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Selected Course Descriptions

The following represents a range of courses available to students in folklore and public culture studies at the University of Oregon. In addition to FLR classes, our core faculty and affiliated professors offer a number of approved courses covering a variety of topics in folklore and public culture. For schedules, please click on the link to the right.

FLRE = Folklore Elective

Selected Folklore and Public Culture Core Courses

FLR 225 Voices of Africa (4). Introduces students to life on the African continent through engagement with a variety of expressive forms used by individuals (“voices”) from a number of countries.  Novels, music, dance, dress, paintings, films, and political cartoons will serve as primary sources from which students will learn about the diversity and vivacity of contemporary African peoples. Bosire
FLRE, A&L, IC, GP

FLR 235 Folklore and the Supernatural (4). Introduces the study of beliefs about the supernatural by examining diverse approaches to the description and analysis of belief traditions and religious cultures. Topics include apparitions, miracles, prophecy, apocalyptic cults, magic, angels, pilgrimage, vampires, UFOs, zombies, possession states, and supernatural assault. Wojcik
FLRE, A&L, ENGL

FLR 236 Magic in Middle Ages (4). This course is an examination of the period often considered the most “magical,” the Middle Ages. Looking at the practices of medieval western Europe, particularly Britain, we will examine how medieval culture defined magic, what they hoped to achieve by practicing (or forbidding) magic, and how magic provides an insight into the medieval understanding of how the universe worked. Along the way we will investigate the medieval origins of two modern American holidays, Hallowe’en and Christmas. The course will also cover medieval witches, as well as elves, fairies, and other small beings. We will also examine the role of magic in fiction — the origin of modern fantasy and superhero stories — and reflect on what that suggests about our relationship to the world. Finally, we will look at some of the modern legacies of medieval thought about magic, from modern practices such as throwing coins in fountains to “new religions” such as Wicca and neo-paganism. The study of medieval magic will allow us to understand the role of magic in both the medieval and the modern world and give us the tools to give informed opinions about modern controversies. Bayless
FLRE, A&L

FLR 250 Introduction to Folklore (4).  An introduction to contemporary folklore studies, with emphasis on the meanings of stories, rituals, festivals, body art, subcultures, the supernatural, street art, Internet folklore, and other forms of vernacular expression as these relate to a diversity of social identities and cultural contexts. Wojcik, Lowthorp
Required for Majors, A&L, IP, US, ENGL

FLR 255 Folklore and US Popular Culture (4). Introduces students to the theories and methods used in the study of folklore and popular culture; examines a diversity of approaches to the description and analysis of “common culture,” including popular narratives, legends, rituals, ethnic and gender stereotypes, carnivalesque events, fan cultures, subcultures, DIY, and the commodification of youth culture. Special focus on the ways that folklore and popular culture reflect and shape dominant ideologies, and how people may use mass cultural products to create new, personal, and sometimes subversive meanings. Wojcik
FLRE, A&L, IP, US, ENGL

FLR 320 Car Cultures (4). In this course we study car collecting and customizing as vernacular art traditions, and survey the astonishing range of human behaviors around cars and trucks. To better understand cars we also will learn of the history of the automotive industry, environmental issues arising from cars, and U.S. policy on automotive safety, emissions, and fuels. The major assignment for the course is a project involving folklore or ethnographic fieldwork. Each student, or team of students, will select and research some aspect of car enthusiasm or automotive behavior, such as monster trucks, tuners or rat rods, muscle cars or microbuses, advertisements or repair shops, parking lots or critical masses of cyclists. Offered alternate years. Sayre
FLRE, A&L, ENGJ

FLR 350 Folklore and the Bible (4). This course will bring together readings of the Bible in the Judeo-Christian tradition in connection with apt mythological, folkloristic, and traditional contexts, concepts, and meanings. We will read sections of the Bible that have continuing presence in Western culture and literature, exploring how these are shaped by oral traditions and how they carry ongoing symbolic and narrative meaning. In addition to reading key narrative, lyrical, prophetic, and epistolary sections of the King James English bible, we will take a folkloristic approach in studying these accounts—contextualizing them both in relation to modes of oral creation and dissemination, and in connection with parallels to and adaptations of biblical stories in other cultural forms and traditions. Offered alternate years. Bayless
FLRE, A&L, ENGE, ENGJ

