Hindu Ethics AT, ET What constitutes the good life? How is morality established? Who are the arbiters of virtuous conduct? Such questions will guide us as we probe the complexities of ethics in Hindu religious life. We will identify how such notions as dharma, caste, karma, mokṣa, purity, and nonviolence have shaped the development of Hindu moral consciousness.  We will do so through readings of orthodox Hindu ethical texts (dharma śastra), ethnographic explorations of moral identity, considerations of holistic medicine (Ayurveda), theological visions of protecting the environment, and modern reform movements headed by Gandhi and Ambedkar. With increased sensitivity we will more deeply understand Hindu moral identities while considering our own ethical determinations.

Women, Religion, and Ethnography In this course we will focus on ethnographic scholarship regarding women in various religious traditions. We will begin with questions of feminist ethnography as proposed by Lila Abu-Lughod and then read a range of ethnographies focusing on women in different contexts, including a female Muslim healer in South India, Kalasha women in Pakistan, Bedouin Muslim women in Egypt, and Catholic nuns in Mexico. We will focus on how gendered and religious identities are constructed and intertwined, and what ethnography contributes to the study of both religion and gender. A prior course in Religion, Anthropology, or Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies is recommended.

Women in Islam This course will explore Muslim women's religious roles, participation, and practices throughout the history of Islam and across various cultural contexts. Attention will be paid to the diversity of interpretations concerning Islamic textual prescriptions for women as well as legal discussions of women’s participation in religious and social life, and Muslims women's own articulations of feminism. We will also be attentive to the ways that Muslim women negotiate their everyday and religious lives and how this is intimately related to social location, economic situations, and shifting political realities. Students will develop a final project of their own choosing that also addresses the ethical issues of studying and writing about unfamiliar traditions both within and beyond our religious or cultural contexts.

Hindu Traditions of India In this course we will identify and examine key themes and issues in the study of Hindu religious traditions in India, beginning with the defining of the terms Hinduism, religions, and religious.  We will primarily focus on the ways Hindu religious traditions—texts, narratives, and practices—are performed, received, and experienced in India.  Essential aspects of Hindu religious traditions will be examined, including: key concepts (darsan, dharma, karma and caste), key texts (the Bhagavad Gita and the Ramayana), and major religious deities (Shiva, Devi and Vishnu).  The course will also cover contemporary Hindu-Muslim encounters, and the emerging shape of Hinduism in the American diaspora.

Methods in the Study of Religion How do we think about religion? Is there a common way to talk about religion across cultural divides or should we simply concur that religion is like art, where “We can’t define it, but we know it when we see it? This course will take us through the basic twentieth and twenty-first century theories in the study of religion as “ways of perceiving” this most elusive of phenomena: anthropology, psychology, history, text, politics, philosophy, theology, experience. All of these ways of perceiving religion play a crucial role in the history of the field. We will end by thinking through recent issues in the study of religion–religion and politics, gender and sexuality, comparative and interfaith studies, and the authority of religious identity. Students will be asked to outline a single, compelling case study in religion, and each week they will apply the theorists we read to the details of their case.  In applying theories about religion to real-life situations, students will become skillful practitioners of the art of interpreting religion. They will also develop their own approaches to the study of religion and be able to articulate that approach to a wider audience.

Islam and Hinduism in South Asia Islam has played a significant role in shaping the culture and politics of South Asia, from the seventh century to the present.  In this course we will consider the historical, socio-cultural, religious, and political impact of Islam in South Asia.  We will begin with the introduction of Islam into the South Asian landscape, covering a range of historical moments, including the Delhi Sultanate, the rise of Mughal rule, colonial interactions, and the development of new nation states.  We will then examine Islam as it is lived, practiced, and experienced in contemporary South Asia, focusing on themes such as mysticism and sainthood; issues of gender; and Hindu-Muslim encounters.

Women, Religion, and Conflict in South Asia This course examines religious conflict in contemporary South Asia with a focus on women. The course will begin with an introduction to the religious landscape of South Asia, including historical interactions between Hindus and Muslims, contemporary conflicts, and women’s roles in mediating conflict from Indian villages to urban Pakistani apartment complexes. Guiding questions will be: How are issues of women, gender, and religion framed in narratives of conflict? How, if at all, do women experience or interpret religious conflict differently than men? What are women’s roles in navigating, mediating, and/or transforming conflict in local contexts? In the latter half of the course, students will develop a research agenda on a specific topic of interest, to be presented in class.

Writing Women's Religious Worlds In this course we will examine how we can understand and recognize what “counts” as religion—perhaps in new ways—by focusing on the religious lives of women. Our primary texts will be ethnographic studies of women in various religious traditions around the world, including Hindu women in North India, Muslim women in Egypt, and a Vodou priestess in New York. We will examine how women construct their religious identities and negotiate religious authority as public leaders, ritual experts, and healers, and consider how what women say about their own lives and practices may challenge our assumptions of what religion “is” or “does.” We will also consider the ethics of ethnographic approaches to studying religion, particularly in terms of the “self” and “other,” as students develop their own ethnographic practices and writing.

Introduction to Religion Why is religion a significant element in human life and affairs? What roles does religion play in the lives of individuals and communities? And what is religion anyway? Drawing on Western and Asian traditions, we will take a comparative approach to these questions,  examining how religious traditions can differ and converge. Throughout the course, we will introduce the basic vocabulary and analytical tools of the academic study of religion. We will also consider how both scholars and practitioners make sense of religion and debate its role in societies past and present.

Jennifer Ortegren

Reviews and ratings for Jennifer Ortegren at Middlebury College.Jennifer Ortegren teaches Hindu Ethics, Women, Religion, & Ethnograpy, Women in Islam and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is Jennifer Ortegren good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

I thoroughly enjoyed this course. It was very fast paced (reading a sometimes dense book a week) but that lended its self to interesting conversations and hard questions. I thought the required reading was pertinent to my studies and I appreciated the challenge and depth this course gave to my ability to think and discuss. It was only a discussion based class, there was no lecture and I thought that was a huge aspect of why I enjoyed the class. 

Professor Ortegren was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the content which made lectures interesting and engaging! She did speak very very quickly which made it hard to get back on track with notes if I zoned out for a second. I thought the papers were graded fairly and I she covered a huge amount of information in a digestible way. highly recommend this course

Prof. Ortegren is a great professor who does an excellent job of providing a broad survey of the study of Hindu traditions. She is great at facilitating class discussions and provides a lot of support with essay writing. My only critique is that some of the assignments felt like busy-work, and there's a fair number of them to do.