humanities & religious studies 154 — food, farming, and...

Course Syllabus (HRS 154: Food, Farming, and the Sacred)

HUMANITIES & RELIGIOUS STUDIES 154 — FOOD, FARMING, AND THE SACRED (Online)

Professor: Dr. Mathias Warnes Spring 2020—Class Number 86333 Email: [email protected] Fully Online Course: Canvas Required Office Hours: T/Th 2:00pm-4:00pm in MND2030 Course Materials also at: mathiaswarnes.com Catalog Description: Examination of primary sources dealing with the sacred dimensions of food and farming in pre-modern and modern world cultures. Attention paid to sustainable, small-scale farming, and spiritual perspectives that promote and reinforce sustainable food practices. Interested students may receive one additional unit of credit for 20 hours of work with a local organization involved in farming or local food distribution through the Community Engagement Center and reflection assignments relating this work to course materials. NOTE: optional unit of credit by for work with a local food culture organization is NOT being offered this semester Section Description: In this section, we will examine historical sources pertaining to food, farming, and the sacred as expressed in rituals and ideas of Neolithic, Mesopotamian, Greek, Judaic, Christian, & Mayan traditions, as well as writings by Wendell Berry, Michael Pollan, Daniel Pinchbeck, Barbara Kingsolver, Martin Heidegger, and Martin Prechtel, among others. Learning Objectives: By the completion of the course, students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate enthusiasm, vitality, critical thinking, and independent motivation in studying food-related cultural and religious traditions and their associated ideas of the sacred.

2. Investigate, describe, and analyze what historical and contemporary food and farming traditions have to teach you about your own life, and food-related practices and ideas.

3. Compare and analyze contrasting cultural and religious value systems related to food, farming, and the sacred, and learn from your peers who are engaged in the same learning process.

4. Demonstrate genuine understanding of and empathy for the relationship of food, farming, and the sacred in historical traditions, and in contemporary food cultures.

GE AREA C2 LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students who complete a GE Area C2 course should be able to: 1. demonstrate knowledge of the conventions and methods of the study of the humanities;


2. investigate, describe, and analyze the roles of effects of human culture and understanding in the development of human societies; 3. compare and analyze various conceptions of humankind; and 4. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the historical development of cultures and civilizations, including their animating ideas and values.

Required Texts: 1. Berry, Wendell. Bringing it to the Table: Food and Farming. Counterpoint, 2009. ISBN: 9781582435435 2. Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. Penguin, 2007. ISBN: 9780143038580 3. Pinchbeck, Daniel. How Soon is Now: A Handbook for Global Change. Penguin Random House, 2018. ISBN: 9781786780867. 4. Kingsolver, Barbara. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life. Harper Perennial, 2008. ISBN: 9780060852566 5. Coursepack available at mathiaswarnes.com, & on Canvas. Grade Breakdown:

Reading Responses 30% Food Cultures Experiment(s) 30%

Discussion Forums 20% Active Participation 20%

Reading Responses (30%): To make sure that you are doing the readings and thinking about them, I require that you write a Reading Response (6 Reading Responses total, 5% each). Keep in mind that Reading Responses must cover one assigned reading for the current week, or immediately preceding week. Reading Responses on material covered earlier are considered late. Late Reading Responses are accepted at any time for half credit. Length requirements are strict. Reading Response must be between 2-3 pages, 1.5- or double-spaced typed, 12 pt. font, with standard margins. Although these are ‘Reading Responses,’ i.e. academic reflection exercises on assigned texts, formal content and quality requirements will be strictly enforced. A Reading Response Rubric is available at mathiaswarnes.com and on Canvas. Reading Responses will be graded on a five category system. “E+” means exemplary (100%), “E” means excellent (90%), “G” means good (80%), “S” means satisfactory (70%), and “U” means unsatisfactory. “U” work may be resubmitted with suitable revisions, for “S” or “G” credit. Between reading & writing expect to spend 3-4 hours of work per Response.

