Experience Researching:
An important aspect of this group research project was discovering how our
interests complemented each other so well. We realized as we discussed this
as a group that we were all interested in women's spirituality, but we were
unsure how to approach the topic and what aspects we wanted to cover. We
explored various aspects of this subject on our own, and we found that our
separate areas of interest allowed us to take a personal approach and pursue
our diverse interests. Samantha found the philosophical issue of woman's
identity particularly interesting, and she provided an introductory framework
for the rest of our presentation. Sarah's fascination with mythology led her
to research prehistoric female deities. This provided a new spiritual
perspective through which women may gain agency in society. Claire took an
anthropological approach, studying menstruation as a cultural construct. She
studied both personal narratives and alternatives paradigms of menstruation,
hoping to find more positive ways of assigning meaning to menstruation.
Maya looked at the established gender roles of a religion,
reflecting on the history in contrast to its contemporary beliefs,
also delving into the relations of sexuality and spirituality within
the religious context (while then getting the perk bonus of being able
to say "orgasm" in front of the class and gauge their reaction).
Chris decided to explore his roots of eco-feminist, neo-Jungian, Shamanic
spirituality. He was intrigued with the psychological symbols and their
power in the context of mythology, spirituality, and religion.
Applications:
We hoped to create alternatives to the dominant, patriarchal religious
thought. Through spirituality we believe it is possible to create more
positive identities for women in society, a more positive outlook on women's
bodies, and a place for a positive "female" identities. We feel that the
approaches we have taken have provided a structure for advancing these ideas
on the personal level, and ideally in the political sphere, as well.