27280 - Seminars (1) (G.F)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the seminar (an activity closely aligned with the objectives of the degree program), the student will have acquired specific knowledge and skills to address key themes and methodological issues within the field of anthropology.

Course contents

Sacrifice: History, Theories, Interpretations

This course aims to provide students with conceptual, historical, and comparative tools to understand the role of sacrifice as a ritual practice, theoretical category, and cultural device. Beginning with the major religious traditions and classical theories, the course will examine concrete case studies, religious worldviews, and modern and contemporary reinterpretations, adopting a global and interdisciplinary perspective.

S1 – Theorizing Sacrifice

• The Dying God (J. G. Frazer)

• The Communal Meal (W. Robertson Smith)

• The Theory of Mauss and Hubert

S2 – Christianity and the Politics of Sacrifice

• Sacrifice and Idolatry in the Bible

• The Sacrificial Interpretation of Jesus’ Death

• Religions without Sacrifice?

Visual Material: PBS Frontline – From Jesus to Christ

S3 – American Cultures: Otherness and Ritual Violence

• The Tupinambá and Ritual Cannibalism: Constructing Otherness (Montaigne)

• The Aztec Case: Images, Texts, Legal Questions

• The European Debate

Film: Apocalypto

S4 – The East: Women, Martyrs, Missionaries

• The Practice of Sati: Immolation and Colonial Controversies

• Missionaries and Martyrdom in Asia

• Reflections on the Notion of ‘Martyrdom’

Film: Silence (dir. M. Scorsese)

S5 – On Violence

• Anthropological and Historical Interpretations: Violent Origins

• Sacrifice and Politics: Martyrdom, Terrorism, Nation

• Sacrifice and Gender: Bodies, Power, Purity

Readings/Bibliography

The bibliography and primary sources will be provided in the syllabus, available on Virtuale.

We will refer in particular to the essays included in:

C. Facchini, G. Imbruglia, V. Lavenia, S. Pavone, Sacrifice and Sacred Violence: History, Comparisons, and the Early Modern World (Turnhout: Brepols, 2025).

Teaching methods

Lectures will follow a seminar format, based on the reading and discussion of texts, the analysis of visual sources, and the viewing of films and documentaries.

Students are encouraged to take an active part in the course, including through the oral presentation of one of the texts listed in the bibliography.

Assessment methods

The written assignment should focus on one of the topics discussed in class. It may consist of an in-depth analysis of a film, visual materials, or scholarly or literary texts, to be chosen in agreement with the instructor.

Teaching tools

PowerPoint presentations; primary sources; visual sources; documentaries and films.

Students with Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) or temporary/permanent disabilities are encouraged to contact the University’s dedicated office in a timely manner (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students ). The office will work with students to propose any necessary accommodations, which must be submitted for the instructor’s approval at least 15 days before the exam date. The instructor will evaluate the requests in light of the learning objectives of the course.

Office hours

See the website of Cristiana Facchini