Active Participation (20%): These are separate from the Discussion Forums. To participate in the AP Forums: 1. Do the reading, and other assignments within the Module; 2. Answer your professor’s questions or follow his instructions; 3. Reply to at least one post by one of your peers. Each excellent contribution is worth 1% towards your AP grade. Lower quality posts or incomplete posts may be awarded .00-.50 AP credit. Other ways to earn AP points (up to 5) which you can discuss with your instructor include attending course-related cultural events and doing a write-up (you can find these yourself, and some will be announced, independent research and/or practicum projects (such as starting a garden), and creative work with course relevance such as writing food poetry, or course related art in other mediums). CSUS


will be hosting a Farm to Fork event in May. This will also be a great opportunity to hang out together at the end of the semester, and have a potluck, and maybe showcase our work.

Discussion Forums (20%): The discussion forums will always be geared towards the assigned reading for each 1-2 week course period. Each satisfactory online post earns you 2% towards your final course grade. A satisfactory post includes: 1. Two paragraphs (of at least 8 lines each) of your own interpretive reflection on at least 2 assigned readings for the given week(s). Note: at least one of these significant paragraphs must be on a Coursepack reading; 2. At least two thoughtful replies (of at least 4 lines each) to posts made by your peers.

Food Cultures Experiments (30%): There will be 3 Food Culture Experiments (10% each, 30% total), including, “Your Ordinary Grocery Store Meal”, “The Perfect Organic Meal”, and a “Farmer’s Market or DIY meal”. Information on the three experiments is found in Canvas.

Schedule: HRS 154

Week One Jan 20-24

Introductions, Syllabus

Wendell Berry I Intro to Religious Studies, & Bringing it to the Table, “Introduction” by Pollan, & “Nature as Measure”, p. ix-xi, 3-11

Week Two Jan 27-31

Wendell Berry II Watch documentary, “Look and See” on Netflix or Vimeo

Bringing it to the Table, “Stupidity in Concentration” & “Defense of the Family Farm”, p. 11-18, 31-48

Reading Response #1 Due

Week Three Feb 3-7

Wendell Berry II Bringing it to the Table, p. “Conservationist & Agrarian” & “The Pleasures of Eating”, p. 67-79, 227-234

Ancient Mesopotamia

“Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth”, Coursepack, p. 1-26

Week Four Feb 10-14

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Introduction & Ch. 1-5


Ancient India Feasts and Fasts: A History of Food in India, “The Age of Ritual: 1700-1100 BCE”, Coursepack, p. 27-42

Reading Response #2 Due (Must be on Mesopotamia or India)

Week Five Feb 17-21

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Ch. 6-10

Ancient Greece “Demeter”, Coursepack, p. 43-52

Food Cultures Experiment #1 Due (See Canvas for Instructions)

Week Six Feb 24-28


Europe & North America

Place, Ecology, and the Sacred, “Introduction”, Coursepack, p. 53-68

Reading Response #3 Due (Must be on Northcott or Demeter)

Week Seven Mar 2-6


Ancient Judaism & Christianity I

Excerpts from Genesis, “Losing and Finding Sacred Place”, Coursepack, p. 69-104

Week Eight Mar 9-13

How Soon is Now, Preface, Intro, Part 1

Ancient Judaism & Christianity II

“Food Sovereignty from Joshua to La Via Campesina”, Coursepack, p. 105-120

Reading Response #4 Due (Must be on Northcott)

Week Nine Mar 16-20

How Soon is Now, Part 2


Medieval Christianity

“Fast and Feast: The Historical Background”, Coursepack, p. 120-129


Spring Recess Mar 30-Apr 3

Week Ten Mar 23-27


Ancient Maya I “The Popul Vuh”, Coursepack, p. 130-135

Reading Response #5 Due (Must be on Bynum and/or Popul Vuh)

Week Eleven Apr 6-10


Maya II Prechtel, “The Marriage Contract with the Wild”, p. 136-140

Week Twelve Apr 13-17

How Soon is Now, Part 5 & Epilogue

Philosophy I Heidegger, “Building, Dwelling, Thinking,” Coursepack, p. 141-151

Reading Response #6 Due (Must be on Prechtel and/or Heidegger)

