Anth 223G
Paper Assignment #2
Spring, 2023
Your second paper assignment this semester is to write a three to four-page paper in which you use Wallace’s ‘Anatomy of Religion’ to describe and analyze Haitian Vodou. Select three of Wallace’s categories of religious behavior which you think are particularly useful for analyzing Vodou belief and practice, and show how they apply to the Vodou spiritual system. Draw on the readings by Murrell, Herskovits, Wilentz, Peters-Golden, the Maya Deren film Divine Horsemen, and the Angels in the Mirror audio recording for your evidence. Explain the meaning of the Wallace categories you have selected, and show how they help to illuminate Vodou.
This assignment asks you to apply portions of Wallace’s anthropological understanding of religion in general to Haitian Vodou in particular, as shown in the course materials indicated above. The purpose of this assignment is to give you an opportunity to explore Haitian Vodou from an anthropological perspective by showing how Haitian Vodou fits within and fulfills Wallace’s framework.
Create a carefully written and well-organized essay that addresses this topic. Be sure to follow the writing format instructions on page three of the syllabus, and consult Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on matters of spelling, word usage, grammar, punctuation, format, footnotes, bibliography, etc. Be sure to proofread and double check your work before submitting it.
