Dirk Johannsen

Norwegian version of this page
Phone
+47 22844076
Room
434
Username
Visiting address
Niels Henrik Abels vei 36
P. A. Munchs hus
0371 Oslo
Postal address
Postboks 1010 Blindern
0315 Oslo
Academic Interests
- Popular religion and Folklore
- Cultural Studies, narratology and cognitive approaches
- Theory and method in the study of religions
- The cultural history of magic, witchcraft and occultism
- Atheism and secular thought in modernity
- Literature and religion in modernity
- Contemporary pilgrimage; religion and nature
Teaching
BA Cultural History, BA Study of Religions, MA European Culture.
Regular courses:
- KULH1001 - Europas Kulturhistorie: En Innføring
- KULH2006 - Kulturteori
- KULH1003 - The Cultural History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe
- KULH2009 - Folklore
- KULH4171 - Cognitive Cultural Studies
Ongoing research and cooperation
- Re-Storied Sites and Routes studies how places and routes with a religious or mythical past gain renewed significance. PI for the Norwegian work package. The project is funded by the EEA Financial Mechanism Baltic Research Program in Estonia.
- Stories of Heritage approaches the current pilgrimage revivals in the Nordic countries, studying the heritagisation of religion, the re-storying of landscapes, and environmentalist interpretations of oral traditions.
- The project "How religion became popular: The reconfiguration of religion in the modern breakthrough" analyses the interplay between fiction and religion in the process of the scientification of the concept of religion in the late 19th Century. A collaboration with the University of Basel.
- The Aesthetics of Religion Network: AESToR.net
Higher education and employment history
Dirk Johannsen studied History of Religions and Philosophy at the Universities of Hannover, Germany, and Varanasi, India, and received his PhD at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. He worked as a researcher and research coordinator at the Universities of Fribourg and Basel, Switzerland, with additional teaching assignments at the Universities of Bern and Lucerne. Before coming to Oslo, he held a position as Assistant Professor in the Study of Religion at the University of Dublin, Trinity College.
Academic Degrees / Qualifications:
- CAS in Higher Education, University of Bern
- Dr. phil., University of Bayreuth
- Magister Artium, University of Hannover
Publications
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Johannsen, Dirk (2021). The Poisoned Springs of Romanticism: On the Construction and Rise of 'Mysticism' in the Nordic ‘Modern Breakthrough’ . In Wilke, Annette; Stephanus, Robert & Suckro, Robert (Ed.), Constructions of Mysticism as a Universal. Roots and Interactions Across Borders. Harrassowitz Verlag. ISSN 978-3-447-10785-3. p. 117–136.
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Otto, Bernd-Christian & Johannsen, Dirk (2021). Introduction: Fictional Practice. In Otto, Bernd-Christian & Johannsen, Dirk (Ed.), Fictional Practice: Magic, Narration, and the Power of Imagination. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 978-90-04-46600-5. p. 1–21. doi: 10.1163/9789004466005_002. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2021). The Emergence of Fictional Practice in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn: W.B. Yeats’ Talismanic Poetry. In Otto, Bernd-Christian & Johannsen, Dirk (Ed.), Fictional Practice: Magic, Narration, and the Power of Imagination. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 978-90-04-46600-5. p. 174–202. doi: 10.1163/9789004466005_009. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2021). How Blasphemy became an Anachronism. Free Thought and the Media Market in Late Nineteenth-Century Scandinavia. In Stensvold, Anne (Eds.), Blasphemies compared : Transgressive speech in a globalised world. Routledge. ISSN 9780367254223. p. 158–174.
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Bowman, Marion; Johannsen, Dirk & Ohrvik, Ane (2020). Reframing Pilgrimage in Northern Europe: Introduction to the Special Issue. Numen. ISSN 0029-5973. 67(5/6), p. 439–452. doi: 10.1163/15685276-12341597.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Ohrvik, Ane (2020). How to Be a Pilgrim: Guidebooks on the Norwegian St. Olav Ways and the Heritagization of Religion. Numen. ISSN 0029-5973. 67(5/6), p. 508–536. doi: 10.1163/15685276-12341600. Full text in Research Archive Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Kirsch, Anja (2020). Narrative Cultures and the Aesthetics of Religion. An Introduction. In Johannsen, Dirk; Kirsch, Anja & Kreinath, Jens (Ed.), Narrative Cultures and the Aesthetics of Religion. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 9789004421677. p. 1–13. doi: 10.1163/9789004421677_002. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2020). How to Sense a Ghost. On the Aesthetics of Legend Traditions. In Johannsen, Dirk; Kirsch, Anja & Kreinath, Jens (Ed.), Narrative Cultures and the Aesthetics of Religion. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 9789004421677. p. 66–90. doi: 10.1163/9789004421677_005. