Mary (Polly) Gannon
Melis Umut
Seminar: Cult M: Spirituality, Affect and the Posthuman
Mary (Polly) Gannon (NYI Academic Director of Critical Cultural Studies)
Melis Umut (Stony Brook University)
Spirituality is a heterogeneous concept often dismissed in academic circles and literature. In this seminar, we will explore a few selected forms and understandings of spirituality in relation to contemporary critical theory, mainly affect and posthuman studies. We will investigate possible vistas for negotiating between spirituality and these theories that have been widely used especially by humanities scholars. Please note that we will explore spirituality from a non-religious perspective and focus on its traditional and/or new-age everyday practices, including tarot, various means of fortune-telling, ayahuasca, and yoga.