Spring 2021 Courses

NEJS 135A — The Modern Jewish Experience

Eugene R. Sheppard — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Themes include Enlightenment, Hasidism, emancipation, Jewish identity in the modern world (acculturation and assimilation), development of dominant nationalism in Judaism, Zionism, European Jewry between the world wars, Holocaust, the creation of the State of Israel, and contemporary Jewish life in America, Israel, and Europe. Usually offered every year.

NEJS 160B — Legal Controversies in Israeli History

Alexander Kaye — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Investigates Israeli history, politics, and culture through the lens of major legal controversies including the tension between "Jewish" and "democratic," the Shoah in Israeli history, the Occupied Territories, legislation of family life and religious practice and more. Usually offered every second year.

NEJS 166A — Carnal Israel: Exploring Jewish Sexuality from Talmudic Times to the Present

ChaeRan Freeze — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Explores the construction of Jewish sexuality from Talmudic times to the present. Themes include rabbinic views of sex, niddah, illicit relations, masculinity, medieval erotic poetry, Ashkenazi and Sephardic sexual practices, and sexual symbolism in mystic literature; the discourse on sex, race, and nationalism in Europe; debates about masculinity, sexual orientation, and stereotypes in America and Israel. Usually offered every third year.

NEJS 173A — Trauma and Violence in Israeli Literature and Film

Ilana Szobel — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Taught in Hebrew. Explores trauma and violence in Israeli Literature, film, and art. Focuses on man-made disasters, war and terrorism, sexual and family violence, and murder and suicide, and examines their relation to nationalism, Zionism, gender, and sexual identity. Usually offered every second year.

NEJS 181A — Jews on Screen: From "Cohen's Fire Sale" to the Coen Brothers

Sharon Pucker Rivo — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Survey course focusing on moving images of Jews and Jewish life in fiction and factual films. Includes early Russian and American silents, home movies of European Jews, Yiddish feature films, Israeli cinema, independent films, and Hollywood classics. Usually offered every second year.

NEJS 184B — Disability Cultures: Art, Film and Literature of People with Disabilities

Ilana Szobel — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Explores cultural representations of disability in Israel, Europe, and the US. By focusing on literature, film, dance, and visual art, it explores physical, mental, and emotional disability experiences, and their relations to gender, sexuality, nationalism, and identity politics. Usually offered every second year.

NEJS 192B — Power, Morality and Identity: Jewish Political Thought

Yehudah Mirsky — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Explores the political thought of the Jewish people from biblical times to the present. Surveys the different genres in which Jewish thinkers have addressed political questions. Deals with questions of political legitimacy and authority: Who should rule over the Jewish people? (God, kings, priests, prophets, rabbis, lay leaders and the elected leaders of Israel today). Readiness include selections from the Bible and Talmud, midrashic literature, legal responsa, treatises, and pamphlets. Usually offered every second year.

NEJS 236A — Seminar on Modern Jewish and Israeli History and Historiography

Alexander Kaye — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Strongly recommended for all graduate students in Judaic studies. Aims to introduce students to the emergence of history as an academic discipline in the nineteenth century and to provide some acquaintance with the classics of historical scholarship. It will also examine the emergence of Jewish historiography and analyze critically the works of the major Jewish historians. In addition, it will assess the contributions of the "new" historians to historical understanding and see how far their insights can aid in the study of key problems in Jewish history. Usually offered every second year.

POL 170A — Nuclear Weapons and International Security

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HBRW 34A — Intermediate Hebrew II: Aspects of Israeli Culture

Guy Antebi — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
A continuation of HBRW 20b. A beginner-intermediate level course that helps students strengthen their reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. Contemporary cultural aspects will be stressed and a variety of materials will be used. Usually offered every semester.

HBRW 44B — Advanced Intermediate Hebrew: Israeli Culture and Media

Guy Antebi — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Reinforces the acquired skills of speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing at the intermediate level. Contemporary cultural aspects are stressed; conversational Hebrew and reading of selections from modern literature. Usually offered every semester.

HBRW 152B — Ethnic Minorities in the Modern State of Israel

Rima Farah — Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Examines the cultures and institutions of ethnic minorities in Israel. By examining and discussing the cultural characteristics and political activism of non-Jewish communities in Israel, this course exposes students to various faces of Israeli society, and to its multi-ethnic and multi-cultural identity. Special one-time offering, spring 2021.

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