FLR 370 Folklore and Sexuality (4) Intersections between folklore and sexuality provide an entry point for examining contemporary social issues relating to sexuality, including sexual identities, courting practices, sexism, pride, violence, body image issues, and resistance. Lowthorp
FLRE, A&L, IP, US

FLR 410/510 Heritage & Tradition (4) Wondering what to do with all that folklore theory and all those cultural traditions your other classes have covered? Interested in community arts and looking to broaden your scope to folk and traditional arts? This class, taught by Riki Saltzman, former Director of the Oregon Folklife Network, incorporates a history of the field, contemporary practice, and applications including fieldwork, grant writing, project development, and presentation. “Heritage & Tradition” will explore the earliest examples of Federal public folklore projects during the 1930s and the impact of Zora Neale Hurston, the Lomaxes, and others; the Folk Song Revival and its influence on the field; the development of Federal programs (NEA, Smithsonian, American Folklife Center) and their impact on state programs; the role of not-for-profits and foundations; and how the Oregon Folklife Network model fits into the rest. Topics will include fieldwork and archival issues, public programming (festivals, exhibits, media productions), advocacy, ethics and responsibilities, and the day-to-day business of budgets, grants, and project management. We will also discuss and evaluate public folklore products (films, radio programs, CDs, web pages). The class will include visits from other public folklorists, archivists, and museum professionals as well as participation in folklore-related events. Students should finish this class with a grasp of the complex and ever-changing world of public folklore, and an ability to look critically at public folklore issues. Saltzman
FLRE

FLR 411/511 Folklore and Religion (4)  Examines the research questions and theoretical models used by folklorists and other scholars in the study of vernacular religion and popular spirituality. We will examine religion and spirituality as it is “lived,” focusing primarily on beliefs and practices that are informally learned and generally unsanctioned by institutional doctrines and authorities. The role of folklore in people’s religious lives will be explored through the analysis of narratives, rituals, beliefs, customs, celebrations, sacred journeys, and numinous experiences. Wojcik
FLRE, IC, GP, US, ENGE, ENGJ

FLR 415/515 Folklore and Foodways (4) This highly interactive and participatory course looks at the ways in which identity is situated, created, and transformed in the performance of food traditions. Foodways includes the traditions surrounding the production, creation, consumption, and ways we think about food as a cultural construct. We’ll explore performance, community, creativity, and innovation with regard to foodways. We will also consider how foodways provides a window into other cultures and our own, providing insight into cultural symbols, aesthetics, and world view. This class will involve eating (!), discussion, presentation, some ethnographic interviews, short exercises (ethnography of a dish, what’s in your refrigerator/cabinet), and a longer final paper. Offered second or third year. Saltzman
FLRE

FLR 450/550 Folklore in the Public Sector (4) Explores the inspiring history and practice of influential folklore projects, with an opportunity to hone professional skills such as fieldwork, grant writing, and media. Saltzman
FLRE

FLR 483/583 Folklore and Mythology of the British Isles (4) This course traces ethnicity, cultural interaction, and forms of folkloristic expression in the British Isles and Ireland. Britain and Ireland possess a complex cultural history. Beginning with the prehistoric Celts, we will trace interactions and identities of historically documented base cultures in the region, especially as their cultural legacies have endured. The course focuses on (1) deep structures of myth, belief, and worldview from the past; and (2) persisting traditions and cultural practices. We will examine such forms of folklore as myths, stories, material culture, worship, ritual, belief, music, song, dance, drama, and custom. We will consider British folklore up to the present day in the context of community & individual values and arts. Bayless
FLRE, IP, GP, ENGB, ENGE

FLR 495/595 Folklore Fieldwork (4) This course introduces students to the theory and practice of ethnographic fieldwork in folklore. Each student will have the opportunity to conceptualize and carry out a fieldwork project while developing skills in proposal writing, fieldwork and interviewing practices, documentation, analysis, and presentation of ethnographic research. Lowthorp
FLR 495 Required for Major, FLR 595 Required for Master’s

