One of the standard skills in a university education is the reading of a historical text. Traditionally this learning objective is explained in terms of two competencies--the engagement of primary sources and the use of secondary sources to assist in the interpretation of those primary sources. In fact, the very design of historical curricula is … Continue reading You’re a historian; Get the Memo?
This week, I'm headed to the University of Oklahoma to discuss my research and pedagogy. Come check out my public lecture, "Scriptural Roots: How Alex Haley Read 'America Great Again.'"
Over in Postscripts: The Journal of Sacred Texts and Contemporary Worlds, I have an article that has gone to press. It's called "Reading Alex Haley's Roots: Toward an Anthropology of Scriptures."
Business Insider recently shared a thought-provoking video on the spread of religion around the world. Producer Alex Kuzoian used a spinning globe to map the spread of Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam in under three minutes. A timeline of the last five millennia progresses in correspondence with the changing domains of each religion. Annotations … Continue reading Mapping Source-Places and the Roots of Religion
During the nation’s bicentennial, a media phenomena captivated the attention of American reading and television audiences. Alex Haley’s award-winning work broached the contested role of black people in the United States. The novel and miniseries located blacks at the center of an American historical mythology and invited a redefintion of de facto American citizenship. The … Continue reading Glimpses of Alex Haley’s Scriptural ROOTS
Sowing the Seed 