B8097 - Problems in the Theory of Religions (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, students possess the necessary knowledge to identify and analyze theoretical issues relevant to the study of religion as a transhistorical and transcultural phenomenon. They are able to establish thematic and problematic connections between classical works in the science of religion and contemporary studies, in order to deepen understanding of theoretical and methodological questions whose relevance and significance transcend disciplinary boundaries, extending into areas common to the social and natural sciences and the humanities. Assessing advantages and disadvantages of comparison, along with critically examining the distinction between religious and non-religious, has allowed them to refine their critical attitude toward a naive understanding of the religious phenomenon, manage biases, avoid anachronisms, and locate similarities and differences between ways of "imagining religion" from different times and cultures. In oral communication, they demonstrate a good ability to read and critically understand the basic bibliography in relation to the topics covered in the course, and they are able to use the technical terminology of the discipline.

Course contents

More than Opium! Religion, Progressive Folklore, and Social Transformation

 

The Marxist view of religion has not always been exclusively negative. The famous metaphor of religion as the “opium of the people” fails to capture the breadth and complexity of the Marxist tradition’s engagement with “the oldest of ideologies" (B. Lincoln). Far from reducing religion to a mere instrument of sedation and the dulling of intelligence and action in the service of class domination, Marxist thinkers have attributed to it a variety of functions and recognized in it forms of social agency with far more progressive potential.

This course examines a number of Marxist-inspired theoretical approaches and conceptual categories that assign religion the capacity, under certain historical circumstances, to perform a progressive role. The three principal figures explored in the course are Friedrich Engels, Antonio Gramsci, and Ernesto De Martino. What unites them is not only their commitment to Marxism and the inextricable intertwining of theoretical reflection and political engagement that characterizes their intellectual biographies, but also their shared commitment to a restless, radical, and intellectually productive perspective on a possibility that Marx himself never fully contemplated: the anthropologization of religion. By this is meant the recognition that religion is deeply rooted in the history and existence of the human animal - a recognition that makes it possible to understand it more fully, criticize it more effectively, and, at times, even mobilize it more successfully in the service of liberation and emancipation.

Around their thought and writings, a broader and more diverse theoretical constellation will emerge, extending both within and beyond the Marxist tradition. Among the additional figures considered are Jane Addams and Silvia Federici. Despite their different intellectual orientations, these thinkers share a rejection of the idea that religion's narcotic function exhausts its social significance. They argue instead that religion, superstition, folklore, and magic are not merely repositories of ignorance or instruments of domination, but can also serve as vehicles for articulating protest, demystifying authority, re-engaging with the world through practical action, and mobilizing resistance.

Readings/Bibliography

For attending students

In addition to the materials provided in class by the teacher, attending students are required to read:

1) Friedrich Engels, La guerra dei contadini in Germania, Roma, Editori Riuniti, 1976 (o altra edizione).

2) Tommaso La Rocca, Gramsci e la religione, Brescia, Queriniana, 1991.

3) Ernesto De Martino, «Intorno a una storia del mondo popolare subalterno», Società, V, 1949, n. 3: 411-435.

4) Ernesto De Martino, Furore Simbolo Valore. Milano, Il Saggiatore, 2020, solo pp. 121-140 (“Note Lucane”) e 204-214 (“Simbolismo sovietico”) (o altre edizioni).

5) Ernesto De Martino, La fine del mondo. Contributo all’analisi delle apocalissi culturali, Torino, Einaudi, 2019, pp. 435-471 (solo questa edizione!).

For non-attending students

Non-attending students are required to supplement the above bibliography (from 1 to 5) with one text of their choice from the following list:

1) Jane Addams, The Long Road of Woman’s Memory, Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 2002

2) Silvia Federici, Caliban and the Witch: Women, the Body and Primitive Accumulation, London, Penguin Book, 2021.

 

Recommended bibliography for further reading (not required for the examination!):

su Marx-Engels e la religione : Matthew Day, No Bosses, No Gods: Marx. Engels, and the Twenty-First Century Study of Religion, Berlin/Boston, De Gruyter, 2023; Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Sulla religione, Milano, PGRECO, 2015.

su Gramsci: Marie Lucas, Religion et hérésies dans la pensée d’Antonio Gramsci, Paris, Classiques Garnier, 2025 ; Antonio Gramsci, La religione come senso comune, a cura di Tommaso La Rocca, Milano, EST, 1997.

su De Martino : Pietro Angelini, Ernesto De Martino, Roma, Carocci, 2008; F. Ferrari, Ernesto De Martino on Religion: The Crisis and the Presence, London, Routledge, 2012.

Teaching methods

Lectures; discussion of texts.

Assessment methods

Attendance. Students are considered attending if they participate in at least 75% of the lectures.

 

Oral Exam. The exam consists of a limited number of questions aimed at assessing the student's knowledge of the topics covered in class (for attending students) and in the required textbooks. Evaluation will consider the overall solidity of preparation, the ability to analyze, synthesize, and argue critically, clarity of presentation, use of appropriate language, and the ability to establish connections between different parts of the course. Students are therefore expected to carefully read the required texts.

• Achieving a comprehensive and synthesized understanding of the topics, combined with critical analysis skills and precise, appropriate language, will be assessed with grades from 28 to 30 cum laude.

• A fair but not in-depth knowledge of the subject, limited analytical and synthesis skills, and imprecise language will result in grades from 24 to 27.

• Poor knowledge of the course topics, inaccurate terminology, and lack of familiarity with the course bibliography will lead to grades from 18 to 23.

• The exam is not passed if the student fails to answer even one of the exam questions.

Exam sessions are scheduled in the following months: June, July, September, January, February, April, May and are open to all students.

For the purposes of assessment, the use of AI is prohibited. Any use of AI constitutes a violation of academic integrity.

Teaching tools

Images, PowerPoint presentations, selections of texts uploaded by the teacher to Virtuale.

Students with disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students with learning disorders and/or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible ( [https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students]) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Office hours

See the website of Emiliano Urciuoli