Esotericism and the Magical Tradition
| Module title | Esotericism and the Magical Tradition |
|---|---|
| Module code | ARAM251 |
| Academic year | 2024/5 |
| Credits | 30 |
| Module staff | Dr Emily Selove (Lecturer) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 30 |
|---|
Module description
Esotericism and the Magical Tradition is a team-taught module, where you will explore topics related to the history of magic, occult, and esoteric literatures and traditions using an interdisciplinary approach by studying many different cultures and languages all in dialogue with one another. You will have the opportunity to learn with a range of scholars from different fields using a variety of methodologies and hailing from a number of departments, which may include anthropology, archaeology, classics, drama, film studies, English, Islamic Studies, modern languages, history, art history, history of science, sociology, and theology. It is the core module of the MA in Magic and Occult Science and compulsory for students on that course. It will provide them with a foundation in the methods of humanities research that will prepare them for their MA thesis. The subject knowledge skills as well as personal and key skills are developed via readings, lectures, class discussion, group work, essays, and student presentations.
Module aims - intentions of the module
In the lectures, you will be presented with cutting-edge research carried out by those actually giving the lectures. This module therefore arises out of the collaboration of colleagues across the university to study esotericism and the magical tradition from many different angles—an area in which Exeter has exceptional, internationally recognized expertise. This program will decolonise the study of esotericism and the magical tradition and place the Arabo-Islamic cultural heritage back where it belongs in the centre of these studies and in the history of the “West.”
Seminar groups will meet to discuss key texts together and to gather peer reviews as individual research agendas are developed.
Learning outcomes:
- Enable students to specialize and define their unique interests in the diverse field of Esotericism and the Magical Tradition, and thereby deepening their knowledge of key topics such as witchcraft, Western Esotericism, Occult texts in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, European folklore, magic in Greece and Rome, and the history of science and medicine.
- Provide students with teaching led by cutting-edge research, and participate in a ground-breaking method by studying many different cultures and languages all in dialogue with one another.
- Expose students to a wide variety of teaching and learning methods, including more innovative ones, which should assist students in becoming better academics as well as more competitive on the labour market.
- Enable students to competently employ the traditional methodologies of their chosen field.
- Prepare students to write the MA thesis in Magic and Occult Sciences.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate extensive knowledge of key issues, critical themes, and concepts in Esotericism and the Magical Tradition
- 2. Critically assess current research in the diverse field of Esotericism and the Magical Tradition.
- 3. Critically reflect on the role of the repressed and excluded ways of knowing and being in the intellectual history of the West
- 4. Understand the relationship between various cultures, religions, and languages in the history of magic and Esotericism
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 5. Place issues in a wider perspective/context.
- 6. Source primary and secondary data relevant to specific issue areas.
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 7. Think and work independently at an advanced level.
- 8. Build and defend a sustained and sophisticated argument, both in written form and verbally, using complex primary and secondary materials (i.e. development of critical and analytical skills).
Syllabus plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
- The history of medicine as it relates to magic.
- The issues of gender as they relate to the practice of magic.
- Crime and persecution of those accused of the practice of magic (the “witchcraze”).
- The importance of Arabic and Islamic texts to the development of “Western” science.
- Decolonising the study of Islam.
- Science, technology, and society.
- The mystical and the political.
- Material cultural evidence for the practise of magic.
- Popular culture in 20th century Africa.
- Magic as literature, literature as magic.
- Ritual and performance studies.
- Embodied research practices.
- Film studies.
- Witchcraft and magic in ancient Greece and Rome.
- The history of magic in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim communities.
- Magic and witchcraft in the history of Europe.
- Local traditions of magic in Devon and Cornwall
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 278 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities | 11 | 11x 1 Hour lectures |
| Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities | 11 | 11x 1 Hour seminars |
| Guided Independent Study | 42 | Formative preparation |
| Guided Independent Study | 136 | Summative preparation and writing |
| Guided Independent Study | 100 | Weekly reading materials in preparation for lectures |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research Proposal | 750 words | 1-8 | Written feedback |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Literature Review | 100 | 5,000 words | 1-8 | Written |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Literature Review | Essay (5,000 words) | 1-8 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Basic reading:
Agius, D (2022) Magic in Malta: Sellem bin al-Sheikh al-Mansur and the Roman Inquisition, 1605. Leiden: Brill.
Barry J, Davies O, Usborne C (2017). Cultures of Witchcraft in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Present. , Springer
Bhayro S, Rider C (2017). Demons and Illness from Antiquity to the Early-Modern Period. Leiden, Brill.
Gallois, W. (2024) Qayrawan: The Amuletic City. Penn State University Press.
Gibson, Marion (2007). Women and Witchcraft in Popular Literature c.1560-1715 , Aldershot, Ashgate, 2007.
Insoll T (2012). Introduction: Ritual and Religion in Archaeological Perspective.
Keeler ARFOAAMESA, Rizvi SH, Rizvi APOIIHADOTIOAAISSH (2016). The Spirit and the Letter Approaches to the Esoteric Interpretation of the Qur'an. , Oxford University Press, USA.
Noakes, R (2019) Physics and Psychics: The Occult and the Sciences in Modern Britain. Cambridge University Press.
Noble, Michael (2020). Philosophizing the Occult: Avicennan Psychology and the ‘Hidden Secret’ of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi. London: de Gruyter.
Ogden D (2002). Magic, witchcraft and ghosts in the Greek and Roman worlds: a sourcebook. Oxford University Press (USA)
Page S, Rider C (2019). The Routledge History of Medieval Magic. London: Routledge
Rappert B (2022). Performing Deception: Learning, Skill, and the Art of Conjuring (Cambridge: Open Book Publishers)
Rider CR (2012). Magic and Religion in Medieval England. London, Reaktion Books
Sangha LS (I2019). The Social, Personal and Spiritual Dynamics of Ghost Stories in Early Modern England.
Savage-Smith, Emilie (2004). Magic and Divination in Early Islam. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing
Selove, Emily (2023). The Donkey King: Asinine Symbology in Ancient and Medieval Magic. Cambridge University Press.
Turner, Victor (1982). From Ritual to Theatre: The Human Seriousness of Play (1982)
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
- ELE – Please see the resources tab under the ARAM251 ELE page for a list of approximately 30 monographs, encyclopaedias, and volumes of essays on the subject of magic and occult science available online through our library.
- Also see: https://libguides.exeter.ac.uk/archives/esotericism-magical-tradition
| Credit value | 30 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 15 |
| Module pre-requisites | none |
| Module co-requisites | none |
| NQF level (module) | 7 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 02/03/2020 |
| Last revision date | 15/11/2023 |
