RELS 2102

 Introduction to Asian Religions

Spring 2005

MWF 9:00-9:50; MWF10:00-10:50

Instructor: Michael P. Korvink

Room: Smith 303

Office: Barnard 209

Office Hours: MWF 11:00-12:00

Email: mpkorvin@email.uncc.edu

Phone: Ext. 4603

Course website: www.religiousstudies.uncc.edu/mpkorvin

Course Description:

An introduction to Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism and other selected religions.  Emphasis on myths, stories, symbols, rituals, ideas, and ethical practices of these religions in their classical formations and their contemporary practice.

Test 1 (25%): Confucianism and Daoism

Test 2 (25%): Hinduism 

Test 3 (25%): Buddhism and Jainism

Test 4 (20%): Reading test on the Mahabharata

Participation (5%)

Course Materials

Narasimhan, C.V. and Chakravarthi V. Narasimhan. The Mahabharata. Columbia: Columbia University Press, 1997.

Koller, John M. and Patricia Joyce Koller. A Sourcebook in Asian Philosophy. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1991.

Bresnana, Patrick S. Awakening: An Introduction to the History of Eastern Thought. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2003.

Attendance:

While being in class does not guarantee credit for participation, the absence in class does guarantee the loss of credit for participation.  Each absence will count 1% point off you final grade up to 5%.  After five there is no additional penalty; however, due to the weight that the lectures carry on tests, it is unlikely that a student with more than five absences will perform well in the course.  

Makeup Tests:

It is required that you be present on test days.  In the case of an emergency, determined as such by the instructor, the student may opt to take an essay makeup test.  Essay tests require the student to synthesize information to a greater extent than the objective tests.

Participation:
Participation will awarded based on the students engagement in class discussions, being present at the beginning of class and a general involvement in the course.

Academic Integrity:
Students have the responsibility to know and to observe the requirement of the UNC Charlotte Code of Student Academic Integrity. This code forbids cheating, fabrication or falsification of information, multiple submissions of academic work, plagiarism, abuse of academic materials, and complicity in academic dishonesty. Any special requirements or permission regarding academic integrity in this course include a judgment that the student’s work is free from academic dishonesty of any type; and grades in this course therefore should be and will be adversely affected by academic dishonesty. Students who violate the code can be expelled from UNC Charlotte. The normal penalty for a first offense is zero credit on the work involving dishonesty and further substantial reduction of the course grade. In almost all cases the course grade is reduced to F. Copies of the code can be obtained from the Dean of Students Office. Standards of academic integrity will be enforced in this course. Students are expected to report cases of academic dishonesty to the course instructor.

Personal Integrity:
All of us in the Department of Religious Studies are committed to the right of faculty and students to be free from violations of their personal integrity, including freedom from sexual and racial harassment related to sexual orientation or religious preference. If you believe you are the target of such violations of personal integrity by a member of this department or by a fellow student in a religious studies class (or this liberal studies class), we strongly encourage you to pursue the remedies for such harassment provided in University policies and procedures. In addition, we encourage you to discuss the matter with the department chair or any other member of this department so that the chair can actively discourage incidents and patterns of harassment.