JUDAIC STUDIES COURSE OFFERINGS
Winter 2000

102. Section 001. Elementary Biblical Hebrew, II. (3)
A continuation of ACABS 101 with increased emphasis on the Biblical Hebrew verbal system and syntax as presented in Seow's A Grammar for Biblical Hebrew (revised). Additionally, students will be introduced to select readings from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. Final grades will be based upon daily class performance and homework assignments, quizzes, and two exams. Prerequisite: ACABS 101. Cost: 1. (Schmidt) TTh 1–2:30PM, 3405 MH

As a continuation of ACABS 201, the students will be introduced to additional elements of Biblical Hebrew syntax and other aspects of advanced grammar. Further selected Biblical texts will be read, and their historical and literary backgrounds analyzed and discussed. Prerequisite: ACABS 201. (Krahmalkov) MW 10–12PM, 3217 MLB

This course encompasses a series of studies in the cultural and political histories of ancient Israel. Early Israelite history and religion from their beginnings to the aftermath of the 6th century CE Babylonian exile will be examined within their respective biblical and ancient Near Eastern contexts (i.e., Palestine-Israel, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, Persia, and Anatolia). Some selected topics for historical inquiry include Israel's origins, its pre-state civilization, the rise of the nation-state, and the post-monarchial and exilic communities. Central religious institutions, beliefs, and practices to be investigated include the palace, the temple, the rise of monotheism, prophecy, royal ideology, the priesthood, wisdom, magic, and the concepts of death and afterlife. No prerequisites. Critical reading and writing skills are cultivated and measured in a midterm exam requiring an analytical essay in addition to the student's response to various objective-style questions (30%) and in an end-of-the-term 15-page research paper (40%) submitted in two drafts, a preliminary and a final. Regular attendance (10%) and daily reading and written assignments (20%) are also essential components of the course. Cost: 2. (Schmidt) Lecture TTh 11:30–1PM, 2011 MLB

The course covers the history and religion of ancient Judaism from the Babylonian exile (6th century BCE) to the emergence of Rabbinic Judaism (3rd century CE). The liveliness of the period is testified by its many names. For the Jew, it is the "Second Temple Period" — the cradle of Jewish civilization. For the Christian, it is the "intertestamental period" between the Old and the New Testaments — the age in which Jesus was born and the Church arose. For the historian, it is all that and much more. It was an age of great conflicts, in which the Jewish people had to face powerful neighbors and rulers: the Egyptians and the Babylonians, the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans. But it was also an age of great creativeness, in which different varieties of Judaism (including the early Christian movement) developed sophisticated and lasting theologies and restlessly struggled for supremacy or simply survival. No prerequisites. Course grade is based on attendance and daily readings of primary sources, midterm, final examination and a term paper. Cost: 2 (Boccaccini) MW 10–11:30AM, 2011 MLB

This class will offer: an overview of 3,000 years of Jewish Civilization, from its Near Eastern roots to contemporary times, from the rabbis to the uncertainties of the year 2000; a social and intellectual history of Judaism with emphasis on the interaction between Jewish and non-Jewish cultures and civilizations; and an interactive and interdisciplinary experience for the student, with the instructor providing the general framework in introductory presentations, U-M specialists in Judaic Studies offering guest lectures on the major topics of Jewish history and religion, and discussion sessions giving the opportunity for direct contact with primary sources. Grades are based on attendance, daily readings of primary sources, midterm, final examination and a term paper. Cost: 2. (Boccaccini) MW 2:30–4PM, 2011 MLB

A study of the Holocaust as a historical event and its impact on Jewish thought and culture. We first survey the historical context: the European Jewish community on the eve of the destruction, and the events leading up to and culminating in that destruction. We will then focus on inner Jewish (and gentile) reactions to the Holocaust, and broader philosophical and ethical implications. We ask: What are the problems (moral, emotional, conceptual) in reading and writing about the Holocaust? What are its implications for those of us who come "after"? The course is also a meditation on visions of the Other, on ethnic-religious hatred, tolerance, and healing. Course materials include memoirs, poetry, fiction, psychological literature, as well as conversations with survivors. Take-home midterm; final exam; 5–8 page paper; journal. Cost: 3–4 (Ginsburg) TTh 2:30–4PM, 1210 Chem

This course is a continuation of the Hebrew sequence comprising the second term of the third-year Hebrew class. The focus will be on developing proficiency in all five languages skills. Student participation is an essential part of the course. Readings will include short works of fiction as well as journalistic pieces. This will be supplemented by other media, including music, video, recordings, readings, etc. Students' grades will be determined on the basis of assignments, participation (including in-class presentations), and a final exam. Prerequisite: HJCS 301; participation in Hebrew 301, offered in the previous term, is not required if the student is at the advanced level. (Tsoffar) MW 10–11:30AM, G243 AH

Emphasis is on reading and listening and viewing comprehension. There is a particular emphasis on the expansion of vocabulary in the domain of current events and the development of discussion skills. Course materials are based on the social genre of the communications media (newspapers and television). Unedited newspaper selections will be read, and news broadcasts and television programs will be used in the class in the language laboratory. Grades will be based on two exams and special projects. Prerequisite: HJCS 202. (Coffin) TTH 11:30AM–1PM, 3405 MH

