Activity 2.2: What’s your cosmology?

What is cosmology? In physics, this term refers to the study of the cosmos, but in anthropology, it describes the structuring worldview through which someone interprets the world around them. How are the world and universe shaped? How is time shaped? Where did humans come from, and where will they go after they die? Your answers to these questions make up your cosmology. Your cosmology probably comes from the knowledge systems you have been exposed to in your life, including religious (e.g. Christianity, Norse Mythology) and scientific (e.g. biology, astronomy, physics) ones.

In this activity, draw or write about your cosmology, then reflect on where it comes from (religion, science, traditional knowledge, etc.). Has your cosmology changed throughout your life? How does it seem different and similar to other cosmologies we have learned about so far in the class, such as the one we learned about in Activity 2.1? Feel free to share as much or as little of your reflection (and a drawing if you’d like) as you feel comfortable with in Canvas > Assignments > Activity 2.2. At minimum, please submit 1-2 sentences stating what you learned from examining your cosmology in this assignment.