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Kirsch, Anja (2019). Narrative Strategies. In Koch, Anne & Wilkens, Katharina (Ed.), The Bloomsbury Handbook of the Cultural and Cognitive Aesthetics of Religion. Bloomsbury Academic. ISSN 9781350066717. p. 143–156. doi: 10.5040/9781350066748.ch-013.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2019). Vis-Knut: Marginality in Folklore and FolkReligion. In Bremmer, Jan N. & Feldt, Laura (Ed.), Marginality, Media, and Mutations of Religious Authority in the History of Christianity. Peeters Publishers. ISSN 9789042936744. p. 135–155. doi: 10.2307/j.ctv1q26smg.11.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2018). The Prophet and the Sorcerer: Becoming a Cunning-Man in Nineteenth-Century Norway. Folklore. ISSN 0015-587X. 129(1), p. 39–57. doi: 10.1080/0015587X.2017.1388033. Full text in Research Archive Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2018). On elves and freethinkers: criticism of religion and the emergence of the literary fantastic in Nordic literature. In Davidsen, Markus Altena (Eds.), Narrative and Belief. The Religious Affordance of Supernatural Fiction. Routledge. ISSN 9781138559660. p. 103–122. doi: 10.1080/0048721x.2016.1210394. Full text in Research Archive
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Johannsen, Dirk & Kirsch, Anja (2017). Religiöse Identitätsbildung. In Martínez, Matías (Eds.), Erzählen. Ein interdisziplinäres Handbuch. Verlag J. B. Metzler. ISSN 978-3-476-02510-4. p. 274–280. doi: 10.1007/978-3-476-05364-0_42.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2017). Erzählungen von Ende und Wiederkehr der Religion. Literatur- und Religionsverständnisse im nordischen Realismus. In Faber, Richard & Renger, Almut-Barbara (Ed.), Religion und Literatur. Konvergenzen und Divergenzen. Verlag Königshausen & Neumann. ISSN 978-3-8260-5495-2. p. 211–229.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Kirsch, Anja (2016). The history of religions read as fantasy: On the construction of (religious) ambiguity in the television show lost. Journal of Religion and Popular Culture (JRPC). ISSN 1703-289X. 28(2-3), p. 163–177. doi: 10.3138/jrpc.28.2-3.3459. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2016). On elves and freethinkers: criticism of religion and the emergence of the literary fantastic in Nordic literature. Religion. ISSN 0048-721X. 46(4), p. 591–610. doi: 10.1080/0048721X.2016.1210394. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Kirsch, Anja (2015). 'Religion' als Stilmittel der Fantastik. Eine wirkungstheoretische Betrachtung der Fernsehserie LOST. In Mohn, Jürgen & Mohr, Hubert (Ed.), Die Medien der Religion. Pano Verlag. ISSN 978-3-290-22012-9. p. 197–224.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2015). Begriffe und Zusammenhänge: Okkultismus und Magie. In Bietenhard, Sophia; Helbling, Dominik & Schmid, Kuno (Ed.), Ethik, Religionen, Gemeinschaft. Ein Studienbuch. hep Verlag. ISSN 978-3-0355-0273-2. p. 306–312. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Bleisch, Petra (2015). Der Beitrag der Religionswissenschaft zur Didaktik im Fachbereich "Ethik, Religionen, Gemeinschaft". In Bietenhard, Sophia; Helbling, Dominik & Schmid, Kuno (Ed.), Ethik, Religionen, Gemeinschaft. Ein Studienbuch. hep Verlag. ISSN 978-3-0355-0273-2. p. 213–219. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Bleisch, Petra (2015). Entwicklungstheorien und die Strukturen religiösen Denkens in kognitionswissenschaftlicher Perspektive. In Bietenhard, Sophia; Helbling, Dominik & Schmid, Kuno (Ed.), Ethik, Religionen, Gemeinschaft. Ein Studienbuch. hep Verlag. ISSN 978-3-0355-0273-2. p. 128–136. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2014). Tvilsomme historier. Politikk, fortellerkunst og det overnaturlige. In Esborg, Line & Johannsen, Dirk (Ed.), "En vild endevending av al virkelighet" - Norsk Folkeminnesamling i hundre år. Novus Forlag. ISSN 978-82-7099-772-5. p. 161–171.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2014). Erzählungen vom Fremden: Zur numinosen Struktur des Motivs der Bergentrückung in der skandinavischen Überlieferung. Hôrin. ISSN 0945-9634. 17, p. 17–38.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2013). Two Types of Magic in One Tradition? A Cognitive-Historiographical Case Study on the Interplay of Narratives and Rituals. In Ahn, Gregor; Nünning, Vera & Rupp, Jan (Ed.), Ritual and Narrative. Theoretical Explorations and Historical Case Studies. Transcript Verlag. ISSN 978-3-8376-2532-5. p. 165–187. doi: 10.14361/transcript.9783839425329.165.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2013). Erschriebene Religion. Die Vielfalt der Stimmen in den Religionserzählungen des modernen Durchbruchs. In Adogame, Afe; Echtler, Magnus & Freiberger, Oliver (Ed.), Alternative Voices. A Plurality Approach for Religious Studies. Essays in Honor of Ulrich Berner. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. ISSN 978-3-647-54017-7. p. 36–55. doi: 10.13109/9783666540172.36.