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to contemporary Israeli literatures and films while at the same time developing a theoretical framework that approaches these as part of Israeli cultural production. While studying specific strategies to articulate Israeli diversity of gender, religion, history and nationhood, we will discuss relevant issues related to cultural studies such as colonialism, hybridity, Orientalism, and multiculturalism. The texts and films selected include a wide range of works by and about the Zionist pioneers, the second generation of immigrants to Israel, Holocaust survivors, women, Sephardic/Mizrahi Jews and Palestinians. This course is open to undergraduates and graduate students. Graduate students have additional assignments and are expected to write a longer and more theoretically-oriented paper. Prerequisite: HJCS 302. (Tsoffar) MW 2:30–4PM, 3012 FB

A study of Mishna Tractate Gittin, chapters 4–5 (decrees and ordinances preventing bad legal consequences), together with some passages of the Babylonian Talmud, same tractate and same chapters. Students should be able to read texts in Hebrew with the aid of an English translation. Cost: 1. (Herr) TTh 4–5:30PM, 1502 FB

Many are conscious of the conflict between "Israel and the Arabs" — those Arabs overruled by the sovereign Jewish state and those encompassing it. Less familiar is the encounter between Jews and Muslims during the Middle Ages, when a large majority of the Jewish people were under Muslim rule. This course is an introduction to that fundamental encounter and to its treatment in twentieth-century scholarly literature. Setting the stage is an overview of the religious, political, communal, material, and intellectual settings of the Judeo-Muslim experience. The famous Cairo Geniza is introduced as a paramount source of information for the topic and period. In the second part of the course a series of cross-cultural issues is addressed, beginning with the questions of cross-pollination between the two traditions — and how scholarship focusing on early Judeo-Muslim encounters reflects modern-day agendas. Other themes are the legal status of the Jews in theory and practice; religious polemics — how Muslims viewed the Jews and how Jews viewed the dominant religion; and Messianic activity and religious unorthodoxy as arenas of interaction between members of the two denominations. The final theme is a thoroughly practical aspect of the encounter: the challenge posed to Jewish judicial autonomy by Jews who elected to solve family feuds in Muslim rather than in Jewish venues of dispute resolution. This upper-level undergraduate course adopts an interdisciplinary approach to the study of history and should engage students interested in Jewish history and culture, Islamic history and culture, ethnicity, religion, and law. Emphasis is placed on classroom analyses of translated primary source material, informed by preparatory readings. Cost 2 (Hollander) MW 4:00–5:30PM, 3004FB

A study of Jewish attitude vis-à-vis Christians and Christianity between 70–395 C.E. according to Rabbinic literature, set against the background of Christian polemical attitude towards Jews and Judaism. The various stages of Jewish polemics against early Christianity will be fully discussed and evaluated. These polemics will also be compared to pagan Greco-Roman polemics against early Christianity. This course is intended for students of Near Eastern Studies, Judaic Studies, Religious Studies, and Ancient History. Cost: 1. (Herr) TTh 2:30–4 PM, 3529 FB

This course is run on a seminar basis and is based on a selection of contemporary Israeli works of fiction, films, and plays. Emphasis is on readings, discussion, and analyses. Contemporary short stories, novels, poems, and plays serve as the basis for discussion. Grades will be based on written and oral assignments and two examinations. Advanced knowledge of Hebrew is required for the course. Prerequisite: HJCS 302. (Coffin) TTH 2:30–4:00PM, 3405 MH

This seminar explores several key examples of Jewish spiritual questing and renewal in the 20th century. Among the sources to be explored are Martin Buber and his theology of the holiness of relationship (pan-sacramental urge); the communitarian "religion of labor" and longing for wholeness developed by early Zionist writers and kibbutzniks; the intentional community around Kalonymous Kalman Shapira, the rebbe of the Warsaw ghetto, who developed a mystical fellowship and practice of soul-quieting/silence that bears interesting parallels to Vipassana mediation. Over half the course will be devoted to works (texts, memoirs, theology, devotional music) emerging from the so-called "Jewish renewal movement," which seeks sources as diverse as feminism, deep ecology, East Asian contemplative traditions, and "the politics of meaning." Authors to read include Arthur Green, Arthur Waskow, Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Judith Plaskow, Tikkun magazine editor Michael Lerner, Tirzah Firestone, Sylvia Boorstein, and Rodger Kamenetz. (These latter figures explore the growing contemporary interchange between certain Buddhist and Jewish practices). We ask: how do these experiments alter/depart from/up-end/deepen traditional Jewish practices and spiritual direction? In so doing we raise questions regarding the multi-form shape and volatile nature of "Judaism" at the turn of the 21st century. As a final counterpart (or exclamation point), we will explore examples of engaged Orthodox renewal, and the spiritual skepticism and quest of Leon Wieseltier. The course is conducted as a seminar, with a good deal of give-and-take. It calls for both intellectual rigor and engagement: to understand Judaism not only as "argument" but as "deep song." Occasional film, music, and examples of contemplative practice will deepen our inquiry. Background in Judaic Studies or the study of Religion (including contemplative traditions) is helpful. Short essays, term paper. (Ginsburg) W 3–5PM, 2108 MLB

