Intro Midterm Study Guide (2).docx 3-12-25 10-37am (1)

Key Scholars and Their Main Arguments

• E.B. Tylor

  • Defined religion as belief in spiritual beings.

  • Promoted the idea of animism as the earliest form of religion.

• James Frazer

  • Known for his work "The Golden Bough".

  • Argued that magic precedes religion and that both are attempts to manipulate the environment.

• Sigmund Freud

  • Proposed that religion is an illusion and rooted in human psychology.

  • Analyzed it through the lens of the Oedipus Complex and the interplay of id, ego, and superego.

• Karl Marx

  • Described religion as the "opiate of the masses".

  • Argued it legitimizes the status quo and distracts the proletariat from their oppression.

• Emile Durkheim

  • Emphasized the social function of religion.

  • Defined it as a collective phenomenon for social cohesion.

  • Introduced the concept of collective effervescence.

• William James

  • Focused on individual experiences of religion.

  • Introduced the ideas of "healthy-minded" versus "sick-souled" individuals.

• Rudolf Otto

  • Known for the concept of numinous experience.

  • Defined it as a deeply emotional and mystical experience of the divine, characterized by the "Mysterium Tremendum".

Inferred Definitions of Key Terms

• Religion: A system of beliefs and practices centered around spiritual or supernatural elements, providing meaning and community.

• Animism: Belief that objects and creatures possess a spiritual essence.

• Magic: Practices involving manipulation of supernatural forces.

• Totem: Symbolic representation (often an animal or plant) of a group.

• Taboo: Social or cultural prohibitions against specific practices or discussions.

• Monasticism: A religious life characterized by renunciation of worldly pursuits for spiritual work.

• Mystics: Individuals seeking direct experiences of the divine.

• Asceticism: A lifestyle of abstaining from worldly pleasures for spiritual reasons.

• Collective Effervescence: A social phenomenon where a group experiences shared emotional energy.

• Communism: An ideology advocating for a classless system with communal ownership of production.

• Superstructure/Base: In Marxist theory, cultural and ideological structures arising from the economic base.

• Numen: A divine or supernatural force or spirit.

• Numinous: Feeling of being in the presence of the holy.

• Mysterium Tremendum: Profound sense of awe and fear in the presence of the divine.