Week Thirteen Apr 20-24

Vegetable, Animal, Miracle, Ch. 1-5

Philosophy II Steiner & Biodynamics, Coursepack, p. 152-162

Week Fourteen Apr 27-May 1

Vegetable, Animal, Miracle, 6-10



Week Fifteen May 4-8



Finals Week May 11-15

No Final Exam

AP Forum: “The Sacred: Final Insights and Applications” closes Thursday, May 14 at 11:59pm

Administrative Matters Grading Policy: A student’s grade for this course must be based upon mastery of course content. A student’s grade cannot be based upon mere attendance, extraneous extra-credit, scholarship, financial aid needs, or other special pleading. It is important that students examine the syllabus and plan appropriately to achieve the grade they desire. I will be happy to meet with you during office hours to discuss how best to achieve your target grade. This class uses standard grading. Please be aware of the significance of the grades. Grading Scale:A= 100%-93%, A-=92-90% B+= 89%=87% B= 86%-83% B-= 82%-80% C+= 79%-77% C= 76%-73%C-= 72%-70%D= 69%-60%F= 59% or less. “A” designates exemplary work, an example of what all students should do. “B” designates good work. Some students seem to believe that “B” means bad work. This is not the case. “B” signifies that the student has done good work. “C” means that the student has done average or mediocre work. “D” signifies poor work. “F” signifies that the student has not worked enough to receive course credit. Plagiarism and Honesty in Academic Work: You are responsible for familiarizing yourselves with the CSUS policy regarding academic honesty. This link is very helpful: https://www.csus.edu/umanual/student/stu-0100.htm. It is crucial to know that plagiarism and cheating are serious ethical violations and have serious consequences. For starters, all suspected incidents of academic dishonesty require a private meeting to be scheduled with your instructor, and if the instructor considers academic dishonesty to be evidenced, must be reported to the Office of Student Conduct. Academic Dishonesty reports may be submitted with a request by the faculty for no further discipline. That request will [only] be followed if the student has no other reports. Violations of standards of academic honesty include but are not limited to the following: 1. Receiving or providing assistance on an examination or assignment unless the instructor authorizes such assistance; 2. Using materials other than those permitted by the instructor during an examination; 3. Plagiarizing: failure to indicate the source of borrowed words and ideas. Plagiarism defined: Simply stated, plagiarism is “the taking of others’ words or thoughts without due acknowledgment.”1 This definition applies to

1 Frederick Crewes, The Random House Handbook, 3rd ed. New York: Random House, 1980 (p. 405).


both printed, online, & unpublished material. That is, students must acknowledge, through the appropriate forms of citations, any borrowed ideas or phrases, and all direct quotations if more than three or four words. They also must not submit work that has been written, revised, or edited, in part or in whole, by another. Finally, work submitted for class credit in more than one course is considered plagiarized. I return all plagiarized work ungraded (a “0”); you may or may not, after a meeting with me be allowed to resubmit the assignment. Students with Disabilities: If you have a verified need for an academic accommodation or materials in alternate media (i.e.: Braille, large print, electronic text, etc.) per the Americans with Disabilities Act or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, please contact me as soon as possible to arrange accommodations. It is your responsibility to provide documentation of disability to SSWD and meet with a SSWD counselor to request special accommodation before classes start. SSWD is located in Lassen Hall 1008 and can be contacted by phone at (916) 278-6955 (Voice); (916) 278-7239 (TDD only); or via email at [email protected]. https://www.csus.edu/student-affairs/centers-programs/services-students-disabilities/ Other Free Help: For free, one-on-one help with writing in any class, please visit the University Reading and Writing Center in Calaveras 128. The Writing Center can help you at any stage of your reading/writing processes: coming up with a topic, developing, or organizing a draft, understanding difficult texts, or developing strategies to become a better editor. To make an appointment visit the Reading and Writing Center in CLV 128. For Writing Center hours and more information, visit the website at: https://www.csus.edu/undergraduate-studies/writing-program/reading-writing-center.html Basic Needs Support: If you are experiencing challenges in the area of food and/or stable housing, help is just a click, email or phone call away! Sacramento State offers basic needs support for students who are experiencing challenges in these areas Please visit the CARES website to learn more about your options and resources available: https://www.csus.edu/student-affairs/crisis-assistance-resource-education-support/

humanities & religious studies 154 — food, farming, and...

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