Washington University Cooperative

Dr. Jerome Bauer, with 8 years experience teaching at WashU, will teach his signature courses "Middle-Earth and Bharata Varsha" on Sun 2-4pm, Cervantes House, 6036 Pershing Avenue, St Louis, Missouri, and his "Science Fiction and Religion: May the Force Be With You" and other courses on science fiction and fantasy, TBA. If there is sufficient demand, a second section of Middle-Earth and Bharata Varsha may be be offered. $10 donation per session, more or less according to ability to pay.

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Middle-Earth and Bharata Varshs Course Description (Note: this course was taught at WashU in Spr 03, Spr 05, Spr 07)

This course compares the fiction of the British fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien with the Hindu epic poems, Ramayana and Mahabharata, and the mythological works of the twelfth century Indian Jaina teacher and literary theorist Hemacandra. We will compare Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion with prose retellings of the Hindu Epics and selections from Hemacandra’s great work, the Trisastisalakapurusacaritra, in English translation. These works will be examined by means of Western and Indian poetic theories, including those of Aristotle, Bharata, Hemacandra, Propp, and Tolkien, among others. We will pay special attention to the "heterocosmologies" or "sub-creations" of the four authors, the imagination of other worlds based on traditional worldviews, Jain/Hindu in Hemacandra’s case, in Tolkien’s case Christian/"pagan," and Vedic/Hindu in the Hindu Epics. Can we compare the imaginary world of Middle-Earth, identified with Europe by J.R.R. Tolkien, to the sacred geography of Bharata Varsha, the mythological realm equivalent to modern India? Tolkien, a Christian, constructed a "counter-mythology" from mostly "pagan" elements, an imaginary construction "just for fun." Bharata Varsha, on the other hand, is meant to be taken seriously by Hindus and Jains. The course will include background reading and lectures on the Hindu, Jain and Christian traditions, the historical backgrounds of the authors, and their authorial intentions, insofar as we can know them. We will discuss briefly C. S. Lewis’ Narnia stories, comparing Lewis’ didactic agenda with Hemacandra’s, and contrasting both with Tolkien and the Hindu Epic traditions. Other fantasy writers, such as Ursula K. LeGuin, will also be discussed. We will pay special attention to themes of abduction and rescue, heroic quests and marvelous journeys, incarnation, renunciation, friendship, and "soul mates." Multi-track syllabus, non-credit course (I will give you exams, a grade, and/or a detailed letter of evaluation if you wish). Full class 15 weeks. Inquiries: 314-725-0815; www.cfu-lc.com, www.washucoop.com/cfu-lc

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