1.1 Exam Section 1
This section of the exam has four questions, each worth 10% of the final exam grade.
The first three questions will ask you to write on three religious food-related themes we’ve covered throughout the entire course (Lessons 2-11). I will choose the themes, and for each theme the question will ask you to give:
- three examples of the theme, one from each of the three modules in the course—not taken from elsewhere, not from your interviews (6 marks)
- two examples of how this theme has been, and is being, influenced by migration and resettling of people across the world (4 marks)
I'll choose the three themes from the list of six themes provided in Lesson 1, section 2. They're listed there in bold text. The best way to prepare for Section 1 would be to review all six themes.
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The fourth question is different. It will ask you to talk about Dene foodways, as described by Walsh in Lesson 11.
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For all four questions feel free to refer to the images you’ve encountered in the course, and the assigned readings. They too are part of the data.
Aim for 300-400 words for each of your answers in Section 1. And aim for quality. I’ll expect carefully-crafted answers that are rich in details. I'll be expecting more from you than I would if you'd not seen these questions ahead of time.
1.2 Exam Section 2
This section will have two parts.
PART 1 will ask two questions from each of Lessons 9, 10, and one question from 11—five questions in total. The questions will emerge from the text, including the images, and the assigned readings, and expect answers of about 200-250 words (each worth 10%, for a total of 50%).
Here are three examples of the type of questions you can expect, with some answers like those that I hope to receive from you. Note: I’ve taken these sample questions from modules 1 and 2; remember that the actual questions will come from Lessons 9-11, in Module 3.
Sample Question 1: Food is offered to ancestors in several traditions. Give four examples of Hindu food offerings in Bali, explaining their significance (2 marks per example for a total of 8 marks). In your answer, refer to the images that accompany these offerings (2 marks).
Answer: Balinese Hindus offer food to evil spirits, and to a variety of good spirits. [Aim to lead-off your answer with a thesis that frames an argument, or at least an all-encompassing sentence that defines your topic.] Food is offered to evil spirits to keep them away, or placate them. Images we saw included (1) an egg offering just outside a mountain temple, where the evil spirits would be expected to reside, which was thought to have been accepted by those spirits when a dog ate the egg; and (2) the crater of a volcano, where dangerous spirits were offered live animal sacrifices to prevent further eruptions.
In regards to nurturing the good spirits [notice the organizational structure of the answer: a clear division between offerings to good and evil spirits is represented by two paragraphs], first, we saw images of women offering lunch to the rice goddess in a field adjoining a hotel. The hotel owners, when they were having their hotel constructed, experienced several building accidents, which stopped when the rice goddess was properly fed. Second, we saw women feeding the gods at the top of a mountain temple. Mountains are considered sacred in Bali, so it is natural that the gods are fed on these sites. Third, we saw images of offerings placed on the coast for the sea goddess. Those mountain top and sea shore offerings were in honour of the nature-based deities, to encourage them to look kindly on those who make the offerings. The offerings to the sea goddess were not touched, even by children who could have used the food and money, indicating the sacredness and seriousness of these offerings.
Sample Question 2: Lesson 3 on Christianity had the following study questions for the reading, “The Role of Food in Canadian Forms of Christianity: Continuity and Change”:
1. Historical links between food and Canadian Christianity: What foods (or food restrictions) are linked with Lent and the Eucharist? How did Easter foods differ among different cultural groups in Canada? Name the main groups linked with food charity.
2. Changing patterns to the role of food: In the 1960s, in what main ways did the Vatican II rulings, the Quiet Revolution in Québec, and the Immigration Act result in changes to religious food practices in Canada?
3. What societal changes have led to food being less of a divisive force in Canada?
Answer two of the above three numbered questions (each worth 5%).
{Answer: I will not provide you with a detailed answer here; you could easily construct one from the reading. This sample question is intended to show you that short-answer questions can be based on the readings in lessons 9, 10 and 11, not just the lesson text.}
Sample Question 3: Judaism has clear food laws and guidelines pertaining to dietary restrictions, the Sabbath, religious feasts, fasting, and charity. Choose two of those above categories, or themes, and for each one: outline the practices and beliefs that are expected from the religious leadership, and provide two examples of lived religion that differ from these guidelines/laws.
Answer: I will examine Jewish dietary restrictions and religious feasts.
Dietary restrictions: Jews are forbidden from eating certain foods, and warm-blooded animals must be ritually slaughtered. Forbidden foods include water creatures without fins and scales, four-legged insects, and birds or animals that eat dead animals. Cud-chewing, split-hooved animals are among those allowed as food. These restrictions come from the Bible. Another restriction was added later: meat and milk must be kept apart in meals. [Note the detailed answer.]
In practice, religious Jews follow these rules along a spectrum ranging from not at all to completely. Many Jews reject pork, but the reading that week showed that even a hundred years ago there were ways found for some Jews to eat pork; even today, some urban Jews find ways to justify eating potentially non-kosher meals in Chinese restaurants. A local survey conducted with Jews in the Waterloo Region showed that over half of Jews did not think that food restrictions were important, and those who kept them more closely tended to do so at home more than in public. Finally, there are some (Reform) Jews for whom food laws were always stretchable. [Note how several examples are given to support the point; note too that I've created a new paragraph for this part of the answer.]
[The same for religious feasts, and here one could also refer to images.]
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PART 2 will ask you to reflect on what you've personally found most valuable or significant about the course material, from beginning to end. This type of question, as you know, is different than one that asks you to accurately reproduce certain details.
You are free to reflect on the issue in the course (including your interviews) that gave you the most food for thought. In your answer, explain what the issue is, and why it matters to you (10 marks).
It's your choice. You get to write on what you want. Don't start with "what will the prof want to hear?" Start by reflecting on what matters to you.
Make it substantial. You've got time to think about this before the exam, so I'll be looking for something clear and well connected to the course material.
Make it about a food & religion issue. This is not another "theme" question, like those you'll be addressing in the first section of this exam (and listed in Lesson 1). Choose an issue or a topic (e.g., "the value of religion"), or a personal engagement with some matter (e.g., "I was struck by the images of children throughout the course"). Explain it, and ground it in the course material.
