Plagiarising theory: performance and religion?

Abstract

Can a book that describes itself as Theory for Religious Studies simply slip off its cover and put on a new one saying Theory for Performance Studies, and still work? Can one critical theory framework fit all humanities disciplines? According to Richard Schechner, Philip Auslander seems to think so. He has accused him of plagiarising a book written for Religious Studies and transferring it, wholesale, onto Performance Studies. This article will examine the two books by focusing, not on what Auslander retains of the original Religious Studies text, but by considering the editorial interventions he makes. It will examine how, by removing Christianity whilst retaining Buddhism, in the entry for Slavoj Žižek, Auslander's editorial process can be seen, perhaps, to be both symptomatic and illustrative of Performance Studies' relationship to religious practices that are perceived to be traditionally Western, and predominantly Christian.

Keywords:

• performance studies
• religious studies
• Slavoj Žižek
• Christianity
• Philip Auslander
• Plagiarism