Abracadabra: Language, Memory, Representation

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1. Welcome to abracadabra [L.; origin unknown. Occurs first in a poem by Q. Serenus Sammonicus, 2nd c.] A cabalistic word, formerly used as a charm, and believed to have the power, when written in a triangular arrangement, and worn round the neck, to cure agues, etc. Now often used in the general sense of a spell, or pretended conjuring word; a meaningless word of mysterious sound; jargon, gibberish. 1696 AUBREY Misc. 105 Abracadabra, a Mysterious Word, to which the Superstitious in former times attributed a Magical power to expel Diseases, especially the Tertian-Ague, worn about their neck. 1810 BENTHAM Art of Packing (1821) 124 Thereby, in legal abracadabra, like man and wife, but one person. 1824 COLERIDGE Aids to Refl. (1848) I. 130 Leave him..to retaliate the nonsense of blasphemy with the abracadabra of presumption. 1860 T. A. G. BALFOUR Typ. Charac. Nat. 118 Abr?, which is here twice repeated, is composed of the first letters of the Hebrew words signifying Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, viz. Ab, Ben, Ruach, Acadosch. 1879 Lit. World 5 Dec. 358/2 The new abracadabra of science, ?organic evolution.? In philosophy, there is a subdiscipline known as 'epistemology'. This is the body of questions that concern not what we know, but how we come to know what we know. In anthropology we take on the task of actually asking this question about people, rather than discussing it abstractly. In classical anthropology, the goal was to get inside another culture's world view. To understand, for example, how the bororo or the Cuna thought about the world. This class is no different, except that the bororo and the Cuna are scientists, natural philosophers, theologians and engineers. What you should get from this class then, is the ability to make science and engineering, and religion and art seem *strange*. To understand it by literally standing under it and examinining it. 2. Who should be in the class? class size is limited, to facilitate discussion those already enrolled are guaranteed a spot, however, - anthropology majors have first dibs - seniors looking for distribution must come beg - the class is not appropriate for first years, it is really designed for people who have some experience in either anthropology, or some other science and engineering discipline 3. about the class - the syllabus and the sections of the class - the readings-- history, literature, primary sources, film, and theoretical texts. - the structure: one or two lectures per week + one day of discussion. 4. Requirements of the class - Attendance. As usual, I will probably be forced to do random attendance checks. If you happen to be absent this day, bummer. (extended absenses, or absenses that result in missed deadlines, must be accompanied by documentation from the dept. of Homeland Security). - Participation. One of the ways I assign grades for participation is if I can remember something you said and what you voice sounds like. - Assignments - 5 Assignments - Assignment 1 is a gimme. Introduce Yourself. - Assignment 2 lasts all semester. - Assignments 3,4,5 are fun, but serious. They will be announced over the course of the semester.
Christopher Kelty
Last modified: Mon Jan 27 18:08:05 CST 2003