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74787-01 - Seminar: Ritual as Transgression: A Spatial Reading of Basler Fasnacht (3 CP)
| Semester | spring semester 2025 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Francesca Romana Dell'Aglio (francescaromana.dellaglio@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Course description Every ritual is rooted in the everyday; it is only within the everyday that it can emerge as a sacred exception, giving an emphasis, an accent, to our everyday and transgressing its repetitive course. It is in this sacred temporal and spatial frame that a ritual becomes a performative act, a joyous moment in which social contracts and structural hierarchies are suspended in favour of overturning the rules. The Basel Carnival fits this description of transgressive ritual perfectly. Like other carnivals, Fasnacht is a ritual made up of a series of events that are bound together by a code of conduct created ad hoc to allow society to participate without social distinctions. Notoriously reactionary in the choice of themes presented by each clique, Fasnacht is a real disruption, a transgression of the Basel routine, which can sometimes even resemble a protest. In this course, we will read and experience carnival not only as a social drama, a public action that takes place in situations of conflict, but also as a spatial drama, an action that has a spatial meaning in itself, where the bodies of performers and spectators become space-making devices. We will unpack each day of the carnival in order to understand the different spatial forms it creates - some of which may not be so visible, but exist as part of a network of collective spaces in the historic centre of the city. We will read the transgression behind this 72-hour ritual, paying close attention to the different features that emerge from its performative act and its spatial consequences: such as the rules and anti-rules created for this exceptional event; the craft, display and meanings behind the masks; the liminal spaces where the processions take place and how they subvert the physical boundaries of the urban fabric like streets, lanes, bridges and thoroughfares. By dissecting the different moments that make up the ritual of Fasnacht, can an alternative urban condition be revealed that contrasts with everyday efficiency and commerce? Is collective action capable of transforming infrastructures and leftover spaces into temporary theatres of collective life? Course Structure The course runs every Friday for a full month from 21.02 to 21.03, with the exception of Fasnacht week (10.03-12.03) when students will undertake group fieldwork, which will be planned in advance during the first sessions. The course consists of three full day studio sessions, three days of fieldwork and a final session where we will present and discuss the work produced during carnival week. |
| Learning objectives | • Drawing on anthropological and social understandings of the ritual of Fasnacht, the course invites students to focus their attention and observations on its spatial implications. • Students will learn that in order to deeply understand the meaning of a ritual, it is crucial to observe its different stages, from the preparation to the actual performance. • The aim is to understand that behind transgressive rituals such as carnival lies a balance between the actors (the city, the police and the committee) that is fundamental to its permanence and repetition over time. • The course invites us to look beyond the spontaneity and hedonism of Fasnacht and to critically observe its spatial consequences at the micro level of the city and how it affects the life of the city at ground level. • Students will begin to test their understanding of participant observation by participating in the carnival with an attentive eye that will help them produce a spatial observation of each part of the city touched by the event. |
| Comments | Open to MA students from other programs with the priority for CU and CS MA students on timely registration. *** This course is capped at 25 students. Please email the instructor: francescaromana.dellaglio@unibas.ch, for registration application, by 14th February. *** Places still available (04.02.2025) |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Friday | 10.15-12.00 | Petersplatz 14/ Hebelstrasse 3, Phantomsaal E013 |
Dates
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Friday 21.02.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Petersplatz 14/ Hebelstrasse 3, Phantomsaal E013 |
| Friday 28.02.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Petersplatz 14/ Hebelstrasse 3, Phantomsaal E013 |
| Friday 07.03.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Petersplatz 14/ Hebelstrasse 3, Phantomsaal E013 |
| Monday 10.03.2025 | 04.00-08.00 | Fasnachstferien |
| Tuesday 11.03.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Fasnachstferien |
| Wednesday 12.03.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Fasnachstferien |
| Friday 21.03.2025 | 10.15-16.00 | Petersplatz 14/ Hebelstrasse 3, Phantomsaal E013 |
| Modules |
Modul: Alternative Religionsgeschichte (Master's degree subject: Science of Religion) Modul: Praktiken (Master's degree program: Cultural Techniques) Modul: Religion, Narration und Medien (Master's degree subject: Science of Religion) Module: The Urban across Disciplines (Master's degree program: Critical Urbanisms) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | pass/fail |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Urban Studies |