canvas.Grading
- Discussions (5 @ 4% each) 20%
- Quizzes (5 @ 16% each) 80%
Materials
REQUIRED READING NOTES:
Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.
Department Undergraduate Notes:
Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as soon as possible to ensure that they are eligible and that approved accommodations and services are implemented in a timely fashion.
Deferred grades will be given only on the basis of authenticated medical disability.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.
To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit:
- SFU’s Academic Integrity Policy: S10-01 Policy
- SFU’s Academic Integrity website, which includes helpful videos and tips in plain language: Academic Integrity at SFU
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.