FLR 681 History of Folklore Theory and Research (5) Examines the nature of scholarly inquiry, research questions, and techniques in the discipline of folklore studies. Historic orientation with emphasis on ideological development of folkloristics from its beginnings to the present. Wojcik
Required for Masters 

FLR 401 Research: [Topic] (1–6R)
FLR 403 Thesis (1–6R)
FLR 404 Internship: [Topic] (1–6R)
FLR 405 Reading and Conference: [Topic] (1–6R)
FLR 406 Field Studies: [Topic] (1–6R)
FLR 407/507 Seminar: [Topic] (1-6R)
FLR 408/508 Workshop: [Topic] (1–5R)
FLR 409 Practicum: [Topic] (1–6R)
FLR 410/510 Experimental Course: [Topic] (1-5R)

FLR 503 Thesis (l-6R). P/N only
FLR 601 Research: [Topic] (l-6R) P/N only
FLR 604 Internship: [Topic] (l-6R)
FLR 605 Reading and Conference: [Topic] (l-6R)
FLR 606 Field Studies: [Topic] (l-6R)
FLR 607 Seminar: [Topic] (l-6R)
FLR 608 Workshop: [Topic] (l-6R)
FLR 609 Terminal Project (l-6R)
FLR 610 Experimental Course: [Topic] (1-5R)

ENG 620 Medieval Popular Narratives (5) This class will look at the cultural and literary significance of tales normally overlooked by modern scholarship: the legends, rumors, and scandals of the Middle Ages. These are the medieval equivalents of the National Enquirer or TV tabloid journalism, sensationalist and wildly popular.  We will examine their relation to cultural anxieties, “effort after meaning,” and the love of a good story. Primary texts include chronicles, medieval biography, and tales of adventure and the supernatural, against the backdrop of more canonical works. Secondary literature will include scholarship on memes, folklore, the sociology of rumor, and the science of memory. Bayless
FLRE

Courses in Arts and Administration

PPPM 250 Art and Human Values (4) Addresses fundamental aesthetic theory and practice questions resulting from viewing art as a powerful communicator of social and cultural values. Values, rights, and responsibilities of the contemporary visual environment.
FLRE, A&L, IP

PPPM 470/570 Art in Society (4) This course examines the arts as expressive practice that manifest through material culture in society, with specific attention to the concepts of participatory and convergence culture. We will explore the relationships of art to society and individual values using folkloristic, anthropological, sociological, philosophical and art education literature, and we will do so in a transmedia environment. Drawing on concepts derived from these literatures, we will examine the ways in which material culture functions to maintain, transmit, and dynamically engage cultural and social change. Fine, functional, popular, folk, multimedia, and environmental forms of art constitute a range of subject matter; we will specifically address the implications for arts managers that these various critical perspectives entail for work in the arts and culture sectors.
FLRE

PPPM 471/571 Cultural Policy (4) Examines the impact of cultural policies and institutions on opportunities of the artistic community, on what art forms are made accessible, and on the general aesthetic welfare of the public.
FLRE

PPPM 473/573 Cultural Programming (4) In this course we will explore practice and theory related to arts and cultural programming in the public sector. A primary focus will be the intellectual history of public (or applied) folklore, especially its intersection with the field of community arts. Readings, guest speakers, and focused discussions will illuminate a range of opportunities available to cultural workers of varied backgrounds: folklorists, museum specialists, community arts managers, arts educators, creative advocates. Exercises in project development (conceptualization, proposal writing, fieldwork plan) will provide opportunities to make initial forays into arts and cultural programming, or even to workshop an idea emerging across your research interesting and academic coursework. We will pay special attention to opportunities involving local and/or UO-related projects, though by no means will limit ourselves to these. While the ten-week term limits our ability to bring full-fledged projects to fruition, we will identify and discuss the kinds of skills that cultural programmers committed to the public good bring to (and sometimes learn through) various long and short term projects.
FLRE

Courses in the Anthropology Department

ANTH 114 Anthropology of Pirates and Piracy (4) Examines the political and economic origins and legacies of piracy through 500 years of history in the Americas, Europe, and Africa.
FLRE, SSC, IC

