“Do you believe in magic?”

Sorry Harry Potter fans, this is not a Hogwarts kind of class.

Magic, Witchcraft and Religion, or AN 271/REL 271, is an exploratory course of religion and its relation to the studies of magic and witchcraft.

The class uses anthropological theories and applies them to magic and witchcraft and how they pertain to past and present life.

Henri Gooren, assistant professor of anthropology, said he wants students to learn the different elements of various religions and the class far extents investigating just Christianity or Islam.

“The thing they have in common is that they all are trying to make sense of the world,” she said.

The course also examines how magic and religion are both tools of manipulation and studies how both try to influence your life in some regard.

“Magic is about getting an advantage,” Gooren said. “Magic is just a different technique than religion.”

Students are given the opportunity to explore religions different than their own but also take a deeper look into the religion that they practice.

This course is open to anyone and the next session begins in Winter 2011.

American Sign Language

There is one foreign language class on campus that promises no oral exams.

COM 114, or Introduction to American Sign Language, and its sister course COM 115, or American Sign Language, offer students a different look at language.

Sign language, which is actually based off French, not English, has always been regarded as an easy subject to those who do not understand the mechanisms needed to sign, according to Jon Wilkinson, a special lecturer of communication and journalism.

“Many people don’t realize that American Sign Language and English are on two different sides of the spectrum,” Wilkinson said.

The sentence structure is very different when using sign language. Instead of saying “I will buy a new car,” students sign “tomorrow new car finish buy.”

To realize this, students must strip what they know about grammar and start from the beginning, according to Wilkinson.

ASL is much like any other foreign language; you must start from the basics.

Both courses are open to anyone.