Theory in a Time of Excess

What does it mean to “do theory” in the study of religion today? The terms “method and theory” are now found in course titles, curricula/degree requirements, area/comprehensive exams, and frequently listed as competencies on the CVs of scholars from across a wide array of subfields. Are we really that theoretically and methodologically sophisticated? The book consists of distinct chapters penned by leading theorists in the field. The core of the book consists of statements written by an anthropologist of religion, a literary theorist, a specialist in cognitive science of religion, and a philosopher of religion. Each statement is then followed by shorter response papers, and concludes with a response by the theorist.

What does it mean to “do theory” in the study of religion today? The terms “method and theory” are now found in course titles, curricula/degree requirements, area/comprehensive exams, and frequently listed as competencies on the CVs of scholars from across a wide array of subfields. Are we really that theoretically and methodologically sophisticated? While a variety of groups at annual scholarly conferences now regularly itemize theorizing among the topics that they examine and carry out, it seems that few of the many examples of doing theory today involve either meta-reflection on the practical conditions of the field or rigorously explanatory studies of religion’s cause(s) or function(s). So, despite the appearance of tremendous advances in the field over the past 30 years, it can be argued that little has changed. Indeed, the term theory is today so widely understood as to make it coterminous with virtually all forms of scholarship on religion. This volume seeks to re-examine just what we ought to consider theory to signify. The book consists of distinct chapters penned by leading theorists in the field. The core of the book consists of statements written by an anthropologist of religion, a literary theorist, a specialist in cognitive science of religion, and a philosopher of religion. Each statement is then followed by shorter response papers, and concludes with a response by the theorist.

Introduction Theory in a Time of Excess Aaron W. Hughes PART ONE 1. Establishing a Beachhead: NAASR, Twenty Years Later Luther H. Martin, University of Virginia, and Donald Wiebe, University of Toronto PART TWO 2. On the Restraint of Theory Jason N. Blum, Davidson College 3. It's Hard Out There for a Theorist Michael J. Altman, University of Alabama 4. Signifying "Theory": Toward a Method of Mutually Assured Deconstruction Richard Newton, Elizabethtown College 5. On the Restraint of Consciousness Tara Baldrick-Morrone, Florida State University 6. A Reply Jason N. Blum PART THREE 7. The High Stakes of Identifying (with) One's Object of Study K. Merinda Simmons, University of Alabama 8. New Materialism and the Objects of Religious Studies Martha Smith Roberts, University of California, Santa Barbara 9. Killing The Scholar: Critical Theory, Relevance, and Objects of Study Thomas J. Whitley, Florida State University 10. The Rhetoric of Disinterest for Authorizing our Critical Position: Historicizing Critical-Theory in Religious Studies Stephen L. Young, Brown University 11. A Reply K. Merinda Simmons PART FOUR 12. What the Cognitive Science of Religion Is (and is not) Claire White, California State University, Northridge 13. "Show me the Money": Big-Money Donors and the Cognitive Science of Religion Brad Stoddard, McDaniel College 14. Of Elephants and Riders: Cognition, Reason and Will in the Study of Religion Matt Sheedy, University of Manitoba 15. A Reply Claire White PART FIVE 16. The Study of Religion, Bricolage, and Brandom Matthew C. Bagger, University of Alabama 17. Precision and Excess: Doing the Discipline of Religious Studies Rebekka King, Middle State Tennessee University 18. On Druids, The Dude, and Doing Excessive Theory James Dennis Lorusso, Princeton University 19. Reliabilism and the Limits of Pragmatism Robyn Faith Walsh, University of Miami 20. A Reply Matthew C. Bagger PART SIX 21. Theory is the Best Accessory: Branding and the Power of Scholarly Compartmentalization Leslie Dorrough Smith, University of Alabama Afterword Feast and Famine in the Study of Religion Russell T. McCutcheon, University of Alabama

• Edited by Aaron W Hughes

"Theory in a Time of Excess is a compelling and stimulating read that effectively conveys the intensity of scholarly reflection, debate, and exchange of ideas presented at the 2015 North American Association for the Study of Religion [NAASR] meeting, from whose proceedings the book was developed." --Massimo Rondolino, Carroll University, Reading Religion
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