ANTH 119 Anthropology & Aliens (4) Examines how anthropology and speculative fiction have mutually constituted each other historically as each explores culture and society, and what makes us human.
FLRE, SSC

ANTH 161 World Cultures (4) A first look into the work of cultural anthropology and an introduction to the cultural diversity of the world.
FLRE, SSC, IC, GP

ANTH 315 Gender, Folklore, Inequality (4) Cross-cultural exploration of the artistic and expressive realm of women’s lives. Topics include life-cycle rituals, religion, healing, verbal arts, crafts, and music. Silverman.
FLRE, SSC, IP

ANTH 326 Caribbean Societies (4) Explores the legacy of processes that formed Caribbean culture–migration, slavery, and trade–in religious, popular, and scholarly contexts.
FLRE, SSC, IC

ANTH 365 Food and Culture (4) Anthropological approach to the role of nutrients in human development (individual and group); cultural determinants and differences among populations; world food policy; applied nutritional anthropology.
FLRE

ANTH 411/511 Politics, Ethnicity, Nationalism (4) Explores relationships between ethnicity, politics, and nationalism from historical and anthropological perspectives. Addresses the way nationalism and ethnic identity construct and reproduce each other.
FLRE

ANTH 429/529 Jewish Folklore and Ethnology (4) Traditional Expressive culture of East European Jews; includes narrative, proverbs, jokes, folk beliefs, rituals, holidays, food, customs, music, gender, and immigrant folklore in the United states. Silverman.
FLRE, IP

Courses in the Judaic Studies Program

JDST 213 Jewish Encounter with Modernity (4) A survey of Jewish encounters with modernity outside the Americas from 1700-1948, concentrating on transformations in political status, national identity, Jewish culture, and religious self-definition.Gurley
FLRE, SSC, IP, GP

Courses in the School of Music and Dance

DAN 301 Dance in Traditional Cultures: Africa: [Topic] (4) Investigation of origins, meanings, and development of dance culture and related folk arts in selected regions and countries of the world. Repeatable once for a maximum of 8 credits.
FLRE, A&L, IC, GP

DAN 436 Dema Afr Perf Ensemble: [Topic] (3) Dema is the concept of total performance experience through dance, music, singing, storytelling, and costume-making through education, teaching, and to entertaining. Dema is a means of encouraging independence, critical thinking, self-worth, and freedom of the mind for students to discover their voices. Repeatable twice for a maximum of 9 credits. Iddrisu
FLRE

MUS 349 American Ethnic and Protest Music (4) Social change and ethnicity reflected by music of and about Native Americans, Africans, and women, as well as songs of protest and Spanish-speaking groups.
FLRE, AC

MUS 358 Music in World Cutures (4) African, East European, and Indonesian musics in socio-cultural context. Emphasis on listening skills, relationships between music and culture, aesthetics, styles, genres, music structures and forms, and participatory music making.
FLRE, A&L, IC

MUS 359 Music of the Americas (4) Music of the Americas: African American, Asian American, Latin American, and Native American musics in socio-cultural context of the Americas. Emphasis on listening skills, relationships between music and cultures, and music structures and forms.
FLRE, A&L, AC, US

MUS 360 History of Hip Hop Music (4) Hip-Hop Music, History, Culture, Aesthetics: Examines the history and evolution of hip-hop and rap music in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
FLRE, A&L, AC

MUS 365 [399] Regional Topics in Ethnomusicology (4) Students will analyze the music-dance of a specified geographic/cultural region in relation to its culture. Local performance genres and social constructions will be covered, and course can be repeated for different geographic regions.
FLRE, IC

MUS 407/507 Sem Mus Perf Africa (4) Iddrisu
FLRE

MUS 436/536 World Music Ensemble: [Topic Puerto Rican] (2) Wolf

Students engage the embodied practices and sociocultural contexts of diverse music-dance practices associated with the world music categories specified in the topic.Repeatable once for a maximum of 4 credits.
FLRE

MUS 451/551 Introduction to Ethnomusicology (4) Study of world musics in their social and cultural contexts. Emphasis on comparing the varied approaches, ideas, and methods of selected American and European researchers since 1980.
FLRE, IC

