11/04/14 Cristal Kim

My essay will be about the representation of the relationship between religion and disasters. The three texts I have selected focus on the interpretation of disasters and how religion has had an affect on the aftermath of these events. These articles represent how people have dealt with disasters; the first focuses on real-life experiences, the second studies the different mediums and how they draw from different sources to depict apocalypses, and finally, the changes in religion as they interpret their own religious texts and witness real-life disasters.

Judith Schlehe's "Anthropology of Religion: Disasters and the Representations of Tradition and Modernity," focuses on the relationship between the earthquake in Indonesia (2006) and the traditional myths and values of that culture. The article provides context to the traditions and the beliefs that led to the population to rediscover their roots and unveil unknown crises. Furthermore, the passage discusses the aftermath of this new renaissance in religion; the disaster is used to bring forth a new form of expression of the people. The population is reaffirmed in their faith as they deal with the consequences; Schlehe illustrates the relationship between disaster and religion as something almost lost but found again. The disaster is used to explain the shortcomings of the people and explain why such disasters happen in their community. Disasters are simply used as vehicles to express and reiterate stances on religion without the burden of self-interest.

My second text is "Dramatizing Disaster: Character, Event, Representation" by Christine Cornea and Rhys Owain Thomas illustrates the different films, TV shows, comic books, video games, etc and their interpretations of disasters. It is a collection of different studies based on the foundations that the mediums create for their audience. The article dissects how the disasters are interpreted by the directors and how they attempt to explain these phenomena to their viewers. It discusses how the influence of contemporary society affects the illustration of these disasters and how they draw from real-life experiences to portray a more realistic image.

The third article is Danielle Hesse's dissertation, "Disaster Preparedness and Response Among Religious Organizations." Hesse explores the different actions taken by religious organizations both before and after a disaster; in the religious texts we have read for classes, these religions never seemed to be prepared despite multiple warnings, and in Hesse's article, she illustrates how these stories have affected the present. She reports on and compares different religions, but what is most intriguing is their reasoning behind the decisions made as a community. These communal decisions furthermore change how victims have coped with their losses and the aftermath of the disaster.