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  6. HI355C: SCIENCE AND RELIGION IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

HI355C: SCIENCE AND RELIGION IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (2014-2015)

Last modified: 28 Jun 2018 10:27


Course Overview

Are science and religion deadly enemies? Would they be friends if they got to know each other better? Or should they politely ignore each other and get on with their jobs? By exploring how the science-religion relationship has worked in practice, in different cultural settings, this course will reveal the range and depth of possible engagements between science and religion. The true stories behind soap-opera episodes such as Galileo's spat with the Vatican and Darwin's brush with the bishops will be uncovered and compared with present-day flashpoints (e.g. young-earth creationism). Prepare to abandon all preconceptions.

Course Details

Study Type Undergraduate Level 3
Term Second Term Credit Points 30 credits (15 ECTS credits)
Campus None. Sustained Study No
Co-ordinators
  • Professor Ralph O'Connor

What courses & programmes must have been taken before this course?

None.

What other courses must be taken with this course?

None.

What courses cannot be taken with this course?

None.

Are there a limited number of places available?

No

Course Description

What is the relationship between science and religion, and why have Westerners so rarely agreed on it? This course, based on the close study of primary sources up to and including the present day, takes a historical perspective on this troubled and fertile relationship and uncovers the true stories behind the simplistic myths often promoted in today?s media. Famous episodes in this history (such as the Darwin controversy) will be reexamined, and categories we often take for granted ? ?science?, ?religion?, even ?biblical literalism? ? will be questioned and set in their historical contexts. Broad trends will be outlined and examined, but with close attention paid to the ways in which individual people experienced the science-religion nexus. The course will conclude by bringing this historical perspective to bear on present-day controversies.

Further Information & Notes

This module is available to students on all non-History degree programmes as a Discipline Breadth course for the enhanced study requirement. However, the admission of students with a non-History degree intention will be at the discretion of the School of Divinity, History, and Philosophy.

Contact Teaching Time

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

Teaching Breakdown

More Information about Week Numbers


Details, including assessments, may be subject to change until 30 August 2024 for 1st term courses and 20 December 2024 for 2nd term courses.

Summative Assessments

1 three-hour examination (50%), continuous assessment (50%), of which the continuous assessment consists of seminar participation (10%), 1 1500-word class exercise (10%), 1 3000-word essay (30%). 1 three-hour examination (60%), plus submission of all written assessment (class exercise 10%, essay 30%).

Formative Assessment

There are no assessments for this course.

Feedback

Feedback will be provided in writing on marks sheets, in comments added to the second copy of each essay which will be returned to the student, and informally in a one-to-one feedback session after submission of the main essay.

Course Learning Outcomes

None.
 

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