MUS 452/552 Musical Instruments of the World (4) Examines instruments of the world in their cultural contexts. Covers cross-cultural issues and focuses on particular geographic areas. Includes films, recordings, live demonstrations.
FLRE, IC

MUS 462/562 Popular Music in the African Diaspora (4) Examines social and historical contexts of popular music in the African diaspora from the 20th century on. Geographic focus is North America, the Caribbean, and Africa.
FLRE, IP

Courses in the Department of the History of Art and Architecture

ARH 407 Sem Fossils & Folklore (4)
FLRP

Courses in the Department of German and Scandinavian

GER 356 German Fairy Tales (4) The German fairy tale in historical and theoretical context, from the Brothers Grimm and romantic tales to adaptations by Tchaikovsky and Sendak. Taught in English.
FLRE, A&L, IC

SCAN 259 Vikings through the Icelandic Sagas (4) Introduction to the social, political, and cultural expressions of Viking society through the Sagas, the unique prose narratives of medieval Iceland. Conducted in English.
FLRE, A&L, IC, MDEL

SCAN 325 Construc/Const Identity (4) Explores the notion of regional, ethnic, gender, and class identity in Scandinavian texts and culture. Topics include immigrant-emigrant experience, lore of the Arctic, folklore, Finland-Swedish writing. Conducted in English.
FLRE, A&L, IP

SCAN 343 Norse Mythology (4) Critical evaluation of the religious beliefs in Scandinavia from prehistory through the Viking Age. Taught in English. This course will be a critical evaluation of the religious beliefs in Scandinavia from prehistory through the Viking Age. We will examine very thoroughly three mythological texts, The Edda, The Prose Edda, and Ynglinga saga. The provenance of these texts reveals a cross-section of the collision of religious cultures during the period under critical examination. Since writing came to the Scandinavian peninsula with Christianity, so each of these texts serve as both available source material for the study of pre-Christian religious beliefs and practices, and as examples of the Christian interpretation of these beliefs and practices. It follows that we will analyze both linguistic and non-linguistic material to supplement and to facilitate our study of these primary sources of Norse mythology; i.e. we will make use of archeological source materials, Indo-European data and Scandinavian folklore and belief. Offered alternate years. Gurley
FLRE A&L, IC, GP

SCAN 344 Medieval Hero and Monster (4) Medieval Germanic tradition has given Western literature some of its most provocative and productive heroes. These figures populate the literary landscape of the North as some of the most sophisticated expressions of human ideals. This course looks not only at the ever changing and refining display of heroes, but also at their unsung counterparts: the monsters they encounter, the monsters they are haunted by, and the monsters they become. Considering both figures as expressions of cultural aesthetics and prohibition, this course traces the evolution of heroics and monstrosity from early narrative poetry to the heyday of the Skaldic Sagas and then into the twilight of saga production where continental and courtly notions of heroism start to displace the innovative, indigenous models. Gurley
FLRE, IC

Courses in Women’s and Gender Studies

WGS 321 Feminist Perspectives: Identity/Race/Culture (4) This course examines the ways in which race, class, gender, and sexuality intersect to form systems of inequality, formations of identity, and sites for political agency. Multi-racial interdisciplinary feminist perspectives have interrogated the politics within feminist discussions to re-center intersecting identities to better understand the histories, experiences, and the contemporary politics of women of color. This challenge to both the academy and institutional systems has called for a complication of monolithic assumptions within the “study of women.” The readings emphasize theoretical dialogues confronting the complexities of inclusion/exclusion in feminism, first/third world constructions, and difference within difference that further complicate our assumptions of identity, community, and culture. Such frameworks through the course include, but are not limited to; indigenous feminisms, critical race theory, borderlands, and globalization. Through film and literary narratives students will have the opportunity to critically analyze the social positions, representations, and political projects centering the lives and experiences of women of color. Teves
SSC, AC, FLRE

