CRN |
94034 |
Distribution |
C / * (Humanities) |
Course
No. |
JS 101 *Rethinking Difference |
||
Title |
An
Introduction to Jewish Studies |
||
Professor |
Cecile
Kuznitz |
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Schedule |
Tu Th 10:00 am - 11:20 am OLIN 306 |
This interdisciplinary course will introduce
students to major themes in the field of Jewish Studies. The primary focus will
be on the history of the Jewish people and on Judaism as a religion, but we
will also examine topics in Jewish literature, society, and politics. The
course will treat selected themes from the Biblical period to the present, but
with a greater emphasis on the medieval and especially the modern period. Among
the issues to be explored: What role has the Land of Israel played in Jewish
life, and how have Jews responded to their nearly 2,000-year experience of
exile and Diaspora? How have they negotiated both the “push” of antisemitism
and the “pull” of assimilation to maintain distinct forms of community and
identity? What role have various types of texts played in Jewish culture, and
what is their relationship to lived Jewish experience? Finally, what are the
implications of such momentous recent events as the Holocaust, the
establishment of the State of Israel, and the rise of the American Jewish
community?