RELS2011 Religion: Interpretation and Analysis
Research Paper Assignment

Paper Structure

• Give a brief introduction to the religious tradition addressing points such as dates (ancient, modern, or both?), geography (where is/was it practiced?), and size (how widespread?)
  
  
• The bulk of the paper should address the cosmological beliefs of the religious tradition including points such as 1) cosmogonies 2) structure of the world (heavens, underworlds, spiritual planes, etc). 3) god, gods, or higher forces 4) existence of beings that are neither humans or gods 5) beliefs on how superior forces and the natural world including humans interact 6) beliefs on what happens after death ***Do not get distracted from the topic of cosmology by other aspects of religious practice such as doctrines, preisthood, rites and rituals, etc.***
  
  
• Provide a sociological analysis of how the religious tradition's cosmology conveys information on how it is/is not a reflection of the culture/ethics/societal structure of the people who hold/held those beliefs.

Paper Specifications

1. 20 p. in length with a maximum length of 25 pages. Pages are to be counted as typewritten/wordprocessed sheets that are double-spaced and the count should exclude the title page, footnotes/endnotes, bibliography, and any accompanying illustrations.
   
   
2. There must be at least five different sources consulted and these should be included in a separate bibliography. Sources consulted may include encyclopedia articles, books, journal articles, and documentary videotapes and may be in English, Spanish, French, or German. Internet/Web resources may be included if the page has been attributed to someone affiliated with an academic center of learning such as a university.
   
   
3. There must be at least ten footnotes or endnotes citing works mentioned in the bibliography.
   
   Important note on fair use of materials: IF you copy a point word for word from a source or even closely paraphrase it, you MUST cite it in a footnote/endnote. To not cite properly is considered plagiarism and can lead to a failing grade.
   
   
4. The footnotes or endnotes and bibliography should be prepared according to the guidelines listed in Kate L.Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations 6th ed.or the Chicago Manual of Style.
   
   
5. The paper will be graded on content and on the correct use of English grammar, spelling, and style.

Research Strategies

1. Start with an encyclopedia and look up your subject. Read the entire article to become familiar with the bigger picture. A good starting place is the Encyclopedia of Religion but the library also has many specialized encyclopedias.
   
   
2. Search for books (or videotapes) in LUIS library catalog. Information on cosmology may be indexed under cosmology, religion, mythology, folklore or all of these so be comprehensive in your search. Remember that you can use both subject terms and keywords and that keywords can be truncated using "?" (ex: k=cosmo? will retrieve cosmos, cosmology, cosmological, etc.)
   
   
3. Search for articles by looking in indexes of journal articles. A good starting place is the General Academic Index in LUIS. At the LUIS menu select option 12 INDEXES AND ABSTRACTS. Then select option 26 MORE INDEXES AND ABSTRACTS. Then select General Academic. Now repeat the same search keys that were fruitful when you searched the LUIS library catalog.
   
   You can find out if these articles are owned by FIU Libraries by selecting the LIB option. If they are not at FIU but at another SUS library, you can request them through Interlibrary Loan. **In some cases the full text of the article may be available online if you are accessing LUIS via the Web.**
   
   Ask the Reference Librarian if there are other indexes that may be appropriate for your particular topic.
   
   
4. Internet Resources. You may try to find some but remember, to use them they must have been posted by a credible source such as someone affiliated with a university or an official page of the religious tradition you are studying.
   
   Here's a starting place: From the Library's top page (http://www.fiu.edu/~library/), select Internet Resources by Subject, and then Religion, and then happy hunting from there.