WGS 410/510 Native Feminisms (4) This course examines the foundational and aspirational trajectory of Native feminist scholarship. We will begin by questioning the usefulness of gender as a category of analysis within Native communities and how Native women have responded to feminism. We will trace the intellectual origins of Native feminisms, each week reading a key text in recent publication. With an emphasis on the praxis of Native feminism, we will cover a range of indigenous contexts, but focus primarily on the Americas and the Indigenous Pacific. Topics explored include cultural revitalization and gender roles, change and continuity under cycles of colonialism and settler-colonialism, the connection between colonialism and sexual violence in Native communities, debates over citizenship and sovereignty, and contemporary Native gender roles and identities. Teves
FLRE

Affiliated Courses

Other undergraduate and graduate courses with related subject matter-including approved Reading and Conference (405, 605), Seminar (407/507, 607), and Experimental Course (410/510, 610) may be applied to folklore degree programs by arrangement with the instructors and the Folklore and Public Culture Program director.

Index of Folklore-Related Courses by Department

The following list presents courses that may be of interest to students in the Folklore and Public Culture Program. Students are encouraged to explore additional folklore-related courses at the University of Oregon in these and other departments.

Anthropology

Native North Americans (ANTH 320)

Archaeology of Ancient Cities (ANTH 347)

Culture and Psychology (ANTH 413/513)

Field Methods in Cultural Anthropology (ANTH 417)

Culture, Illness, and Healing (ANTH 420/520)

Native South Americans (ANTH 434/534)

Art History

Critical Approaches to Art-Historical Study (ARH 300)

Seminar Fossils & Folklore (ARH 407/507)

Asian Studies

Perspectives on Asian Studies: [Topic] (ASIA 611)

Chinese Studies

Introduction to Chinese Film (CHN 151)

Introduction to Chinese Popular Culture (CHN 152)

Chinese Film and Theory (CHN 452/552)

Classics

Gender and Sexuality in Antiquity (CLAS 314)

Comparative Literature

Comparative Comics (COLT 370)

East Asian Languages and Literatures

Language and Society in East Asia (EALL 209

English

The Age of Beowulf (ENG 423)

Race and Representation in Film: [Topic] (ENG 488/588)

Ethnic Studies

Women of Color: Issues and Concerns (ES 330)

History of Native American Education (ES 456/556)

Interdisciplinary Research methods (ES 498)

Geography

Geography of Globalization (GEOG 342)

Society, Culture, and Place (GEOG 343)

Political Geography (GEOG 441)

Urban Geography (GEOG 442/542)

Culture, Ethnicity, and Nationalism (GEOG 445/545)

History

African American History (HIST 250, 251)

Precolonial Africa (HIST 325)

Colonial and Postcolonial Africa (HIST 326)

The American West (HIST 466/566, 467/567)

American Environmental History: [Topic] (HIST 473/573)

Aztecs and Incas (HIST 482/582)

Medicine and Society in Premodern Japan (HIST 491/591)

Historic Preservation

Introduction to Historic Preservation (AAAP 411/511)

Journalism and Communication

Introduction to Media Studies (J314)

Gender, Media, and Diversity (J320)

Digital Video Production (J 331)

International Communication (J 396)

Issues in Communication Studies: [Topic] (J 412/512)

Communication Studies Capstone (J 413)

Survey of the Documentary (J 416/516)

Documentary Production (J 421/521)

Communication Ethics and Law: [Topic] (J 496/596)

Qualitative Research Methods (J 641)

Cultural Approaches to Communication (J 648)

Judaic Studies

American Jewish Cultures (JDST 330)

Landscape Architecture

Contemporary American Landscape (LA 375)

Linguistics

Special Studies: Language Issues in International Studies (LING 399)

Music

Popular Musics in a Global Context (MUS 250)

Chamber Ensemble (MUS 394/694)

Religious Studies

Chinese Religions (REL 302)

Japanese Religions (REL 303)

Romance Languages

20th-century Latin American Literature: [Topic] (SPAN 490/590)

Sociology

Self and Society (SOC 328)

Race and Ethnicity (SOC 345)

Sociology of Race and Ethnicity (SOC 445/545)

Systems of War and Peace (SOC 464)

Theatre Arts

Multicultural Theater (TA 472/572)

Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Sexuality Studies: [Topic] (WGS 422/522)