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2013). Konstruktionsgeschichten. In Johannsen, Dirk & Brahier, Gabriela (Ed.), Konstruktionsgeschichten. Narrationsbezogene Ansätze in der Religionsforschung. Ergon-Verlag. ISSN 978-3899139457. p. 9–16. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2012). 'Religion' als diegetischer Raum. Eine narratologische Analyse von Rudolf Ottos Das Heilige. In Dietz, Thorsten & Matern, Harald (Ed.), Rudolf Otto. Subjekt und Religion. TVZ. ISSN 978-3290176082. p. 237–256.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Bleisch, Petra (2011). Deskriptorengeleitete Seminargestaltung. In Wehr, Silke & Tribelhorn, Thomas (Ed.), Bolognagerechte Hochschullehre. Beiträge aus der hochschuldidaktischen Praxis. Haupt Verlag. ISSN 978-3258076416. p. 15–35.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2011). Kognition und Narration. Zur Tradierung von Mythen. In Klöcker, Michael & Tworuschka, Udo (Ed.), Handbuch der Religionen. Olzog Verlag GmbH . ISSN 9783789299001. p. 1–12.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2011). No time to philosophize. Norwegian oral tradition and the cognitive economics of belief. In Martin, Luther H. & Sørensen, Jesper (Ed.), Past Minds: Studies in Cognitive Historiography. Equinox Publishing. ISSN 9781845537401. p. 77–88. doi: 10.4324/9781315478371-6.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Deschler-Erb, Sabine (2010). Introduction: Religion and Nature. In Borstner, Bojan; Gartner, Smiljana & Deschler-Erb, Sabine (Ed.), Historicizing Religion. Critical Approaches to Contemporary Concerns. EDIZIONI PLUS Pisa University Press. ISSN 978-8884927354. p. 159–164.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2010). Crossing the Ecotone. On the Narrative Representation of Nature as 'Wild'. In Borstner, Bojan; Gartner, Smiljana & Deschler-Erb, Sabine (Ed.), Historicizing Religion. Critical Approaches to Contemporary Concerns. EDIZIONI PLUS Pisa University Press. ISSN 978-8884927354. p. 233–248.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2010). Religion als Nebenprodukt der Evolution. Religionsgeschichte und die Modularität des Geistes. In Delgado, Mariano; Krüger, Oliver & Vergauwen, Guido (Ed.), Das Prinzip Evolution. Darwin und die Folgen für Religionstheorie und Philosophie. W. Kohlhammer GmbH. ISSN 978-3170215016. p. 221–238.
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Otto, Bernd-Christian & Johannsen, Dirk (2021). Fictional Practice: Magic, Narration, and the Power of Imagination. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-46600-5. 368 p. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk; Kirsch, Anja & Kreinath, Jens (2020). Narrative Cultures and the Aesthetics of Religion. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 9789004421677. 376 p. Show summary
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Esborg, Line & Johannsen, Dirk (2014). "En vild endevending av al virkelighet" - Norsk Folkeminnesamling i hundre år. Novus Forlag. ISBN 978-82-7099-772-5. 352 p.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Brahier, Gabriela (2013). Konstruktionsgeschichten. Narrationsbezogene Ansätze in der Religionsforschung. Ergon-Verlag. ISBN 978-3899139457. 428 p. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk (2008). Das Numinose als kulturwissenschaftliche Kategorie. Norwegische Sagenwelt in religionswissenschaftlicher Deutung. W. Kohlhammer GmbH. ISBN 978-3170205185. 288 p. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk; Kirsch, Anja & Kreinath, Jens (2020). Preface. In Johannsen, Dirk; Kirsch, Anja & Kreinath, Jens (Ed.), Narrative Cultures and the Aesthetics of Religion. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 9789004421677. p. VII–X. Show summary
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Johannsen, Dirk & Bowman, Marion Irene (2019). Continuations and Disruptions of Pilgrimage in Northern Europe.
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Ohrvik, Ane & Johannsen, Dirk (2019). "Re-Storied Places, New Pilgrims, and Old Saints: On the Heritagisation of Pilgrimage in Norway" .
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Ohrvik, Ane; Johannsen, Dirk & Bowman, Marion (2019). "How to be a pilgrim: Heritagisation religion in Norwegian pilgrimage".
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Esborg, Line & Johannsen, Dirk (2014). Forord: En vild endevending av al virkelighet. In Esborg, Line & Johannsen, Dirk (Ed.), "En vild endevending av al virkelighet" - Norsk Folkeminnesamling i hundre år. Novus Forlag. ISSN 978-82-7099-772-5. p. 9–16.
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Johannsen, Dirk (2010). Religion als evolutionäres Nebenprodukt. Prospektiv. Theologisches und Religionswissenschaftliches aus Basel. ISSN 1420-9934. p. 8–10.
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Johannsen, Dirk & Bleisch, Petra (2009). Interessengeleitetes Studium. Eine niveaudeskriptorenorientierte Neukonzeption religionswissenschaftlicher Einführungsseminare. Traveaux Did@ctique. Show summary
Published Oct. 15, 2013 12:45 PM
- Last modified Dec. 5, 2021 2:08 PM