This course surveys the history of the Jewish people in Europe, America, and the Middle East over the last one hundred years. The course begins with the rise of virulent forms of anti-semitism at the end of the nineteenth century and examines how this undermined Jewish assimilation in Western Europe and dashed all hope for emancipation in Eastern Europe. The course then considers the various ways in which Jews responded to this new crisis: nationalism, revolutionary socialism, emigration, assimilationist defense activities, and conversion. The last third of the course is devoted to the drama and often tragic events of the twentieth century that totally changed the face of world Jewry — the Bolshevik revolution, the Holocaust, the creation of the State of Israel, and the emergence of the American Jewish community as the largest and most secure community in the history of the diaspora. There will be a midterm and a 10–12 page paper. Cost: 3. (Endelman) MWF 2–3PM

Do processes of inquisition, segregation, discrimination or persecution produce minority identities or transform their configuration? To investigate this theme we will consider a selection of medieval case studies, studying the historical development of church and state policies concerning people labeled as heretics, Jews, sodomites, prostitutes, lepers, and Gypsies. Our readings will include some medieval philosophical discussion of the notion of tolerance. We will also consider the images of these social types as presented in visual or literary sources, and, where possible, the self-definition or response of these groups to the dominant society. Students will have the opportunity to pursue their interests by focusing term papers and presentations on one particular minority group or identity in the medieval Christian world. (Siegmund) TTh 10–11:30AM, 3419 MH

The separate histories of the Church and of Jews in the Italian states provide context for the critical interactions between the two. Moving chronologically and reading secondary and primary sources that include legislation, inquisitorial transcripts, sermons, plays and visual iconography, we examine three main topics: the activities of itinerant preachers in the 1470s, the inquisition of Marranos and Lutheran heretics, and the program of the Catholic Reformation. What can we learn about the history of Christianity from discussions of Jews in Christian laws, sermons, plays and art? How important was the "otherness" of Christians for Jewish self-definition, or of Jews for Christian self-definition? In addition to thematic papers, a paper based on a primary source (in translation or in the original language) will allow you to deepen your understanding of the relationship between Jews and Christians in late Renaissance Italy. Prerequisite: Upper-class standing. (Siegmund) W 10AM–1PM

This is the second of a two-term sequence designed to develop basic skills in speaking, understanding, reading, and writing Yiddish. Active class participation is required as are periodic quizzes, exams, a midterm and final. Prerequisite: Yiddish 101. (Nysenholc) MWF 1–2PM, 3528 FB

This is the fourth term of a language sequence in Yiddish. The course is designed to develop fluency in oral and written comprehension, and to offer a further understanding of the culture within which Yiddish has developed. Special emphasis will be devoted to reading material. Course grade will be based on exams, quizzes, written work, and oral class participation. Prerequisite: Yiddish 201. (Nysenholc) MWF 2–3PM, 3518 FB

We will study how the consciousness of Yiddish as a Jewish national language emerged and developed and how modern Yiddish writers construct, explore and explode myths of Jewish nationalism. We will discuss such questions as: Why is Yiddish chosen for cultural expression? What is the significance of writing in a homeless language? How is Jewish nationalism understood and configured in this literature? How do these writers relate to a Jewish homeland, to Jewish tradition and history, to other national literatures? To explore these issues, we will read a selection of texts in various genres (fiction, poetry, drama, essays), from different periods (from the nineteenth century to the aftermath of the Holocaust), and from Eastern Europe as well as America. Possible authors will include the classic Yiddish fiction writers (Mendele Moykher-Sforim, Sholem Aleykhem, I.L. Peretz), playwright Sh. Ansky, Nobel Prize winner I.B. Singer, poets Mani Leyb, Moyshe-Leyb Halpern, Kadya Molodovsky, Dovid Hofshteyn, Itsik Feffer, Yankev Glatshteyn, Avrom Sutzkever. When appropriate, we will complement our exploration with examples from film, music and the visual arts. Course requirements: attendance, participation, one group-led discussion (if class size permits), short response papers, one longer paper and a final. Cost: 2 (Nysenholc) TTh 1–2:30PM

452. Section 001. Israel Society and Politics

Israel is a microcosm of important political processes and issues common to many polities around the world. This course examines some of these, including ideology and nation-building; how the state manages a multi-ethnic society; the intersection of ethnicity, religion and the state; the role of political parties; the relationship of domestic to foreign policies; the nature and consequences of proportional representation and coalition formation. We take up some of the more contentious issues in contemporary Israel politics: the role of religion in public life, relations between Jews and Arabs and between Ashkenazi and Sefardi Jews, the resettlement of immigrants from Ethiopia and the former Soviet Union. Course requirements include a mid-term exam or a paper and a final exam. (Gitelman) MW 8:30–10AM